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Image via Tonje Thielsen
Daily Discovery is a feature that highlights a new or recently discovered artist who we’re excited about. See the rest of our Daily Discoveries here.
British independent label Big Dada is best known for releasing experimental electronic music and underground rap from the U.K. and beyond. Recently, however, they have been coming up trumps with edgy, experimental pop music, previously from Roseau, and now from Samuel.
Brought up in Ireland, and now based in South London, the singer teamed up with Kwes, Lockah, and Okzharp for his new EP Luv Cry, and the result is a unique blend of heartfelt pop, R&B, and endlessly evolving production. Listen to the premiere of “Killr” from the EP and get to know Samuel a little better below.
The Luv Cry EP is out June 10, pre-order here.
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When did you first start making music?
I started making music when I was a kid. I probably chatted less than most. Making music was a good way to get some thoughts across and feel better. It started as some kind of music therapy and turned into something that I always wanted to have around. I like to be making something, shit or otherwise, most days.
What music did you grow up listening to? What music are you listening to now?
Mighty Shadow, Gregory Isaacs, Nina Simone, Tom Waits, Dennis Brown. I listen to anything with some heart in and good soul. Stuff that comes with simple lines. I don’t like being crowded much. I have Abyssinian Choir on a lot. Lifts me out of it all.
There are some brilliant producers on this EP. Have you always been attracted to pairing your voice with more experimental electronic production? What attracts you to it?
I like to sing about love. The goods and bads of it. The producers I work with have an optimism threading through their makings that I relate to. They are proper gifted without being difficult and we are all open to exploring stuff together in quiet ways.
Sometimes the seed to the song is the vocal and sometimes its something else entirely. Keeping that process as open as possible allows for new angles to come through. When I get to the end of making a song, a thing emerges that shows me what the whole thing was about. Maybe it’s a five second synth line that shines out, only there as a reaction to stuff happening elsewhere. Or maybe it’s unfurling a vocal in some way that couldn’t have happened without the help of a particular sound somewhere else. Shifting and evolving focus is what making music is about for me. Some questions and hopefully some answers.
With electronic music, you can take any sound in the world and make it entirely your own, so the process becomes personal and alive, although making each element breathe in its own way can take some time to manage. Sometimes you have to sacrifice the perfect balance for something more honest. Ah, who knows? I mostly like making music the way that I do because I think I’m as likely to be ok at it as I am to be shite at it. And that feeling sits okay with me.
What do you want people to take from this EP? What emotions do you feel when listening to it?
I’d like people to feel nice listening to it. I like hearing the songs back as it was a good time.
What inspires you while you’re making your own music?
Ah. So many things inspire me. I enjoy lots of things. I have 47 songs on the perfect London burger. Nights. Stars. People. Plants. Driving around the city and taking everything in. London inspires me a lot, the sounds of the day, natural or otherwise. My songs are all about love. That inspires me most.
What do you have planned for the rest of the year?
I’m taking my cat and we’re going on a world tour. Fuck it. I’ve made a couple dozen songs that’ll carry us though and I think we’re just gonna get really happy. I’m also playing Rye Wax in Peckahm, London on June 20th if you’re free.
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Image via Big Dada
