Feb 26, 2025 | ktru
Interview by Andrew Ondara and Ariana Phillips
Here's a snippet from a sit-down with native Houston R&B artist Ejay Mallard on the Black by Popular Demand show! Ejay talks about his musical journey—from singing in church to becoming the "Frank Ocean of Baylor"—as well as the deep gospel influences in his sound. He shares how pain fuels his music, his inspirations, and the impact of growing up on Houston’s northside on his artistry. Ejay also dives into the themes of love, relationships, and personal growth that shape his music, including his latest EP and how he crafts his sound to reflect both nostalgia and modern R&B.
Check out the full episode on Spotify at Black by Popular Demand Show Podcast!
BBPD (Andrew): Okay. So, EJ, you recently performed here at Rice, and we're really excited to have you here today in the studio. Thank you for taking the time out of your day to come do that.
Ejay: For sure.
BBPD (Andrew): So first off, we really just wanna get to know you and where you came from, how you started making music. So, yeah, just take us back to the beginning. I guess my first real question is, how'd you get into making music?
Ejay: So my name is Ejay Mallard. I'm an R&B artist from the northside of Houston, Texas. I got into music through my mother. She is a preacher at a church, but growing up, I was in the choir. She was also leading the choir, so it was kind of just faith-based religion, music, and stuff like that. I never really professionally pursued it; it was more so just church and choir and school as well. Shout out to Atascocita High. But, yeah, we did that for a while. And then when I got to college, I was like, man, I really wanna start professionally pursuing this in a more organized fashion. So I released my first single professionally, which is Drake and Drive, and the feedback I received from that was super great. I kind of notoriously became the Frank Ocean of the Baylor campus because it was few and far between when I would release a song. So when they got one, it was very special because they knew I took my time with it. So, yeah, that's just kind of how things started. Since then, it's just been a whirlwind of releases and ups and downs, but I think I've finally gotten to a point now where folks are coming to me for answers, and it feels good. Sometimes you'd be that guy, but I'm excited for what's to come. To me, it's more about the journey, the way I got here and how I arrived at this exact point has been the most fun part for me.
BBPD (Ariana): I could tell you were in the church. Yeah. I said that to Andrew while you were performing. I was like, he definitely been in the church.
Ejay: Yeah. I love it. A lot of my music has a lot of gospel influence. In choir, we would do a lot of operatic songs, so I would take elements of those and try to embed them in R&B. I feel like it made a lot of sense to give people an authentic version of myself. I didn't wanna stray too far from what got me into music anyway. I feel like even in the Black community, when you hear those gospel elements within R&B, you can automatically recognize them. Nostalgia helps with that as well. I've done renditions of different songs where I've taken gospel elements or gospel lyrics and embedded them into my lyrics to make sense for me, but then I also live vicariously through others, so they have the opportunity to reflect and relate to it as well.
BBPD (Ariana): Alright. So what I'm wondering is, what is the inspiration for your music?
Ejay: Pain. Pain is the biggest inspiration for me thus far. I think pain creates passion. You have some experiences to look back on, and you can take those and create art, in my opinion. In terms of musical inspiration, I would say Frank Ocean is probably one of my biggest R&B inspirations growing up. I'm a 90s baby myself, so a lot of what I was introduced to is 90s R&B, like Marcus Houston, B2K, Usher, and even further back, Boyz II Men, John B. A lot of what I do now reflects that, but those gospel elements come into play as well. I just try to do my own thing and add my own little sauce to it…
BBPD (Andrew): In doing my research, listening to one of your songs, Frequency, you say, turn on the radio or “Put on UGK, baby. Yeah.” So to that, Houston has such a rich musical legacy. So how's growing up in Houston, especially on the north side, influenced your sound and the stories you tell through your music?
Ejay: I want people to know I think that's probably one of the hardest things. A lot of people when they hear music, they don't really get an idea of where the artist is from or what kind of influence their sound in terms of societal impact. So I want people to know when they hear my music that this is Houston. This is what we can produce because, like you said, Houston has a very, especially in the hip-hop scene, a very slowed down, very grunge-y sound. When you think of Houston, you don't think of R&B. So when people hear my music, I want them to be like, oh, they have some talent out there. So you always hear me even in my music. I'll say, like, the north side kind of references just to give folks the idea, like, this is where I'm from. This is what has shaped me and made me the man I am today. But it also just lets listeners know that there is talent out here. If you dig and find it, you will find it. And then for me too, it's also just this is the city that made me, the city that raised me. Everything that I know and have been introduced to has been by way of Houston. So it's like I just like an ode to my city, I guess, in every song. So I definitely want folks to know that this is I'm doing this not just for myself, but for a representation of my city, especially within the R&B lane. I don't want people to ever feel like Houston is only known for one thing, and I feel like me doing this, the way that I do it at least, allows folks to see that.
BBPD (Ariana): I just wanna say you ate down with that song. It's definitely been on repeat.
Ejay: Yeah. Definitely put some people onto it, and I think it's very funny. It's a true story, but we've watered it down a little bit. So I was driving, and not this is my current girlfriend, but I had a past relationship, and we were driving, and she decided to grab the steering wheel, and we were going on 59.
BBPD (Ariana): Oh, no.
Ejay: Yeah. Very, very so, again, we've watered it down a little bit, but it's more so the concept was because I was playing songs. Like, you know, guys play songs or a woman will play songs to her, like, you're trying to subliminally get them to take a message from this song. I've done that before. Exactly. So, I was playing a song, and, yeah, she was not a fan. And we turned into an argument and, you know, one thing led to another. But we watered it down a little bit just for the sake of simplicity and relatability as well. I feel like just keeping it very neutral and very simplistic, less toxic, but still on the comedic factor, it allowed folks to see the ebb and flow of the music that women listen to and then the music that men listen to and then the subliminal messages that kinda come out of those. So, yeah, it was very reflective, and a lot of people related to it because very similar story. Like I said, I live vicariously through others. So when you do stuff like that, it kinda just is like, oh, I'm just telling my own story. And then, yeah, you just be like, oh, yeah.
BBPD (Ariana): The steering wheel's a little crazy. Very. But I would definitely play Frequency to throw some subliminals at somebody.
Ejay: Yeah. It's one of those songs. I like it. I enjoyed it. Shooting the video was crazy, but, yeah, when I was recording that song, shout out to John Allen Stevens. He's the producer of that record and the engineer for that record. But, yeah, when I was recording that song, a lot of it was just like when I was writing it, when I was recording, I was like, how can I make this very relatable? How can I make this so simple, but very, like, oh, I don't have to stray too much away from the story? So it helped. And I'm a great storyteller when it comes to writing, so that kinda helped too.
BBPD (Andrew): And I have a follow-up question for you. So I know you mentioned that some of your musical influences are Kanye West and Frank Ocean. I was wondering if you have any Houston-specific influences.
Ejay: Houston-specific influences, definitely gotta start with the north side, J Dog, the young hog. In terms of musicality, that's what I grew up on, when I was in middle school and high school. So, like, we would always play J Dog, but I think even beyond that, my uncle was the first person my uncle Jeremy was the first person to introduce me to music when I was a kid, and just seeing how he became kinda like the Tupac of our city, was very inspirational, but it's also like you go other places, they also know who he is and his demand, his demeanor. So, yeah, like, even just how he puts words together is the most that he donned freestyle probably was, like, the most epic thing that I heard in my youth. And then from that, I just kinda like that's kinda where I started in terms of trying to get my rhyme patterns and stuff going, because it was just all freestyle. So I was like, okay, how can I quickly just put thoughts on paper without having to really contemplate over them and commit to them when I do? So that's why I say, like, when I'm writing, I just, you know, first thing that comes out is what's going on paper. And then after that, I'll do some more reflection of, like, is this actually gonna be a good song or not? And then I'll make the decision there. But, yeah, he gave me a lot of influence when it came to writing.
BBPD (Andrew): And so I guess, like, overall, tell us, like, what sort of your process or thought process when making a song?
Ejay: So, yeah, it starts off with sometimes it starts with a beat. Sometimes it starts with just lyrics, and then I'll try to find the beat or I'll make the beat to match. But my thought process primarily is telling my own story, be as vulnerable as possible, be authentic as possible. I don't I used to, at least, be in the position to where I would write for others to make the song popular, I guess. But now it's more so just being honest with myself and the things that I've experienced. About to be 29 years old in February, so I've had some ups and downs, been through a couple of things. So I think I have a lot to say still even to this day, that I haven't had an opportunity to say. Even in my writing now, it's more positive, and a lot of my previous music was more, like I said, came from pain, a little bit more toxic, a little bit more heartfelt. And this music now is more focused on affection and love and devotion themes that I've never really explored, but it's by virtue of being in a great relationship that I have an opportunity to do that because I was very self-sabotaging a lot, and I kinda pushed a lot of people away, especially her. But once I got to a position of acceptance of, like, okay. This is actually a good time to actually start reflecting on affection and devotion and stuff like that, then I was like, okay. Like, how can my writing change to match that? So it starts with just being vulnerable, being honest, very romanticized, I would also say. From there, I don't really do much else. I just try to put as much on paper as I can, and then I'll groom it, tweak it here and there. Some songs come quicker than others. Like, I could have, but I didn't. We wrote that and recorded it in about 30 minutes, and that's probably one of my biggest songs to date, this year that well, I released it last year, but it blew up crazier this year. And then, you know, other songs like, the leading single, When A Black Man Gets Vulnerable, that took a little bit more time, about a month and a half, but it's because I took my time to shape it and groom it to be a little bit more vulnerable, a little bit more open about my experiences. So, you know, some come quicker than others, but once I have it, I can instantly tell when a song is going to be a hit and when it's not. So, like, I don't spend too much time dwelling on stuff that isn't going to be something that I would put out. Once I've come to the conclusion, like, oh, this is not a good song. I put it in my backlog on my phone, and if it ever comes back up later, it will. But at that time, I just move on to the next.
BBPD (Andrew): I feel like as a black man, I can resonate with talking about vulnerability and affection. So especially from that perspective of a black man. So what inspired you to focus on this theme? And what do you hope listeners take away from that message?
Ejay: Yeah. So When A Black Man Gets Vulnerable, the EP was basically an embodiment of the black male experience, as it relates to vulnerability. So my hope is that listeners will get an understanding that it's okay to be vulnerable, especially as a black man in society because oftentimes, it seems as if that's not the case. And we're just literally having this conversation last night while we're watching Love is Blind, but it's literally so frowned upon these days for men, especially black men, to open up and be honest about the experiences and the pains that you have because it often seems as if you open up, and then a reaction or response is met with that, and then you're apologizing for opening up. So it's like, damn. I didn't know that my word or how I felt would have an impact on someone else and make them feel a type of way to where you're now in a position of it's kind of this victimization kind of position starts to introduce itself and that you're in the position of suppressing your vulnerability, suppressing your moods and your thoughts, and you go through this world thinking that you can just take on everything. And I don't like when men do that. I don't do that at all. I feel like pain is supposed to be felt, but it also supposed to be presented. But then in this next project, and it's a series. So this first project was When a Black Man Gets Vulnerable, and then this next project, like I said, it's more focused on devotion and love. So this next project is titled When a Black Man Gets Affectionate. So it's now a little bit more upbeat tracks, a little bit more songs focused on love and focusing in on the woman and embracing your woman, showing her attention, showing her affection. Even there's some sexual desires on there to where you just kinda shaping what the black male experience looks like from that lens as well. So you have the vulnerability aspect now, and then you also have the affection aspect now to where folks can really see there's two sides to this coin. There's a soft side to this man, and sometimes we have to embrace some femininity as well. I think that's a key part of it. But also too, you have to get to a point to where you can also show affection, and it's not you can put down the masculine rugged masculinity and really see, like, I can do certain things that doesn't compromise or jeopardize how I'm seen in society. Like, a lot of people say, like, oh, this is sassy. You're doing this. I was like, I'm doing this for my woman. I could care less about what the world thinks. Like, this has nothing to do with me. If that means I'm gonna watch Love is Blind, like, not my favorite show in the world, but after a couple episodes, I'm in it, and she can tell you, like, I'm screaming at the TV because, like, man, I'm in it now, and I'm doing this for her because it makes her feel like he wants to be here. Like, it's not forced. And I think that's just an appreciation of where I am now and appreciation of the trajectory of my life and relationships. I feel like it took a lot of time to get to this point, but it took a lot of time to start to write in this vein because, like I said, everything was toxic up until this point. So it was very hard to make that transition, but now I'm happy, and it's good to write about happiness. It's good to write about things that make you feel a little bit more positive. I think the girls are definitely gonna eat that project. Oh, yeah. It's gonna go crazy. It's for the ladies. This is something that I feel like women would love to hear, especially coming from a black man of things that they don't necessarily or often hear from black men in terms of how can we be affectionate, what they're looking for in expectations, providing proof when there is little to none being shown that you actually want to be in this relationship. So I think that is the biggest thing for me.
Feb 10, 2025 | ktru
By Spring Chenjp & Jacob Pellegrino
Canadian DJ duo Loud Luxury kept the energy high all night with recognizable tracks and pumping beats at their Feb. 1 set at SILO Dallas. The show cements SILO as a must-visit venue despite only opening last September.
Since its opening, SILO has boasted an impressive lineup, from Illenium to Meduza to Tiësto. SILO is housed inside a cavernous 30,000-square-foot former grain storage facility built in 1959. The building has been refitted with a stage, bars on the sides, and a powerful lighting setup. The high ceiling means the venue stays surprisingly cool even in the middle of the pit, though the necessary support columns further from the stage can block the view for latecomers.
We got to the show a little bit before 11 p.m. as the main acts normally take the stage around midnight at SILO. Chris Schambacher kicked off the night, opening with an energetic and engaging set that had the crowd moving throughout. Schambacher brought the house down with the 2013 perennial “Sweater Weather” that had the packed room singing at the top of their lungs. Schambacher was a perfect primer for Loud Luxury and their energy-filled set.
After a short break, the duo emerged with the screen behind them displaying “LOUD LUXURY” in all caps, but substituting the state of Texas for the “O.” One half of the duo greeted the crowd adorned with a cowboy hat, obviously excited to be in Texas. Climbing onto the table and jumping around throughout the show, the DJs’ energy was infectious.
Loud Luxury mixed a variety of samples spanning across musical eras, from the 2023 chart-topping hit “FE!N” to Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep.” Samples transitioned smoothly into the duo’s signature lush beats, reminiscent of playing volleyball on a sunlit-drenched beach or, as in one of their recent remixes, driving on a summer evening with the windows down and sunroof open. And there was a notable homage to the Big D through a cheeky remix of “Dicked Down in Dallas” by Trey Lewis.
The visuals also deserve a mention, ranging from psychedelic televisions showing the Loud Luxury logo to a memorable Elmo on fire — yes, that one. The lasers were strong and consistent, though there were no pyrotechnics.
Ending with ”Body,” their 2017 release that brought them to fame, Loud Luxury had the crowd moving with the music all night. The group left room for the audience to sing along, loudly yelling “hell nah” at the appropriate portions of the song. You could tell the attendees knew the track well as excitement rippled through the crowd.
Last weekend’s set was a win for Loud Luxury and SILO. The duo brought a strong set to their only announced Texas date this year, and SILO cemented its status as a must-visit venue for Dallas-area rave-goers. We’ll keep our eyes out for the next one.
Nov 16, 2024 | ktru
By Steven Burgess
Peter Hook, co-founder of legendary bands Joy Division and New Order, revolutionized post-punk and electronic music. Since his time in these iconic groups, Hook has collaborated with artists such as Gorillaz, authored multiple books, and formed Peter Hook and The Light, a band dedicated to performing Joy Division and New Order songs live, with Hook himself taking on lead vocals. At the time of this interview, he was on his Substance tour, bringing the raw energy of these timeless songs to audiences around the world.
Q: 50 years ago… At Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall, the Sex Pistols played… what was different about them that was unlike any other act at the time?
A: The Sex Pistols were interesting because they were very young, like me… I'd been to see Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, all those bands in 1973-76… I said to Bernard… that we should go and see them… It was £0.50 to get in.
When the Sex Pistols came on, their attitude was completely unlike any other group I'd ever seen… They really weren't interested in you, and Johnny Rotten in particular, spent most of the time telling everybody to f-off… And the 40 people that were there were like, what the hell is this?... And I thought, “you know what? I could do that.” And so, at the end of the gig, I said to Bernard… we should form a group.
I didn't play an instrument. I had no instrument. He had a guitar, but he didn't play it. And we formed a punk group on the way out. So that's how inspirational that performance was compared to everything you see. The thing about [a band like] Led Zeppelin is… I didn't feel like I could do that… I never felt for one moment that I could play bass like John Paul Jones or do anything that the others could do. You know, they were so far above me, it was ridiculous.
When I saw Johnny Rotten, Glen Matlock, Paul Cook and Steve Jones play, I felt for some insane reason that I could do it, which, as it turned out, which is uncanny, was true and weird… The other 40 people… went on to form their own groups too.
Q: In your book, Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division, you talk about how you accidentally learned bass and played with three fingers originally… did you ever feel pressure to play more traditional style?
A: I taught myself how to play just by listening to [other] bands. So did Bernard. We bought a couple of books but couldn't be bothered to read them, so we just stuck with the old punk ethic of… playing anything really.
I always [play with three fingers] because [my ring finger is] my weak finger. So I always push it down with my [middle finger]. Very strange habit. And even now, as you said, after 48 years I've been playing… I still do it.
In the 80s… popping [on bass] was really big… I thought that it would be better for me to learn popping… A very good friend of mine called Donald Johnson, who was in another band (A Certain Ratio) that was on Factory Records… gave me one lesson and he said “Okay, you play with three fingers… you make a wonderful sound with those three fingers… Get on with what you do best.”
I'm very lucky to have a very unique sound… I was very lucky to be able to inspire not only Ian Curtis, but also, New Order to [use bass] as a lead instrument… The melody of the vocal came from the bass…
If someone rips me off, I always take it as a compliment. A lot of my friends will send me [a track and tell me] “the kid sounds just like you.” I always take it as a compliment because when I went to see the Sex Pistols and I was watching Glen Matlock… It wasn't anything to do with music. It was about the simple confusion that you felt as a kid, of not knowing what your life was going to come out to. Of being told what to do and having your path sort of chosen for you. It was that rebellion that you felt at that age was what gave me the courage to grasp that chance.
Hooky on the early formation of Joy Division:
Every one of my friends that I told we went to see a group and now we've formed a group… [said], “You? I've never known anybody as unmusical as you in my life. In fact, the only other person I know that is unmusical as you is Bernard.”
And don't forget, we'd never written a song before, never. And we had to sit there and learn how to write songs… It was absolutely crazy… It was not easy to build a following. It was not easy to write great songs. Luckily, once we met Ian Curtis, which I met him at the third Sex Pistols gig… and [when] we met him at that gig and he said, “oh, are you in a band?”
Because everyone was in the band. And we went, “…we've got a band, me and Bernard, I'm on basses and he’s on guitar.” [Ian] said, “I've got a band… we've got a guitarist and a drummer. We're looking for a bassist.” So, I thought, well, I'm not leaving [Bernard]… It was only when Ian's drummer left that he phoned up and said, “oh, you know, the drummer is gone. And the guitarist is gone with him… Should we join up?” We said, “yeah.” And, you know, the rest is history.
Then we wrote a load of songs together. [Joy Division] got better and better, and I mean, it is amazing to think that by the age of 20, Bernard and I had already written the music for Unknown Pleasures, and Ian had written some of the songs.
Hooky on the formation of Peter Hook & The Light:
When New Order split up in 2007, the atmosphere in the group was very negative about everything. We didn't play much. We weren't happy. We never played anything to do with Joy Division. We never played most of New Order's music. There was a marked reluctance to do anything in it, and it was very frustrating for me and very saddening… I was happy when we split up, to be able to enjoy what I was doing again.
As soon as I was outside of New Order… I stood there and I thought, why do we never celebrate anything to do with Joy Division? Why [did] we never celebrate one year, ten years, twenty, twenty-nine? And I thought, you know what? I'm f***ed if I'm going to let thirty go… I thought how am I going to do it?
I was very happy to find a way to be able to play the music to people who liked the music, just like me… Chances were pretty low that you'd be one band that changed the world. Never mind two, that changed the world, you know? So I was somebody up there and I suspect it's Ian Curtis that really, really likes me, you know, and he's looking out for me in some way or other.
I love the music. I'm very proud of it, and I'm very proud to be able to sit down with anybody who wants to listen to it… and to have gone through the 14 years that we've been playing as [Peter Hook &] The Light and watch it get bigger and bigger.
My ambition was to play every song that Joy Division ever wrote and recorded, which I have done, which we played in one concert. We played fifty-four songs in one concert… in one concert in the church that Ian Curtis used to attend when he was a kid, and he was a choirboy in that church, and we did it for charity… we played to 500 people in this church… people wanted to be a part of that.
My next ambition is obviously to play every song that New Order have written and recorded, which I'm well on the way to do it. We've done I think we've done seven or eight LPs and now… I've got three more New Order LPs to transcribe and play to my friends. Yeah. The audience, that's it… The Light [and I] can actually play upwards of a hundred songs. When I was in New Order, when we were together, we could only play about 17.
After losing that music for so long… I'm watching [Joy Division] and the myths grow and the following, and the people… who love the music and loved Ian's vocals and his melodies and his words, his message, you know, it was wonderful to be able to.
It was scary singing [Ian’s] words to Joy Division's music… I was terrified. I didn't know what people would think. I didn't know whether I'd… pelted with rotten tomatoes or whether people [would] just disappear. I had no idea. But yeah, to work through that and get to the point where I could actually enjoy what I was doing, and also find a new love for Ian because I had to concentrate on his words so much.
[Performing these songs] made me miss him all the more… in my life, I've lost a few people like that and always leaves you with an awful feeling… like survivor's guilt. The guilt that you couldn't help, you know, it's always with you all the time. And playing the music actually, in some ways made me… [miss him] more.
I always remember when we were together in Joy Division… [and] we hadn't had a gig for a while and nobody loved us… he would be the one that would grab you by the lapels, pick you up and go, “come on, stop it. We're going to be doing this. We're going to be touring Brazil. We're going to be touring America. We're going to be going all around the world.” So, all the places that I've taken Joy Division, where we didn't go… every single time I get there, I always go, this is for you, Ian. This is for you.
Hooky talks about playing with his son, Jack Hook:
When I came to play this stuff again as [Peter Hook &] The Light in 2010… my friend Rosetta said to me, you're going to have to sing… And we needed a bass player.
My son Jack, who plays bass with the Smashing Pumpkins now, he was 20 then. So, we started learning Unknown Pleasures, and he started learning Unknown Pleasures at the same age that I was all those years before.
How weird is that? And when we moved into Closer, he was the same age. I was 21, going on 22, and then when he finished Joy Division, he was the same age. I was 23 and we moved into New Order. So yeah, the uncanny feeling of watching him, who obviously looks a lot like me when I was 20, struggling with the bass riffs to get them, that gave me the biggest feeling of deja vu I've ever had in my life. Once you learned the songs, you didn't have that deja vu feeling because you've learned it. But that struggle to learn it reminded me so much of those days when we were struggling to write the music that it was worth it for every moment, you know, of that feeling.
I am immensely proud of him for what he's gone on to achieve with the Smashing Pumpkins. You know, I mean, God, he's playing to crazy audiences… he's actually touring on the co-headline with Green Day at the moment. They're playing huge venues, you know, more people than I've ever played to in my life… he's self-taught as well, same as me.
Q: Being a part of Factory Records in the 80s, how do you feel this independent record model reflects the state of democratized music today, with platforms like Bandcamp and SoundCloud and YouTube.
A: [DIY] music is now easier than ever… when [New Order was] signed to Factory, we had no money whatsoever, so we had no of getting a record out, nothing. There was no way you could publicize your music yourself. It was all about money.
Tony Wilson was a very unusual man. He didn't believe in, ripping off his artists… when you signed to Factory, you split the money evenly… [Tony] said that when we record the record, as soon as the record comes out, the master is yours. Not mine. Doesn't belong to the record company. The music is yours. That is very unusual for a record company, very idealistic. So the thing is, is that he was doing what all of us have to do.
He worked on that right till we left in 1993. And we still actually have the same deal with Warner Brothers because the deal carried over to Warner Brothers… So we're one of the very few bands that split our money 50/50 with our record company still now Factory did that and Sony gave away all the masters.
I have to put my own music on Spotify, Bandcamp, etc. you have to be a businessman as well as a group member. And I think that that's better, because I think if you learn that you don't make the same bloody mistakes I did… We made loads of mistakes and I'm still paying for them now, right? But Factory Records was a great place for us to be because it allowed us to be punk right to the end.
[Factory] allowed us to leave singles off every album. That's why Substance was a great hit, because it put all the New Order singles together, and substance - Joy Division did the same for Joy division's music.
Nov 16, 2024 | ktru
Written by Steven Burgess, photo by Youna Baupoux.
Norwegian-American artist Kaya Wilkins, known by her stage name Okay Kaya, has made waves with her eclectic blend of disco, pop, and orchestral music. Her 2020 record, Watch This Liquid Pour Itself, earned her the Spelman Award for Best Indie/Alternative Artist solidifying her unique place in today’s music scene.
Currently on tour for her latest record, Oh My God, That’s So Me, Okay Kaya continues to captivate audiences with her introspective lyrics and experimental soundscapes.
Q: What was your introduction to music as a kid? Do you have a vivid memory of a song or an artist that clicked with you?
A: My mother is a visual artist. She's a painter, and she's really into her music, so I just remember it being music 24/7.
There’s so many artists that she listened to. She would listen to a lot of contemporary music or older music… I remember the first Mariah Carey record being on tape in our Volvo, because that was like one of the only tapes, so that was kind of fun.
[My mom] inherited her mom’s record collection… a lot of jazz [and] Billie Holiday, lots of different sorts of music in all sorts of languages. Lots of Swedish folk singers, whether it's Cornelis Vreeswijk [and] Lisa Ekdahl.
Q: How do you feel these artists have influenced your work?
A: I feel like mostly, in terms of my practice as a songwriter, I'm influenced by books and reading… As well as movies and also music, of course, but it's usually the starting point for my songwriting process. It's like different mediums.
For this record, I wanted to explore a few questions, and I suppose one of the questions was… how can fiction… tell the true story about what a human being is? So, there's a lot of references to all sorts of people: Tove Jansson, the Finnish writer and artist… [and] Edgar Allan Poe… that’s what kind of makes it fun for me… that most of the songs have a starting point in fiction.
Q: What does the creative process look like for you?
A: It's kind of hard to tell. It's a difference from day to day. For me, the most important thing and I think for most artists is to have time to do what you do. Be open [to] things.
I actually really like working within limitations with music because, you know, for example, my guitar skills are quite limited or, I don't have too many plug ins and logic and stuff like that. So that can kind of like be a good limitation. But I think creatively… staying open is a good call.
Q: Do you remember what the first song you ever wrote was?
A: Me and my friend Ingrid, growing up, she's my childhood friend since we were about six years old, wrote a song at that age, that had the word boom, and I don't really remember anything else, or it was something about. It was in English, actually. It was about a song not being long.
I started recording music, in my 20s, onto SoundCloud. And made various mixtapes and whatnot. And it was really enjoyable.
Q: What made you lean into more compositional elements on your newest record, Oh My God, That’s So Me
A: When I wrote The Art of Poetry, which is the last song on the record, I heard… strings happening, and I've been really fortunate to collaborate with my friend Frankie, Francesca Aichner… to do live performance… I also worked with Clementine Brown, who's also a dear friend now.
As the first song of the record [that I] made, I could hear that I really wanted to use that sort of instrumentation… [and] use the strings throughout.
Q: Which of the songs off Oh My God, That’s So Me do you feel the strongest connection to and why?
A: They're all my little babies, you know. So it's tricky… I'm bad with favorites, but I think sometimes my favorite songs off the records are songs that were slightly more frustrating to record.
Picture This, which was one of those, very first songs, which I knew was going to be on the record. I had recorded the original record on an Omnichord, which is a very sort of beautiful, bright instrument, and it just wasn't going very well. The recording… had too much high end and I didn't really know how to ground it. So I did a guitar version that didn't work and then ended up being both of those things
I used a lot of energy on it… [and] I'm proud of the outcome of that. So, in some way, it's my favorite, but only for the reason of like how much time I spent with it.
Q: You were born in New Jersey but grew up in Norway. How do you feel this cross of cultures influences the themes and sonic elements of your music?
A: I was born in New Jersey in a place called Bergen Fields. And six weeks after I was born, I moved to Norway and lived there until I was 18. And then when I was 19, I moved back to New York, relatively close to New Jersey, and then lived there for ten years. So, I knew as a kid growing up in Norway that I really didn't feel all that Norwegian.
I was always drawn to going to America, and I was really lucky because I have a passport. So, I spent… all [of] my 20s there. And I think a lot of my influences are [from] American… mainstream culture… The reason why I make music is probably because I moved [back].
Whether it was the challenge of moving somewhere new… [or] meeting the amazing people that I met while living [in America]. So, yeah, definitely both.
Q: What have you learned by collaborating with different artists, whether it be New York or Norway, what has pushed you to become a fully realized artist in the way that you record, produce, or compose?
A: I wouldn't say that I am a fully realized or that would make the rest of my life incredibly boring… Looking for people who, you can collaborate with the from the get-go [that] speak a similar sonic language has been key I think because there needs to be some sort of… spark that doesn't really have a language. You can't really talk about music. You can only talk about music, you know, so many ways.
I've been fortunate enough to have this click with a lot of different collaborators and people.
Q: How has the process of releasing your music changed with time?
A: Well, it's quite different… I've kind of gone back to self-releasing, which is really amazing because it means that there is the turnaround of when stuff is actually happening.
I wrote a lot of the record this winter of 2024, so I'm really excited that that's kind of back to the way it was in the old SoundCloud days.
I didn't think about [creating Heavy Body Records] as bold at the time. I was sure that I was somewhat frustrated, and because I have a little bit of DIY in me and a little bit of spite… I [thought I] can just do it myself. And I think that's what's so beautiful about… [how] the internet works for making music and putting it out these days. You kind of just can. I definitely feel like that's a really positive thing about being part… of the streaming generation.
I don't know if I could do anything differently. I think it's so easy to see stuff that went right or wrong in hindsight, but I've just been, putting one foot in front of the other, and, crossing my fingers behind my back, so to speak.
Q: What would you say has been a full circle moment in your career up until this point?
A: I feel like Oh My God, That’s So Me feels sort of full circle, just in the shape of it. And, what my team and I have been able to accomplish as of yet, it feels really, fun and free and autonomous and just kind of groovy and all those ways… I'm never really searching for, like, any sort of specific heights, but I do feel like it's like a really good time to perform.
I feel better performing and just more stoked than ever. So now. Now is good to be here now and for sure… I have the sweetest listeners. Everyone who comes to the show are so, yeah, just great. I think sometimes they worry about my well-being. The first few minutes when I step on the stage. I've had people do it, “Hey, are you okay?” And I'm like, “yeah, this is me in real life.” And then, you know, slowly, warm up a little bit.
A lot of, people come up and say, oh, you know, I listen to this and this album that, was helpful for, for personal reasons for them and all that. So, I just think it's nice that music gets to live and take part in other people's living experiences.
With time, that's really different from when I started out being like, oh, this is what I make.
Q: Were there any, concerts or performances that you saw that inspired how you perform?
A: Definitely. Well, I was living in New York at the time, and, I only did my first performance… through friends who asked me, “hey, do you want to sing this song?” My friend asked me about a song that he wrote and I said, “I'd really… just done a lot of karaoke.”
I always loved singing, but I've never really been on a stage like that, so that kind of catapulted everything… It's really nice to support each other, play for each other if you're in the musical community, put on small gigs together, that's definitely what I learned the most and cherished the most from, you know, my 20s in New York.
My good friend Aerial East… she made a fantastic record this year, actually, called Talking to Myself. And I've been singing alongside her for many, many years now. So, she's definitely like the voice and presence and everything that comes to mind if I think about… mind-blowing stuff… We actually released a little children's song EP called Pegagogy… it’s about 4 or 5 songs. There's one song about a bat or about echolocation, actually, and a song about a rainbow… Simple but bright and hopefully fun.
Q: What's usually on rotation when you're on tour?
A: So many different things. I've actually been listening to my brother’s music right now because he just released.
He raps in Norwegian. So, I was checking that out because he wants to make 100 songs this year… So, he's constantly releasing stuff.
He’s 12 years younger than me. So, our musical reference points are actually wildly different. So, I always enjoyed speaking to him because he'll show me new stuff that I don't know about.
I would love to collaborate with him, but I like my brother that's one year older than me. He’s a black metal drummer… I would also like to collaborate with him, to be honest… we're all very different, but we're definitely doing our own thing.
Q: Did you think you would grow up to be a musician? Or did you think that life was going to take in a different direction?
A: I didn't really think about it. I remember really enjoying to sing… from an early age, but, like, picking up a guitar around 12 and then singing in a gospel choir… I wanted to take singing lessons when my mom was like, just do gospel choir, it’s free.
Once I hit high school, I was actually a dancer… doing events in high school. I kind of thought that I would work with emotion and something more somatic. But I yeah, I didn't really think like, this is going to be a thing, but I don't know.
After making a couple of records, it's… my favorite thing, that's for sure.
Okay Kaya, taken by Youna Baupoux.
Nov 14, 2024 | ktru
Check out the fall 2024 edition of the ktru noizeletter below!!!
CLICK THIS LINK: KTRU Noizeletter Fall 2024 Digital Copy
Nov 10, 2024 | ktru
By Imogen Brown
and Peter Brown
Weezer is, at best, a rocking dad band (pre-1996) and at worst, a gimmicky threat to the spirit of nerdy dude rock (no one asked for a recorded cover of Toto’s “Africa”). My dad and I had the chance to see Weezer live at the Toyota Center on September 28th– it’s almost as if they knew the Rice dads would be showing out en masse for parent’s weekend! I am interspersing my thoughts with his in this review (his are in Italics). It’s only right that Weezer’s dad rock demographic gets to say their piece.
From the start, Weezer slammed us over the head with their tour theme: space. They opened their set with a five minute long “countdown intro” that might have retained more hype had it only been sixty seconds. The intro - which was meant to be ironic - was drawn out too long. Get on with it already. Not sure about the whole space motif. Seemed random. I preferred the Buddy Holly/Happy Days/Al’s Diner motif when we saw them at Jones Beach, Long Island. That’s right, this was our second time seeing Weezer – the first being in New Jersey in 2018. Ah.. a time before teal album-gate and the catastrophe of the SZNS series. At Jones Beach, they had a jolly 1950s vibe (that still failed to outshine the raw, awesome grit and grime of the Pixies opener). It was less nerdy and less aggressively themed than Voyage to the Blue Planet. However, there is something to be said for commitment to the bit.
The set was broken up into three segments: 1) post-1996 songs that many fans tolerate, 2) cult classics off of Weezer’s second studio album Pinkerton and 3) the entirety of Weezer, the blue album. The first segment paid homage to hits like “Pork and Beans” and “Beverly Hills," which Dad and I BELTED in long car rides growing up. “Perfect Situation” is the song of my generation. The transition between each segment was transcendentally geeky; the Pinkerton segment was introduced by a large, animated Weezer “W” with glasses that proclaimed that the “space ship” had reached the “Pinkerton asteroid belt,” to crazed audience screams. Cue “Why Bother?” a classic Pinkerton track filled with 90s angst and relationship ennui. I thought the vocals were a little garbled. The dude with the gray beard rocking out next to me was awesome and loving it. In my opinion, the Pinkerton section of the night was a smashing success. The crowd was in UPROAR at the transition to the blue album, which Weezer played all the way through chronologically. Dad and I knew every single word.
In short, Weezer shows are true theater. A corny, awesome time was had by all.
Oct 20, 2024 | ktru
By Marty Brandwein
Austin City Limits. Weekend 1. Friday. After waiting for only a few minutes to get into the festival, I entered, surrounded by streams of people in cowboy hats, boots, sunglasses, and not much else, speed-walking from one stage to another. Already, there’s a twenty-person line to take a picture in front of the ACL sculpture, but I’m not there for that. So, I made a beeline for Honda Stage.
By the time I get there, Foster the People is already playing, founder and frontman Mark Foster bouncing around the stage as they perform one of my favorite songs of the set, “Sit Next to Me.” The crowd is loving the band’s energy and giving it right back as they rock their way through each song. Every bass line is being slapped, every lyric is being spit, and every key is getting… keyed, I suppose. The screens, though they only convey a fraction of the band’s actual energy, show each musician in a tracer-ridden, trip-inducing world. Finally, after a great run of songs, it’s the encore, the song that every casual fan, including me, has been waiting for begins. The drumline starts and the crowd screams as “Pumped Up Kicks” blares over the speakers. Though a noticeably lower energy song for the band, Foster the People still delivers on what I can only imagine is a song the band is more than tired of.
After a few less-than-notable performances from other bands, it’s time for the main event of the night, at least for me. It’s time for… blink-182. Back at Honda Stage once again, the members of blink gallop out as if they have, excuse the pun, forgotten their age. Now, I won’t sit here and pretend that I was conscious, or even alive, during blink’s heyday, but I was screaming the lyrics to each song I knew and pulling out Shazam on every song I didn’t. Between each snarling riff and insane drum solo, the hilarious, and not-suitable-for-this-website, banter between vocalists Mark Hoppus and Tom DeLonge showed their immense comfort on stage. By the end of the set, Travis Barker’s fingers were literally bleeding and my vocal chords were ripping as every single Millenial in the crowd lost their minds to “What’s My Age Again?” and “All The Small Things.” Incredible set with incredible energy. Gonna need to sleep after this one.
Photo by Gabriel "Allen" Witkop
Wake up, it’s Saturday! First up is Khruangbin playing at American Express Stage. Getting there decently early, I was surprised at the mass of people already flooding onto the dead grass in front of the festival’s biggest stage. After a short wait, funkiness floods the field as “María también” seeps from the speakers. To say that the band was not energetic would be inaccurate; though they refrained from the Jagger-like dancing of Foster, Laura Lee Ochoa perfectly matched the mood of her bassline, seeming to glide around in front of thousands. The on-screen visuals similarly mirrored the upbeat groove of each song, making for a cohesive and thoroughly enjoyable set. With great difficulty, I peeled myself away from the performance, nearly running to one of the smallest stages in the festival, IHG.
So who, you ask, could possibly steal my attention from Khruangbin, while playing at one of the smallest stages? As I arrived, two words faded onto the screen, and the crowd began to chant: “VINCE STAPLES.” Despite no real set pieces on stage and far less elaborate visuals than the other artists I had seen, Vince more than matched the energy of his peers. With songs from every album, including “FUN!," "Yeah Right," "THE BEACH," "Étouffée," "Big Fish," and "Norf Norf,” the rapper, actor, and comedian entranced his audience from start to finish, curating a set to be remembered. Despite Saturday’s performances from big names like Dua Lipa and Khruangbin, Vince managed to steal the show, all from the humble IHG Stage.
Finally, it’s Sunday, the day that for me and many others represents only one artist: Tyler, the Creator. But before his incredible performance, Kevin Abstract took over Vince Staples’ “alma mater,” IHG, to perform hit tracks from both his solo albums and his work in BROCKHAMPTON. Displaying his innate understanding of the balance between artist-necessary arrogance and human humility, Abstract brought up no less than 5 fans on stage to watch him perform “Georgia.” His crowd work, however, did not stop there, leaning over the barricade to rap and sing many songs alongside his front-row-fans. One standout track from the set was the surprising “BUZZCUT,” a song I never thought I would see live. Despite the absence of the immaculate Danny Brown verse, the truncated tune lived in my head for the remainder of the day.
After Abstract wrapped up his set, I migrated to the American Express stage. As only a spectator of the “femininomenon” that is Chappell Roan, I was trapped in a sea of fans spelling with their arms and screaming with their whole bodies. Despite my apathy for her music, Roan’s theatricality and energy was pervasive throughout her set, including her surprisingly good rendition of Heart’s “Barracuda.” But finally, after two hours of wading through the crowd and waiting for the end of the set, I was left swimming upstream, intent on making it as close as possible to the stage for Tyler’s set. Tyler started on the top of an on-stage mountain screaming through many songs from “The Estate Sale” and “Flower Boy.” As he progressed in semi-reverse-chronological order, I made it to the beating heart of the pit by “IFHY,” a personal favorite of mine. Though I could continue to name drop Tyler’s incredible tracks, there is nothing I could write that could convey the energy of both the artist and the crowd; it is unmatched by any other set I have yet experienced. Every lyric is screamed by the crowd and every track has a unique and custom-made intro. I can not, to the time of my writing this, think of a single thing that could be improved.
Photo by Gabriel "Allen" Witkop
As my second-ever music festival, and my first three day stretch, ACL 2024 will be hard to beat. An incredible experience from top to bottom with electrifying energy, phenomenal organization, and thousands in attendance, I will certainly be coming back next year. See you then.
Oct 12, 2024 | ktru
By Steven Burgess
Former Joy Division and New Order bassist Peter (“Hooky”) Hook is currently on tour with his band Peter Hook and The Light for their 2024 Substance tour. The Substance tour is inspired by the records of the same name put out by Joy Division and New Order, with Hooky on lead vocals. The band played a 3-hour set on September 13th at Houston’s famed House of Blues.
When I arrived at the venue, the crowd was filled with a variety of people: a mix of parents taking their kids to their first concert, day-one fans of New Order and Joy Division, and young adults who had discovered records like Unknown Pleasures and Power Corruption & Lies through decades of a cult following. With no opener, Hooky got on stage with The Light and started their set with New Order tracks. The New Order set was filled with many fun and upbeat songs like “Thieves Like Us” and “Regret.” It’s pretty remarkable to hear a song live like “Blue Monday” and hear how similar it sounds to the studio version. Hooky is incredibly expressive on stage, moving around and playing a variety of bass solos in fun poses. My favorite moments from the set were when everyone sang the hook to “Bizarre Love Triangle” and “State of the Nation” or when everyone began to dance in unison to “True Faith.”
Once the New Order set had ended, there was a brief intermission between sets. When the band returned to perform their Joy Division set, the energy in the room went from a happy, fun dance party to a foreboding, intense environment. This set consisted of darker themes and louder instrumentation over Hooky’s haunting vocal delivery. Hooky surprised everyone by playing “Disorder," the night really started, and hell broke loose (in the best way possible). A mosh pit formed in the center of the GA standing area as people began to push into each other - reminiscent of a very toned-down version of Hooky’s accounts of crowds from Joy Division sets. The night went on with the crowd becoming rowdier than ever as Hooky would deliver wailing vocals over songs like “Leaders of Men” and “Digital” while the band performed at a range of high-speed to hauntingly slow tempos. What mainly stuck out to me about this set was how this mesh of adrenaline-induced rock and melodic dark ballads worked so perfectly. Standout moments during this set were when the band delivered a wall of sound on songs such as “Transmission” and “Shadowplay” with an insurmountable amount of energy and when Hooky began to sing over the Light’s haunting rendition of “Atmosphere” filled with beautiful instrumentation. Peter Hook and the Light stuck their landing with their final song, “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” ending the night with a collective chant of arguably Joy Division’s most iconic hook.
Hooky proves himself on this tour that he is a vocal chameleon. His energy as a frontman and his versatility of vocal deliveries on both pop and post-punk front is remarkable, given he had never been lead vocals for either band. Being a part of a crowd with such a diverse age group, it was surreal to see how this crowd of adults transformed back into raging teenagers. The length of the show and the band’s ability to reciprocate the crowd's energy at all times was nothing less than impressive. By the end of the night, everyone had gone home with a little more youth than before entering the doors of the House of Blues.
Check out my interview with Hooky at https://ktru.org/peter-hook-interview/ for more on Peter Hook.
Sep 5, 2024 | ktru
By Steven Burgess
Last weekend at White Oak Music Hall, I went to see BLK ODYSSY. The Austin-based collective has been embarking on their The Fantasy House tour as they promote the release of their newest record, 1-800-FANTASY. Before the show, I had very little knowledge of their music, but I was excited to see them live, given the tracks I had heard before the show.
The show openers, Benji. and Asha Imuno set the bar high with fantastic sets and distinct energies. Benji. opened the show with colorful production elevated by his lush vocals. Throughout the set, Benji. would experiment with elements of R&B, Hip-Hop, and even some Gospel. My favorite moment of his set was when he had the crowd sing along to “Jorja” with him, second to when he brought out his bass and played over his melodic tunes.
Following Benji. was Asha Imuno, delivering a high-octane set with energy flowing throughout each song. What I loved most about Imuno’s performance was how much fun he had on stage. He would jump around on the stage, interact with the crowd on multiple occasions, and portray himself as a very authentic personality. Imuno’s stage presence consistently elevated the songs he performed live with such instances as “DO u WANNA BE HIGH?” and “ZIG ZAGGING.”
After 20-30 minutes, BLK ODYSSY came on stage and immediately hit the audience with a wall of sound. With a set that lasted over an hour, frontman Sam Houston brought his catalog alive with ear-grabbing and captivating performances. BLK ODYSSY exhibited astounding versatility, seamlessly shifting from Rock to Pop to Neo-Soul to Hip-Hop. I was very impressed by the backing band, exuding just as much energy as their frontman. Highlights from this set were “WANT YOU” and “GHOST RIDE,” both performed with passionate delivery to a crowd that reciprocated their energy.
As someone who did not have BLK ODYSSY, Asha Imuno, or Benji. on their radar before this year, the energy and passion behind their music was most apparent in their live performances. Even when taking photos, I could not help but dance and enjoy each set. Each delivered a unique energy that made them memorable and had the audience in sync, strangers dancing alongside one another. I loved how receptive the crowd was to the melting pot of genres performed, making this one of the most surprising and memorable concerts I’ve attended this year.
Aug 1, 2024 | ktru
By Steven Burgess
This year, I decided to study abroad through Rice in Madrid. During a free weekend, I got tickets to an annual music festival here in Madrid called Tomavistas. The festival lasted two days and consisted of a 4-stage setup with multiple bands playing throughout the day. I had the pleasure of seeing four acts at Tomavistas, which was celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.
Derby Motoreta’s Burrito Kachimba
The first act I caught at Tomavistas was a band by the name of Derby Motoreta’s Burrito Kachimba. This band, hailing from Spain, performed a set consisting of hard rock tracks that fused its sound with a unique blend of psychedelic rock and flamenco. The band had not been on my radar until I walked into a record store and I asked a random customer if there were any acts he would recommend I see live from the lineup. After conversing with him, he told me that I could not miss this group for how eccentric they were. What I appreciated most about Derby Motoreta’s Burrito Kachimba is exactly that, how eccentric they were on stage.
The lead singer, Dandy Piranha, would belt over fast guitar and bass sections drenched in pedal effects. The crowd was loving the frantic vocals and fast tempo because they began to start a mosh pit and rammed into each other with no cares in the world. I had a good time and thought the band put on a fun show, but I did think that some of the songs blended together at times.
Belle and Sebastian
UK collective Belle and Sebastian was the second act I got to see perform at Tomavistas. I absolutely loved how interactive the band was with the crowd! Frontman Stuart Murdoch would go into the crowd multiple times singing and showing a lot of care towards the fans in attendance. The backing band were fantastic with a great rhythm section helping create such an atmosphere filled with dancing and fun.
During “The Boy and the Arab Strap,” they invited about 25 people to get on stage with them and dance in a truly euphoric moment. Tracks such as “Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying” had the crowd singing along to every word. This was my favorite crowd out of the entire festival because of the amount of dancing, clapping, and positivity radiating from everyone. I seriously doubt that anyone left this performance without a smile on their face.
The Jesus and the Mary Chain
Jesus and the Mary Chain was the next act and they were as loud as they were melodic. The Scottish post-punk band formed by brothers Jim and William Reid played their entire set as silhouettes on stage with most of the stage videos playing abstract images of light or flashes of all their album covers. Jim’s vocals were low and moody, pairing well with distortion-filled guitar and booming drums really bringing out the essence of songs like “In a Hole” delivering a wall of sound.
The crowd was put into a trance during songs like “Just Like Honey” with many swaying and singing along to the lyrics. The atmosphere was like that during most of the set, even on their more upbeat songs like “Happy When it Rains.” One of my favorite moments was the duet between Jim and Rachel Conti on “Girl 71,” with a great chemistry on stage delivering a beautiful, oddly optimistic performance. Overall, the Jesus and the Mary Chain delivered loud and moody tunes that also paired well with the more tender cuts from their discography.
Phoenix
The last act of the night, Phoenix, had no shortage of energy and presence on stage. From the first notes of “Lisztomania,” they had the crowd in the palm of their hands and they played with flying colors! Phoenix, based in France, sounded exactly as they do on record, but with an amplified sense of energy in concert. I love how interactive the band was with the crowd. One of my favorite bits that Phoenix pulled during the show was when the lead singer, Thomas Mars, got a pair of binoculars and looked into the crowd with playback on the stage screen of him looking into the crowd. The stage was set up with so much eye-catching imagery from the use of kaleidoscopic museum-like imagery to the colorful wash of light on the band members.
The power of the band’s set lay in the fact that Phoenix made it impossible for the crowd to not want to dance with the upbeat tempo and bright instrumentation on songs such as “Entertainment” and “1901.” Everyone on stage looked like they were having fun and matching the energy of the crowd. The show ended with Mars being crowd surfed next to an inflatable palm tree.
Overall, the festival was jam packed with great acts and food/drinks. It was so much fun to make friends with different concertgoers from around the world (Mexico, UK, etc.) and be able to make some core memories. I definitely recommend this festival because I never felt overwhelmed by the lineup and I was able to make it to all the live acts I wanted to see.
Ejay: So my name is Ejay Mallard. I'm an R&B artist from the northside of Houston, Texas. I got into music through my mother. She is a preacher at a church, but growing up, I was in the choir. She was also leading the choir, so it was kind of just faith-based religion, music, and stuff like that. I never really professionally pursued it; it was more so just church and choir and school as well. Shout out to Atascocita High. But, yeah, we did that for a while. And then when I got to college, I was like, man, I really wanna start professionally pursuing this in a more organized fashion. So I released my first single professionally, which is Drake and Drive, and the feedback I received from that was super great. I kind of notoriously became the Frank Ocean of the Baylor campus because it was few and far between when I would release a song. So when they got one, it was very special because they knew I took my time with it. So, yeah, that's just kind of how things started. Since then, it's just been a whirlwind of releases and ups and downs, but I think I've finally gotten to a point now where folks are coming to me for answers, and it feels good. Sometimes you'd be that guy, but I'm excited for what's to come. To me, it's more about the journey, the way I got here and how I arrived at this exact point has been the most fun part for me.
Ejay: Yeah. So When A Black Man Gets Vulnerable, the EP was basically an embodiment of the black male experience, as it relates to vulnerability. So my hope is that listeners will get an understanding that it's okay to be vulnerable, especially as a black man in society because oftentimes, it seems as if that's not the case. And we're just literally having this conversation last night while we're watching Love is Blind, but it's literally so frowned upon these days for men, especially black men, to open up and be honest about the experiences and the pains that you have because it often seems as if you open up, and then a reaction or response is met with that, and then you're apologizing for opening up. So it's like, damn. I didn't know that my word or how I felt would have an impact on someone else and make them feel a type of way to where you're now in a position of it's kind of this victimization kind of position starts to introduce itself and that you're in the position of suppressing your vulnerability, suppressing your moods and your thoughts, and you go through this world thinking that you can just take on everything. And I don't like when men do that. I don't do that at all. I feel like pain is supposed to be felt, but it also supposed to be presented. But then in this next project, and it's a series. So this first project was When a Black Man Gets Vulnerable, and then this next project, like I said, it's more focused on devotion and love. So this next project is titled When a Black Man Gets Affectionate. So it's now a little bit more upbeat tracks, a little bit more songs focused on love and focusing in on the woman and embracing your woman, showing her attention, showing her affection. Even there's some sexual desires on there to where you just kinda shaping what the black male experience looks like from that lens as well. So you have the vulnerability aspect now, and then you also have the affection aspect now to where folks can really see there's two sides to this coin. There's a soft side to this man, and sometimes we have to embrace some femininity as well. I think that's a key part of it. But also too, you have to get to a point to where you can also show affection, and it's not you can put down the masculine rugged masculinity and really see, like, I can do certain things that doesn't compromise or jeopardize how I'm seen in society. Like, a lot of people say, like, oh, this is sassy. You're doing this. I was like, I'm doing this for my woman. I could care less about what the world thinks. Like, this has nothing to do with me. If that means I'm gonna watch Love is Blind, like, not my favorite show in the world, but after a couple episodes, I'm in it, and she can tell you, like, I'm screaming at the TV because, like, man, I'm in it now, and I'm doing this for her because it makes her feel like he wants to be here. Like, it's not forced. And I think that's just an appreciation of where I am now and appreciation of the trajectory of my life and relationships. I feel like it took a lot of time to get to this point, but it took a lot of time to start to write in this vein because, like I said, everything was toxic up until this point. So it was very hard to make that transition, but now I'm happy, and it's good to write about happiness. It's good to write about things that make you feel a little bit more positive. I think the girls are definitely gonna eat that project. Oh, yeah. It's gonna go crazy. It's for the ladies. This is something that I feel like women would love to hear, especially coming from a black man of things that they don't necessarily or often hear from black men in terms of how can we be affectionate, what they're looking for in expectations, providing proof when there is little to none being shown that you actually want to be in this relationship. So I think that is the biggest thing for me.
and Peter Brown
