The talented and energetic singer-songwriter and live performer J. Andrew recently released his new album “Hearth Attacked”, an innovative blend of hip-hop, rap and alternative rock.
Characterized by a raw and vivid creative lyricism, J. Andrew is a clear and direct kind of artist, not only for his content but also for his creative process.
Capable of capturing the genuineness of the first creative inspiration, his “Heart Attacked” is a perfect blend of lyricism, honesty and attitude.
J. Andrew is not afraid to step outside the box, and gets straight to the heart with an explicit highlight, emphasized by his vocal performance, which is penetrating, scratchy and rich in substance.
Through the sixteen tracks of “Heart Attacked“, J. Andrew shows all the breadth, variety and depth of his creative vision.
With “Heart Attacked” the artist shows us in a tangible way the effort made to capture all the raw emotions of a period of his life, giving us more than a mere recording of a song idea.
With this album, J. Andrew opens a window, showing us a glimpse of his life. And what he shows us is something that hits us and pulls us inside.
To best capture the details of the rich artistic vision of this talented artist, we interviewed J. to ask him some questions.
Hi J., thank you for finding some time for us and our questions.
“Heart Attacked” feels like the kind of album in the realization of which you put all of yourself. Through the sixteen songs forming it, you range from penetrating vocals, like in “Until It Vanishes”, to wide and inspired scenarios, like in “Borderline Supernatural”. Where do you find all this inspiration, and where does such a wide and open creative vision come from?
This album came straight from everything going on in my life for the past year. Just an emotional roller-coaster. I started writing more honest lyrics, and took a different approach with the music altogether. I’ve always been influenced by multiple genres, so naturally my music will always reflect that. The opening track “Until it Vanishes” features the very talented Diastro, and is just a fucking banger with some attitude. “Black Heart” features amazing verses from Black Hesher and Big MIC, with a haunting beat produced by The ROC and a hook that just wont quit. For this album I actually reached out to one of my influences, (a shot in the dark actually) to sing on a song. Pall Jenkins (3 mile pilot, the black heart procession) lends his beautiful voice to the eerie song “Less Traveled Road.”
“Heart Attacked” is the story of a year of your life. You genuinely expose this personal and profound moment without filters, nor reservations. How hard was it to dig inside your own self, and then expose yourself, and open up in such an authentic way?
I wanted to start writing songs that really meant something to me. Songs that came from somewhere so real, the listener is transported to where I was emotionally at that moment, (good or bad). I want you to feel the pain in songs like “balance off-setter”, or the warmth in “away from here/best part.” I also want my songs to be timeless, ya know? Love, heartbreak, anger, and aggression will always be a common bond between all of us.
The flow of your singing seems tailor-made for a live performance on stage. The sound scenarios of your songs sound like real live sessions. Take for example “Best Part” or, again, “Borderline Supernatural”. The way they come out of the speakers reminds us a lot of the experience of a live show. When you’re on stage, how do you drive your musical message? What is it that triggers the spark that turns your stage persona on when it’s time to perform live?
I’m not sure quite how it happens, but when I perform, I become an alternate version of myself. I’ll give everything I have into that 30 mins. No different than wanting you feel the recorded version. Just in person, I’m gonna be in your face demanding you’re there with me. And I just love to sing, and it feels amazing to just belt those songs out to an unsuspecting room.
Cult Muzic already has under its belt over 70 releases by dozens of different artists. It seems almost reductive to call it an independent label. What is Cult Muzic’s vision and perspective on the industry?
Honestly, staying productive and remaining focused on making dope music. Everyone with Cult Muzic (Media) is insanely talented, and we all add different flavors to the kool-aid. The energy in our camp at the moment is absolutely amazing and we know people sense that shit. We are a tight knit operation that works together as a team/collective/crew to lift each other up. The “industry” will really only help you if you’ve made it to a certain point. Once you’re profitable, that’s when they really take notice. There’s a huge misconception of being on major record label. Basically leeches.