Hey Up – Where are you right now?
I’m in London right now looking out my window drawing some inspiration from the world and what I see and feel to write more material.
What are you early experiences with music? How have they led you to where you are now?
The first time I ever sang was in a church when I was 14 for a couple school friends who played in a band at their local church in South London. I was handed a mic and was told to just sing and freestyle over the soulful jazzy R&B-type vibe they were playing at the time and yeah, I’ve been singing ever since. After some time, I went on to sing in an R&B group inspired by Jodeci, Dru Hill, H-Town and a lot of 90’s HipHop & R&B artists. After that, I went on to sing in multiple electronic bands which is a style of music I love, having grown up in London where electronic music was always big over here. Everything from drum n bass to house music was always around when I was young. To this day I’m inspired by old school garage and based my early style on Groove Chronicles who made both of my favourite garage tunes back in the day: ‘Stonecold’ and ‘We Get Down’. When I heard them sample Aaliyah or Mariah Carey over that London sound that Groove Chronicles had back then, I knew that soulful 90’s vocals work smooth over electronic music – like ‘Talk to Me You’ll Understand’ by Ross From Friends.
You’ve now released singles ‘Better Tomorrow’ and ‘Songbird’, what influenced the sound and song writing here?
My writing as well as producing comes from nothing but feeling and deep emotions that are sometimes buried deep at the back of my heart and mind. ‘Better Tomorrow’ was written on the basis of the title, wishing everyone and everything a brighter future through the dark times we go through in life. ‘Songbird’ is about love of course and sharing that special moment with the one you truly love. For me there is no better feeling than true love.
What does it mean to you to be able to share your music since your debut?
Through my previous experiences in music being in bands and groups it’s quite scary at first releasing anything because I’m solo now. But through the love I’ve been receiving and the support… it’s a beautiful feeling.
Can you tell us a bit more about your recording and production process?
I use Ableton Live to produce and usually base my production around a warm pad or melody that makes me feel like I’m flying. Ha! Growing up my favourite superhero was Silver Surfer so whenever I’m producing music, If, it makes me feel like I’m Silver Surfer and I’m gliding through the galaxy across the universe I know I’m on the right track. Then yeah, I punch it all in and then the drums come last for me. Same for recording vocals, I like to sit and be relaxed with dimmed lights to set the mood while I record.
Who are your influences and who are you currently listening to? Is there anybody you aspire to?
I’ve been inspired by early N.E.R.D., Tyler the Creator, Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, Curtis Mayfield. From Roy Ayers to Sampha, from James Blake to Frank Ocean, I can go on and on… I’m currently listening to a lot of Sade, as well as Janet Jackson, Saba and a new artist called Jenevieve… her track ‘Medallion’ is my favourite song of hers. Oh, and just a lot of early 90’s hip hop, that stuff is always on rotation.
Is there anything else you like to do away from music?
Outside of music I love to skateboard… I mean street skate, no skate parks just yet, I can’t do tricks and all that. I just like to cruise the streets.
What’s your plans for the rest of the year?
My plan for the rest of the year is to continue writing new material for my first full-length album for next year. I make music every day and also do a bit of writing for other artists. I’m forever working on my craft and trying to evolve into the artist I’ve always envisioned myself as.
Tell us something interesting about yourself, that people wouldn’t know.
I was an academy football player when I was a kid. I played for Watford for 3 years and Fulham for 2. I got released after 5 years of some great memories of my life and now I still coach kids and teach them everything I know and learned when I was playing.
Anything else you’d like to share?
In addition to the singles, I’m releasing on streaming platforms, I finished a 14-song mixtape called ‘The VagueTape’ that I’ve been drip-releasing on my YouTube and Soundcloud channels, one track every 3-4 weeks. The Tape is all new songs I wrote over some of my favourite Hip Hop & Lo Fi House beats spanning the past 20 years. It actually started out as a kinda joke, but I wound up vibing out 75% of the songs in one evening. I just dropped the latest instalment ‘Trust In You (Aquamarine)’ last Friday.
