Features
Feature: UraelB
![UraelB](https://soundofulive.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/IMG_3127.jpg)
Growing up on the streets of South Central in Los Angeles, UraelB has been delicately crafting his art since the age of 13. Combining funk and hip hop to spit unmatchable bars, UraelB turns heads with his cadence and infectiously good vibes.
To follow up his well received album, DemiGod: Parallel Universe, which was released in 2020 and featured in Buzz Music, UraelB dropped his first EP of 2023, Flight 772, in collaboration with rap artist and friend, Isaiah Bowers. Not even a month later, he dropped his live project, UraelB (Unplugged), featuring three live tracks including hit songs, ‘Groovy’ and ‘Shadowboxing,” and their two studio versions. UraelB has been catching the eye of many established artists in the hip hop scene wearing collaborations with Nelly and Mick Jenkins on his belt. His thoughtful and intentional lyrics are paving the way to success in hand with his label, Respect the Real.
Maralize Carreon sat down with UraelB to analyze the meaning of his song ‘Grammy,’ the importance of diversifying your music even if it means in songs you’ve already released, and how it feels working with one of your biggest inspirations.
In your music, I can tell that you really value your roots and where you come from. Like, in your song, ‘Grammy,’ you kind of speak on doing it for your family, your people, and your community that’s held you up. So I was just wondering, is ‘Grammy’ alluding to the future and like an ode to your people? Can you tell me what Inglewood means to you?
Yeah, that was a very specific question. I like that. Truthfully. Yeah, it does allude to the future. That’s what the whole song is about. The song is about me making sure that whatever I do now sets the future up for the better, not just for myself, but the people around me.
And when it comes to its meaning to the city, the best part about doing what I do or knowing that I want to make an impact the way I want to means that the other people around me who grew up in the same areas as me, who are in the same environments as me and who have similar upbringing and similar influences, because they’re from the same city, I can help them the best, because I walk that path right before them. So it lets me know that nothing I’m doing is isolated because I have a bunch of people looking after me, whether they did it before me or they’re doing it after me. I’m planning to be a role model for not only people coming up after me, but anybody who dedicates their life to doing something for the better.
So I noticed that you’ve been speaking on the Music Forward Foundation music industry panels the last few weeks. What was that experience like? And what was something that you learned?
Speaking on a music industry panel, on that particular panel, it reminded me, like I was saying just a second ago, what it feels like to be back in those shoes. Coming up, growing up in LA, and having to sit in high school or sit in front of people who are professionals in their careers, really dissecting and wondering what it is that helped them get to where they were.
And being on the opposite end of that now, having to tell about my story, honestly helped me realize how much I’ve done so far and made me realize that I can actually teach this or give
examples of how you can get somewhere step by step or with the blueprint to where I am, because I can explain it to people now.
So it was a beautiful realization for me. Always love being in a position to inspire and reflect and give other people that opportunity to see not only music industry people, but entertainers in general, in the boat of, you’re just like me. I came from where you came from, and I’m a person. At the end of the day, there might be this allure or glorification around me and what I do, but I’m still just a person. So as amazing as you can see me, you can be that amazing too.
I love that. I feel like it’s really hard as a listener when you don’t know an artist personally, to really humanize them. So I love that you’re taking the time to go out and actually talk to people. I really respect that. So as the CEO and founder of Respect The Real (R.T.R) collective, what’s the story behind the label and what was your reason for starting it?
The reason I started Respect The Real and the whole purpose of it was to protect myself and have a foundation of having a business blueprint if I was going to take music seriously.
So jumping into doing as much as I can with music, I needed to have a foundation and a backing. Respect the Real, the name, the mantra, the entire brand, came to me naturally, and I decided that whoever was willing to work with me when I started it, and since then, I’ll be open arms, allowing them to contribute and put forth their effort into being a part of the collective.
So a bunch of people have come and gone, and the people who are still here now, they still resonate with the mantra. They decided themselves that they wanted to take their careers further as well. And we all just help each other. It’s nothing limiting to the collective or being a part of the brand and label, because a lot of what we do is just about moving forward and pushing things to a further level. And when it comes to deciding to really submit this into the industry, I knew that as long as I kept something authentic to myself, no matter what type of positions I got in or how much influence I had, I could have an Apple, I could have a Disney, I can have a larger than life brand and company that lived on beyond me, because people have seen it grow from the ground up, and people have seen me at the face of it. And other people come along and really put on something organic and genuine that all people, as long as you’re willing to connect with good people, can connect with.
So I think a lot of my time spent building up the label has just been making sure people see it in whatever ways they can, making sure people see the business behind it, and making sure people understand that there’s not a lot of people like me doing what I do. So that’s another thing that makes me special.
So what are your goals for the next year, with the label and everything? Do you have any specific goals?
Truth be told, I want to profit. That’s one of the main goals. Because not only being independent, but just having a corporation in general, it takes so much more to get it off of the ground and in a space where it’s comfortable and it keeps itself afloat that a lot of people don’t understand. And on top of me, knowing that I’m doing better musically and I have a lot of things going for me
opportunity wise, that means I have to keep my business also in that space of growing and getting better and having more to offer to the world. Not just from a protection and legal standpoint for myself, but like I said, to continue having a really large life brand. Aside from that, when it comes to me personally deciding that every year I should get better, I want to drop my album next year and have it be a critically acclaimed album, the best album of the year.
And I want to have a lot of people flock to me, not only just for the music, but for what I represent and everything that I bring to the table as a person in this industry, knowing that I have a lot to give and, yeah, time tells all and I can’t force everything to happen next year, but I do want to take that next step to becoming an icon and superstar is coming.
Right. And I think that you’ve really grown incredibly as an artist this year, from your bars to your music production. So how has the process kind of been? What are some things that you learned about the musical process, growth as an artist, and personally?
Yeah. One of the main things I’ve been harping on all year to different people, is that I had to live life to actually finish making music. I had a bunch of music that I worked on early in 2018 and 2019 for my album, that I’m putting out this coming year, and I knew exactly what I wanted the concept to be. I knew the stories I wanted to tell. But it took me a good five years to actually be able to put it down on paper and on a song so that it could be the way I wanted it to be. And forcing myself to have done it at that time when I first created it would have been undercooking it, underbaking it, and not letting it simmer and marinate to where it can be right now and living life and telling myself that there’s no rush, greatness will happen.
Timeless moments are literally timeless. It doesn’t matter when you put it out, as long as it feels good, it’ll be the best thing you’ve made. So taking the time to not force and rush things and give myself the opportunity to feel more than think has been one of the best things I’ve done.
Aside from that, deciding that whatever I do, I will get better at it, even if it’s not the best right now, I have to keep moving forward. I recently forget who I was listening to, but I recently listened to some podcast or something I was watching on YouTube and they said, “Done completed is better than perfect.” So since I heard that, I’ve been living by that, and I also told myself, perfect doesn’t exist unless people hear it and see it and they deem it perfect. So no matter what you think, it’s always going to be better. Just get it completed and you feel good about it versus holding on to it or telling yourself it’s not perfect. It has to be a certain way, because that way nobody will ever hear it. And that’s one of the most important things about music, is the fact that you can share your art and connect with other people.
I noticed that you did a remake of ‘Groovy’ and ‘Shadowboxing’ in your EP, Uraelb (Unplugged). And I was watching your live performance videos and those are really fire. It really shows your range of talent. You can rap on top of groovy funk and jazz, but at the same time hop on more traditional rap beats and rhythms like on your other EP, Flight 772. So why did you decide to do a live EP and remake ‘Groovy’ and ‘Shadowboxing’ and re-release that this year?
Well, I’ve always liked performing and having a band in general to accompany my artistry. So when it came time to do a live EP, I knew that rappers and hip hop people weren’t doing it. So of course that’s the best thing to do right now, is do what others aren’t. And I know I’m great at it, so to have to put it out there, that was one of the main reasons. Then in addition to that, I’ve always felt like my music had a purpose and a grander fulfillment it needed to reach. So repurposing songs I dropped a couple of years ago into live versions not only gave people a chance to hear those songs, but gave them new renditions of it. A lot of my favorite artists and people I listen to have plenty of versions of the same songs I love, whether it’s a live version, an acoustic version.
You know, sometimes people put different music on their music videos and it doesn’t sound like the album or single version. So I always love finding new ways to repurpose my art and also giving new people a chance to discover it. So the EP was solely for that, to put myself out there with something new that other people in my field weren’t doing and also to repurpose it so that more people can hear it. It just continued to propel itself and push itself.
I really love the live version of ‘Groovy.’ I remember listening to it when we were on radio earlier this year, and then I was like, oh, you released it again. And I was listening to it and I was like, it sounds really cool with the live band. I feel like live bands really elevate music, whether it’s rap or whatever.
Yeah, that’s the one song I have that it’s played different every single time. I’ve never done the same version of this song ever.
Okay, so next question. Your cadence and your bars, they flow so seamlessly. And you can just tell that you’ve really crafted your sound to be really amazing. It’s very telling of who you are and what you want to talk about. And I feel like everything that you make, it’s always intentional. So I wanted to ask, how did you craft your flow? And I know you have a history with poetry, and so how do you find your inspiration for your lyrics?
Yeah, one of the best things I’ve been able to do is to study and listen to a bunch of music and artists, even if it’s not in the hip hop genre. But one thing I did learn recently that I didn’t know at first, but I was glad I kind of put two and two together, was that Rakim, one of the hip hop artists that I’ve listened to for a while. He was one of the first artists to do like, internal rhyming in the hip hop space in the 80s. Internal rhyming is where you don’t just rhyme the ending lines, you rhyme in between before you get to the final word. And a bunch of artists I’ve been inspired by, like Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, and other people, they’ve been doing that since then, but he was the first, and going back to study him and a bunch of other people just gave me a bunch of things to pull from and a bunch of different arsenal tools to actually create the words and the rhymes I use.
I also watched Battle Rap a lot. That’s one of the other spots in the music space or hip hop space that I gravitate towards because those are some of the best lyricists in the world. A lot of people know about them, but a lot of people don’t. And they craft things beautifully. So just absorbing that level of talent and that level of creativity adds to my own, always make things my own and different on top of that. Just having different musical tastes and backgrounds, learning
from different places has always been something I unconsciously and subconsciously do in my music.
I never try to do the same thing over and over again and the same thing all the time. And that goes to show you that the different music I listen to adds to that flavor and decision-making. I can’t keep it the same all the time. Like I said, ‘Groovy,’ I never perform that the same, ever. It always changes every time I do it. And a bunch of the best musical performances have nuances to them that you won’t get unless you listen to it right then and there, you have to catch it in the moment. And I want to make every single song a moment for people, not just repetitive over and over again. You can listen to this and get exactly what you were looking for. So I like layering my music and having people find different things every time they listen to it.
So what’s your lyrical process like then? I know when people write songs, they just freestyle and then they, you know, tweak that afterwards or some people will like to sit down and write first.
This changed so much over the years. I used to be the person that would write before I ever got a beat or ever heard the music because I could just continue writing ideas and making them connect.
And then I turned into the person that would feel the music and always listen to the beat and add it, speak to me. And then I would pull lyrics out of that. But recently, I’ve honestly stopped writing things down. I’ve been creating things in my head, just giving myself the blueprint. I have a beat, I have a BPM, and this is the way it feels. Now you can write to that and give yourself time and space to think versus the limit to, you know, your phone in the notepad, writing it down on paper. I kind of just let my mind run amuck and do whatever it wants, especially lyrically. Knowing that I’m at a good point where my vocabulary is deep. I’ve said a lot like this only so much you can say when you’re on a song. So sometimes limiting yourself with writing things down is honestly one of the most creative things you can do and stop doing, push yourself to a new boundary.
A lot of my favorite artists don’t write any of their rhymes. So when I decided I wasn’t going to do it either, it actually opened up a new brain mass for me. I didn’t even know I could do it. I’m doing it all because that feels good.
So when you freestyle, is there always a topic in your head that you’re thinking of? Or it’s kind of just what you’re feeling in the moment.
Yeah, it’s what I’m feeling. Recently, I was writing to this beat and the only thing I had was the first line. Like I was listening to it. I came up with a really cool first line. And I just ran with that. Everything after that was a free form of thoughts and my train of thought, leading from one thing to the next. And I never know where I’m gonna take songs until it’s done. But at the end of the day, I always make it connect somehow. Even if I’m not sure exactly what I’m doing, it ends up connecting at the end of the day.
So a lot of my skills now are just from constant practice and constantly doing it, to the point where I’m telling a story from the moment the song starts to the end. It’s almost like second
nature. I know exactly where I’m gonna go. I just have to let my body and mind connect to that and take it to that place.
So in other genres aside from hip hop, who are your biggest inspirations? Top three. Could be any genre, just not hip hop.
Yeah. I would say my top three, in no order of course, but just top three inspirations that I have, definitely Michael Jackson. I feel like his legacy, something I want and will surpass. And knowing that he did so much with such relatively little time, is also another thing that inspires me. There’s a lot of jazz musicians that I listened to, a bunch that I pulled from, whether I realized it or not, because I absorbed it.
And aside from that, I really, really love movies. Like that’s not a music thing. That’s more of a creative storytelling thing. I like the way people tell stories with images. So I write as if I’m writing a movie, or if I’m telling a story via images and everything I imagine kind of just flows out through words. So my biggest inspirations honestly aren’t always rappers or people in the same field. It’s just life. Like I pull from a lot of things and take it into a different realm because I feel like there’s a creative way to express a lot of stuff through rap. And I had been very fortunate to be able to do that, not only at a high level, but with such potency and such purpose, that people hear me hear what I do. They feel like they’ve heard it before, they’ve seen it before. And that’s what I mean. I like crafting images so that people can always see what I mean and feel what I mean when they’re just listening to what I’m saying too.
You’ve been collabing with some really cool artists pretty early in your career. And like, you’ve worked with Nelly, and Mick Jenkins, most recently. How was that experience for you? And is it kind of like an indication to you that, you know, you’re taking those steps forward and progressing faster than you think?
Yeah, yeah, both experiences actually when I met Nelly on the set of the Dancing with the Stars, that was one of those things I didn’t actually think I would ever do. He wasn’t somebody, I guess, I looked to for inspiration growing up, but I always loved his music and artistry. And being face to face with him, learning from him personally was great. It was something I couldn’t have paid for. Like, I really just had to be in that moment and that opportunity that was once in my lifetime.
And the same when it comes to work with Mick Jenkins, who’s one of those people I’ve listened to and took inspiration from lyrically growing up since I was in high school, and finally getting to work with him full circle 10 years later. It helped me realize in that moment that, yeah, you have literally worked to do this. There is no reason you’re not supposed to be here with him right now in this moment in time. So it solidified a lot of what I felt about myself and what I confirmed to myself, you know, by myself, but having him say it and having him also be there, giving me kudos the same way I give him kudos is great. And I know a lot of people meet their idols or meet people they want to work with and they say don’t meet your heroes, but that was not the case. It was definitely a dope dude. And we went back and forth lyrically. That was one of the things I always imagined doing. So glad it happened.
Speaking of collaboration, who would be your dream collab right now?
All right. So I have a, I call it a hit list for a lack of better words, but the past two years on my Spotify wrapped, I’ve had Mick Jenkins, Victoria Monét, KAYTRANADA, Oshun, and I think Lucky Daye was there one year. Oh, and Earth Gang. So I’ve been going down this list, like the next five years, I have to collab with one of those five artists over the next couple of years and continue doing that bucket list for me. So unbeknownst to me, Mick Jenkins ended up happening in 2023.
So I got to get one of those five over the next couple of years. So I’m definitely looking to do a KAYTRANADA song at some point, because that’s one of those things that propels you somewhere different, in a different stratosphere of rap and hip hop because it’s production.
But any other artists at some point I will work with, I’m not going to cap myself to the five years. That’s just when I would like to do it, if I could say I got those features or work with them in the next five years, I’ll definitely be satisfied.
So it seems like it’s been a really great year for you with garnering over 117k streams on Spotify and releasing 10 tracks just this year. How are you feeling about it? And what is your favorite track that you’ve released?
I feel great about that. That’s one of the things that I couldn’t even anticipate. It was just a goal and an aim I had to do better than I’ve ever done before this year So I’m glad I did that on top of that having one of the best Mick Jenkins features of the year. It’s one of the other things I’m proud of. I feel like that’s my favorite song from this year because of the way that took place. The story behind that is, Mick Jenkins recently has been doing a lot of features and just randomly put out his email to send features to and I hit him up for a month straight like every day for a single month.
He didn’t respond I’m pretty sure because he had a lot of emails, but I took like a two -week break. Come January of this year, I started emailing him again, and he finally responded. So he said, “Yeah, I love this song. I’m gonna do it. These are the prices.” I’m like, for sure, I’m gonna make that happen at all costs. Aside from that, he actually lived like 10 minutes from the studio I worked at. So it was even better to actually get in the studio for the verse versus him just sending me something. So when he came through to my friend’s studio, we were working and just having a, you know, a genuine good time, it was one of those feelings that you can’t recreate or purchase honestly. Even though I bought the verse he was just a really dope dude and had a lot of good energy to him. Like I said, he confirmed a lot of things I felt about myself and I felt about myself musically. So at that moment in time, that was one of the best things I could have done not only for myself, but in general because I put forth the money for my career I put forth effort and energy and to actually get in that feature, it proved to be my most successful song of the year.
Aside from that, I feel like musically, my unplugged is amazing. My EP, I dropped with the homie, Isaiah was great too because we were just doing things. We weren’t really thinking about it, we were just making music.
And a lot of this year has just been that, just doing it, making music and not really worrying about the rest, it’ll come as you figure it out as you continue putting your best effort forward. So this year has been amazing. I know 2024 is gonna be even greater because I’m making it greater.
So I’m gonna turn the question back around to you about if you would open up a random black box that showed up your doorstep that says Illuminati. Would you do it?
You know, it’s crazy. I actually gave this answer to somebody else. This is my answer: if I had a black box sitting on my doorstep and it just said Illuminati, I’d pick up the box, put it in my house, put in a shrine case like they do at the museum and just leave it there. Having it on display for people that come to my house and be like, yeah, they hit me up. I left them on read though. I just got the box in the case. I don’t care what’s in it because I’m gonna be successful without it.
If you were on your deathbed, would you open it?
I wouldn’t open it. I would open it but ask somebody else to open it for me and tell me what was in it. That way I can say to the grave, I never opened it.
That’s funny. All right, so, you know, out of all the music and albums that you’ve listened to, which album out of any album that you’ve listened to, do you feel like has influenced you the most in your music?
Yeah, definitely To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar. That was the main album that I decided I would take music seriously from. That entire story, the way it was put together, the sonic influences he pulled from, all of that. All of that just left me speechless. I guess in the era where people were buying albums, you had to like, you know, use iTunes and buy something. That was the only album that I ever bought. And I still have to this day. And I don’t reference it a lot because I want to surpass Kendrick Lamar, but that’s one of the albums I was like yeah, this defined me as an artist.
What’s your favorite song off the album?
You know that album is no skips to be honest. I can’t pick a favorite song, but if I had to just give like, oh yeah, this is the best song for me, it would definitely be ‘King Kunta,’ ‘u,’ ‘The Blacker the Berry,’ and ‘Mortal Man.’
All right, so I mean, you’re familiar with this, but my old organization that I was in, we would always ask each other at the top of every meeting, what’s your song of the week? So I’m continuing this legacy in the interviews that I do. So what is your song of the week?
My song of the week, dang. My song of the week is, I was listening to it, but I got to go to my history book. Oh, ‘You Rock My World’ by Michael Jackson.
You mentioned a little bit earlier what you were going to do for 2024, but are there any particular projects people should be looking out for? Anything that you want eyes on for 2024?
Yeah, so my album, Respect The Real Volume II will drop in 2024. I’m going to put it out in two different installments. The first half is called Nostalgia to take everybody through my life. And the second half is called Rebirth, taking everybody through my new mentality and outlook on life, but it will all come together on one project. And it’ll definitely be the best out of the year.
But anything else, any performances that you got planned or anywhere people should see you live?
Yeah, they haven’t been announced yet, but I’m working on lining up a lot of stuff.
I will be entering the Tiny Desk contest again this year. So I have another live performance that’ll drop at the beginning of the year on top of that. Yeah, once I do announce my show days, I’ll make sure everybody at least gets one free ticket.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uraelb/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/UraelB
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa22Uz1fMv7wuxMLZxq0dxw
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6kc3j1EsXF6jWCDLFWsxJS
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/uraelb/1408133592
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Digital Cover
Feature: Ray Garrison (Silos Band)
![](https://soundofulive.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/silos.jpg)
Ray Garrison is a writer, producer, and EDM DJ based in Los Angeles, CA. The multi-dimensional artist blends the genres of Pop, Heavy Metal, and Nu Metal. In 2022, the Garrison teamed up with David Rhemann, the drummer for Grandson, to create the Silos band.
The band includes members Philip “Proto” Nielsen (bass), Nick Dromin (guitar), and Ramon Blanco. They are currently signed to Judge & Jury Records and released their first single, “Flowers” – a new take on Miley Cyrus‘ acclaimed hit – on March 17, 2023.
Sound of U Live caught up with Silos frontman Ray Garrison to talk about his musical journey, upcoming projects, and more.
When did your music journey begin?
I wanted to be able to record myself playing guitar and uh like I was listening to Blink-182, and I wanted to like the guitar melodies that made me feel like I was high or something so I was like I wanted to be able to do that myself and make it home. Iit really just started with me wanting to be able to listen to myself and then later I was like, ‘oh it would be cool if other people listen too.’
Who are your top three inspirations?
Blink 182, Eminem and Bring Me The Horizon.
When did you begin taking it really seriously?
When I was 16. I would drive home from private school and there was this pro audio shop that was on the way home in downtown Atlanta. I knew that like all the big Atlanta producers got their gear from there, like Jermaine Dupree, Bush Walker, all these big time guys. I would just stop in there and look at stuff and then I would eventually show the guy at the front of my demos and he was like, ‘oh this is cool.’ That was where it started and then I learned a lot from them.
Were you self-taught from there?
Yeah, you know, I was a combination of self taught and then every time I went into the studio to record I like was a mutant fly on the wall. I was extra attentive and asked a lot of questions. Just like information.
When did you join Silos?
Silos was born in November of 2022. I was a solo artist, and then my friend David just parted ways with Grandson, and he wanted to be in a project that was more oriented around a band. And at the time, I needed a good drummer, and I really liked David.
I’d known him for years, and I always wanted to work with him. So we kind of had a meeting, a lunch, and then decided to start working on a new project. And almost instantly, I knew I was going to no longer do a solo artist thing.
And I was going to just mix. Just like natural chemistry.
Do you guys have any music coming out for the rest of the year?
We got a song coming out in June with DJ, with someone coming out in July with Escape the Fate. Nice. The title of the next one is ‘Hold Me Close.’ Right now, we’re putting out all singles from the album. So, I think that album is going to drop in the fall. It’s going to be on vinyl and CD.
Are there any dream collaborations that you have?
I’d love to do a song with Oli Sykes from Bring Me the Horizon. I’d say it’s a closer goal, within two years.
Is there anything that you think people should know about you?
Yeah, we have an awesome fan base emerging. We have a Discord where we’re in touch with our fans and kind of have a continuous conversation. So I’m going to plug that. “Silos Fandom.” There’s a link for it on our Instagram stories highlights.
Features
Feature: Devon Thompson
![Devon Thompson](https://soundofulive.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Devon-Thompson-cr.-Kelly-Walsh-1-1020x685-1.jpg)
What are you looking forward to the most in 2024?
No bullshit. No bullshit 2024. That’s what I’m looking forward to. I’m gonna like leave all the negative stuff behind and like try and change my mindset about certain things. So I feel like that’s, and also work harder and practice more. Just be more disciplined within myself, I think.
Can we say what those certain things are?
Yeah, practice sitting down and practicing my guitar every single day more. Because, it gets hard like when you play shows it’s easy to just like only play when you’re at shows or during band practice for me I want to sit down and be disciplined also not beat myself up over stuff that I can’t control.
A lot of people are really upset with themselves when they like especially living here when you feel like and you’re an artist and you feel like, ‘God, I wish I was doing more. I wish I could. Why don’t I have this, why don’t I have this,’ like you can’t control that the only thing you can control is your personal growth and what you put into it and like you know if if you got something like it you’ll get it out if you really work hard. You can’t just sit around, you can’t expect it to come to you. You have to work for it. I think that’s a really good piece of advice to give artists in general because you know we’re in a new game social media, and a lot of it is like creating content yourself, and I know artists are making a lot more of their own music videos in a way that I’ve never seen before, have you noticed that? – I have noticed that because, you know, TikTok did that. TikTok made like making your own mini music video a thing. So I actually think it’s amazing because it allows artists to have more freedom with what you do.
I think that’s really special and it’s really, but it’s also really, really hard to do that, because this is what you have to do. Every day, I’ve struggled with that. I used to hate it and now I’ve like changed my mindset we’re like no I’m gonna like do this and embrace it and really show people like what I’m about.
I think everything is easier when you have a team of people and people who just really like add to your circle as time goes on. They see your mission and your vision.
Has it been easy for you to find your team?
It, surprisingly, has been easy. It’s because I’ve been putting myself out there. It’s been easier. And I have a wonderful team that I’m working with right now already.
But I’m always looking for, like, expansion. We need more people involved. We need all the people involved. You know, your fans are your team. You know, you are your team. Like, everyone a part of it is important.
So, like, that being said, I’m always looking for new kingdom. to work with and being over minded So like I feel like it’s easier now.
What other goals do you have for the year?
My goals are to be be more social. I can easily double down and just just be by myself and working on stuff, but my plan this year is to make more friends and to be more social with my family, friends and with new people. I push myself further this year. My music breaks down barriers and standards for female guitar players. It’s a big one, because we’re still it’s still really stigmatized.
Talk to me about that stigma that female guitar players face.
So many women are scared to play guitar, and a lot of them tell me they’re like I am too scared to get up there and play it or even if they do play if they’re like, um, ‘I’m the rhythm guitar player,’ or whatever. You don’t see a lot of female guitar players out there because it’s so stigmatized. If they’re not like an insane shredder people are like you got them stuck it happens so much and i’m a Gibson sponsored artist, so i they saw something in me that gave me hope to keep pushing myself so now i tend to only play in three pieces. I’m the lead guitar player and lead vocalist this year. That’s what I’m going to push on people because I have some really not that good like okay like that’s fine.
It used to get to me and now I’m like just use that to practice practice and be disciplined and safe off it just do it you know that’s what I’m doing.
Do you think that female artists in general also get that sort of stigma and is it coming from the butthurt men?
Absolutely. Yeah, no totally. It’s the main the main thing like I get comments online that are like, you know They can be really really derogatory and and it’s you know what it’s Generally men or very jealous women who don’t like themselves and hate their lives. And I’m like, ‘why do girls girls hate me? Why do certain men hate me?’
And it’s nothing that you’ve done. It’s just you have to remember that there are people that just love to hate you out there.
They love it, especially because you’re doing what they want to do. They want to do what you’re doing. And you just have to, like, you literally just have to understand and recognize the personality traits. They’re like, no, that is not a person who is cool or, like, wants to help or even knows what they’re talking about. about, you know what I mean? Tell us a bit about the music that you have dropping this year though. Do we have anything to look forward to in the first few months? Actually, I have a new single coming out in like a week and a half. And my goal for this year is to have a songwriter and I want to be a part of it. really, really creative with what I’m doing this year. All my music videos are like mini movies type situations, like the Twilight Zone kind of, and I like creating… I really just want to pay homage to the universe and a whole… I mean, to put it simply, a sort of vibe on everything.
Like with my branding, with my merch, like this is… is I don’t know if you can see it – oh I have a lot of teeth in in like my merch stuff like that and in my songs just like really Really visceral and really guttural, but also have been also with an imperial edge And I want my music videos to translate that it’s gonna mean soon So I want to be cohesive so new singles out and then we’re gonna have and I have a lot of music dropping this year. And I’m playing a lot of shows shows and that’s what’s been happening this year So yeah in January 17th.
What’s are you releasing?
It’s called I love you, but it hurts like hell.
Who are some of your favorite musical inspirations from Los Angeles?
Well, I don’t don’t sound anything like her, but I love Phoebe Bridger’s ability to be anti. So like what LA is not, and I think that’s really cool.
So I like that she can do that. How about some of your most influential artists that you listen to growing up that have really kicked yourself? Yeah, growing up. Blondie is a big one for me.
I have a lot of 80s music and 70s music. has really shaped what I do. So Blondie and then a big big goth like inspiration to me, Suzy and the band she’s really big and then some newer stuff like or kind of newer some like some deftome stuff some my bloody Valentine stuff and it’s harder for me to find newer inspirations just because like I don’t know it’s just it’s it’s hard it’s hard for me and then uh yeah so
those are some of my inspirations for sure. Dice was there anything else that you want to grab about before being grabbed? Yeah I think that a lot of people don’t talk about again what I said before about how disparaging this can be and how how much self -doubt can be involved with this um and I have been my worst enemy base in doing this and um you know my I think a lot of that has to do with people you surround yourself with. You can tell who really supports you and who doesn’t and who are out to get you, who poses your friends, but they’re not. Make sure you surround yourself with loving people and people who value you really.
Some talk about it enough here, especially with people who aren’t from here and who are from here. It’s just like both. So find the right people who lift you up. Both of you guys are in a relationship sort of thing. And also, just walk out of the bullshit. It’s what I’m going to do this year and I’m going to work on it.
So for everyone who’s struggling out there with, you know, artist identity, sort of the like, “What am I doing?” You’re here for a reason, you’re here for a reason. And just believe in yourself. Believe in yourself.
Don’t talk but thank you for your time. Thank you so much.
Features
Feature: Leonte
![Leonte](https://soundofulive.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BAD9A27F-5E2A-4B76-B7A2-8CCEFE7BA2BF.jpeg)
Leonte here! Tell us a little bit about the different things that you do.
Yeah, so I mean, first and foremost, I’m a person. And I like to be that way. I come with a lot of emotions and a lot of ideas and feelings that I bring into my art and my work. I’m a model. I love to create very vivid images and stuff with posing and stuff like that. I’m also a creative director for a magazine called Lex Style Mag. It’s about creating a vibe between fashion and music, and really creating a home for that to collaborate and become real is something important for us.
But I also make music. I’m a singer. I make like alternative R&B, pop and rock vibes. I’m really just taking all of those and really just adding my own spice into it, adding a little bit of me and really my goal with that music is to create an environment and create an environment where people can feel emotions that they may not you know be privy to or may not have understanding of but you know they can empathize with the pain, empathize with the joy, empathize with the yearning, love, right? I want to create an environment that you can experience those things safely amazing so how long have you been doing modeling yeah so I’ve been modeling for 10 years I’ve been singing all my life I started off in my church choir shout out yeah so for like most people that started off in the church like singing was a big part of my life it was a big part of my life I expressed myself. I started making my own music physically about a year and a half, two years ago, is when I actually started that.
How has your journey in fashion really impacted your journey into music?
Honestly, I think the fashion in the music industry is so interwoven that it was like a seamless transition. I went from, you know, trying to figure out how to… create very vivid pictures and, you know, how to do really crazy poses to, like, saying, “Well, how do I create a vivid sound with my voice?
If I do this type of movement while I’m singing, will the sound come out differently from this?” Right? So everything just kind of translated differently, right? Saying like, “Okay, well, when I do this performance, I want to wear this type of outfit so that it conveys this message while I’m performing this song.” Right? Really aligning the fashion with the music and the tone with the environment to create a full image and a full picture is kind of where that fashion piece really really locked me in.
As you said, you are now involved in the magazine. What has it been like going from being the model to being the subject and actually having that creative control?
Honestly, becoming the creative director of Lex Style magazine is one of my biggest accomplishments today. I think being in charge of the visual outlook of a project such as Lex Style Mag has put a huge weight on my shoulders that I’d love to take on. It’s really giving me the opportunity to take my wildest dreams and put it out into a visual medium and share it with the world is something that I don’t take lightly. I think it’s something that takes a lot of time and effort, it takes a lot of attention and I think because of that I’ve been able to take all of my years of modeling and understanding what poses look good and what poses don’t.
Kind of the energy behind the photo and what clothes will look good and what poses. I’ve been really able to create really detailed outlines of like this that I want to create and I think that’s something that you know I’m looking to bring out the best in myself for this magazine and for others. I also do freelance creative direction for other brands, so it’s like always fun to be able to express myself in this place.
All of the work that you do is truly so inspirational and incredible. What do you think is the hardest part about continuing that?
Thank you so much for joining me. Being a artist and how you feel. I think the hardest part about consistently releasing creative pieces is understanding your value but also understanding the value of the people around you.
I think as, when you’re the model, everything’s centered around you and how you’re feeling and what you’re getting paid, like you’re, you know, the experience. you’re getting, but when you’re really the creative director, when you’re really at the top of that situation, it’s more about, okay, how do I make sure these people that are helping me create this vision that I have feel valued and feel, you know, I see the best of our abilities and feel comforted in these aspects. I think that’s one of the hardest things because, you know, obviously in this world, you live in and you want to cut down on costs as much as possible, but also it’s like, you want to pay. people what they’re worth, so they pay for what they’re worth. I like saw that, it’s like trying to get people with disabilities.
What has been like your biggest inspiration, both in fashion and music?
I played football in college. And so a big inspiration in my fashion sense was Odell Beckham Jr. Like, he was getting big and popular in football. His outfits on and off the field were always the same. The field outfits were always icy and dripped out with the signed sneakers, the custom likeness, you know, how he used to do it.
But then off the field, it was also him showing up to events drippy, showing his style off. I think things like that really pushed me to actually work towards being more creative with my outfits on and off the field. In terms of music, I think somebody that really inspired me was Juice Wrld, I think I will say “Lucid Dreams” came at a time that I needed it.
And I think, you know, just that being his day… debut, like, hit that popped off for him and that was the one that caught me and then ever since, like, I listened to every single song that he put out like, that was someone that really inspired me to be more of a leader, but he also inspired me to just be creative, I don’t think you could ever say, “Oh, Juice Wrld’s gonna rap like this on this flow.” It was always something completely different than his last song, something completely, you know, new but it had the same feel, the same environment around him, right? And, you know, he had a way of talking about like really hard subjects with a light tone that made him want to party while you’re listening to it, right? Which is something that I want to create, but also different. So for mine, like, I definitely don’t take as much of the drug abuse and alcoholism into my music. It’s complex idealist, you know, abandonment. Heartfelt pain. The concept of, like, where you’re supposed to be and, you know, like flirting. I want to do, like, really, like, take those archetypes and really create stories in my music. I think that’s really what I’m focusing on right now.
I think that’s really the beauty of music. You’re able to take inspiration, and take ideas, while also interacting with your own personality, your own blood, which is so incredible and great to see from you.
And what are we?
So what I’ll say right now is there’s going to be an influx of art, an influx of modeling and an influx of music. Right now my goal is in this 2023. year are to get three good releases and build up a catalog behind them so that I have a lot to push out for everybody, as well as create four really good covers and magazines to release out to the public and to collaborate with as many talented artists as I can. Like my goal is not to get up there by myself, my goal is to bring everybody out here at 50 and I think that when we create a community of people that support each other and uplift each other in this fashion and music space, that’s when we really drive, right? Because you’re only as good as your network, and it’s only as good as how many people you have with you in your team, right? And, you know, what they like to say is network federally, don’t network forward.
Because you never know who in your circle is going to be the next one up, and you’re all riding together. So that’s going to be good. there. So, it just supports people around you, it supports the day one, it’s going to come the day zero, it’s going to rock. Well, I am so very excited to see what’s next for Beyonce. Everybody should be on the watch for what’s coming next. He’s going to be hitting us with new music, have sure new books, new shoots. So please be on the lookout for him!
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