| Soul2k:
Hello Sean, can you tell us a little bit about yourself
and your music?
Sean:
I'm just an average dude trying to do above average
things. I was born and raised on the West Side of
Chicago, but I've been blessed to see different parts
of the world. I've experienced a lot and my music
is a reflection of those things. I like to use music
to tell stories, paint pictures, and give positive
messages. There is a lot of negative energy that comes
from some of today's more popular music. So I decided
to step onto the scene and do something different…something
positive. I believe in Karma. What goes around comes
around. Negative music creates negative ideas and
negative results. Positive vibes last a lot longer.
Soul2k:
When did music first find you?
Sean:
I grew up in a house full of people (mother, siblings,
cousins, aunts, grandparents). Music was always playing
in the house. My grandmother listened to gospel, my
aunts and cousins listened to funk and R&B, my
mother listened to R&B and soul music. The first
song that grabbed my attention as a small child was
DO IT BABY by The Miracles. The lead singer, Billy
Griffin, had a killer falsetto that I always tried
to copy.
Soul2k:
Can you tell us when was the very first time you performed
on stage and what you felt that very first time?
Sean:
The first time I performed on stage was during a talent
show back in the day. I had to be around 13 or 14.
Me and my best friend used to freestyle in our neighborhood.
We had a pretty decent reputation and decided to enter
this talent competition. We got up on stage and started
out hot. The crowd was showing love, and then I froze.
I forgot my rhymes, and wasn't able to freestyle out
of it. The crowd booed us off stage. It felt good
for those few minutes when the crowd showed us love,
but nothing can describe the embarrassment you feel
from getting booed off stage. I didn't want to perform
again ever, but that feeling didn't last long.
Soul2k:
Who are your musical inspirations and why?
Sean:
I'm inspired by so many artists, past and present.
A couple of my favorite old school singers are Curtis
Mayfield and Minnie Ripperton. Curtis had a voice
that was super smooth and his music provided messages
of hope and inspiration. He told stories about what
it was like in the hood, but he also had fun songs,
love songs. He was a class act. Minnie Ripperton's
voice was heavenly. Her music was pure like water.
She also carried herself with class and dignity. Erykah
Badu, Jill Scott, India Arie, Raphael Saadiq, Prince,
Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli also inspire me.
There are a lot more, but what all these artists share
is the ability to make music that has a positive impact
on our society and they also serve as positive role
models.
Soul2k:
Your debut album "The Showcase" is quite
exceptional with it's mix of old and new school elements
which takes us on a musical journey. How did you come
up with the lyrics and style? Is there a personal
message in your songs?
Sean:
Thanks. I appreciate that. I've been writing lyrics
for a long time. I write about things I'm feeling.
The song Beautiful was written after a discussion
I had with a female friend of mine, who always found
something wrong with herself. She's gorgeous and is
a great person on the inside as well. I was trying
to get her to see that there is more to being beautiful
than just the physical. After our little talk, I decided
to recap our conversation and set it to music. All
of the other songs came about in a similar fashion.
I saw, heard, or experienced things, and after reflecting
on those situations, I decided to write about them.
There were only two songs that I had the music for
before I had lyrics written (Supermodel and Ride With
Me). I was given the track for Ride With Me and was
listening to it while driving in my SUV. I was trying
to figure out what to write, and I just started freestyling.
I came up with the hook, 'Roll with me in my GMC.'
As soon as I got home I put the verses together, and
I wanted the 'ride' to reflect life in the hood...a
young cat with a nice car, who was hanging out with
his friends and trying to impress the ladies; something
fun, but soulful, old school, and real. I was sitting
at home one day listening to the Supermodel track
and came up with the hook while looking at this entertainment
TV show. The model, Naomi Campbell, was on television
and I started playing around with the word supermodel.
A few minutes later, the hook was born, 'You look
like a supermodel.' I wrote the lyrics to Senorita/Senor
in the shower; Can Man was written one day as I reflected
on my childhood, and this one man in particular inspired
me to write the song; Bye Mama is a tribute to my
little brother, who was killed in 2001, and to my
mother, who is still home dealing with the loss in
her own way. So I try to keep it real. To me, keeping
it real is about writing what I know, what I feel
needs to be expressed, and touching as many of the
five senses as possible. So the lyrics don't have
to be super-creative, they just have to paint a very
clear picture, and then the listener should feel like
they're right there in the setting. As for the old
school feel, I love old school music. It was real
music…good music. So I decided that on my first
album, I'd like to have a little fun, write songs
that meant something to me, give them a hip flavor,
mixed with a bit of that old school vibe. My style
is one that pays respect to the past, but is relevant
in today's world.
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