With this hip-hop album, Ron A.P. enhances his flow rap with blues influences
Raised in South Jersey before moving to Philadelphia, Ron A.P. is a hip hop artist who currently records music under the Dutchstylez Productions label.
A musician, writer, actor, and photographer, Ron started making music in 2002. A licensed skydiver and Intelligence Analyst for the US Air Force, he has been in the military since 2007. After a few years break, he resumed making music in 2017, publishing his first project, “Love Addict”, in 2018.
In his music Ron A.P. conveys all his profound and personal artistic vision, through which he shares his feelings, stories and experiences, offering his listeners connection points.
Armed with a newfound passion for songwriting, recently Ron A.P. published his new album titled “City of Love“. This is a release that stands out first of all for the quality of the production: it’s not only the mix and mastering that make the album sound truly excellent, but also the way in which Ron’s vocal performance develops a flow rap skillfully embedded in the individual songs arrangements.
In “City of Love” Ron talks about his love for the city of Philadelphia. A love that sounds tangible, gritty, real, and intense. And it is precisely through this very soulful musical delivery that the artist shows us the authenticity and depth of a state of mind that sees him at the mercy of deep-rooted bonds and future prospects.
Influenced by artists such as Nas, Jay-Z, Kanye West, B.B. King, and Muddy Waters, in the music that Ron gives us with “City of Love” you can hear a subtle throughline with a bluesy taste. This is a veiled and graceful contamination, one that wisely elevates the whole album.
In this regard, among the ten songs that make up the release, the ones that stand out the most arguably are the first two: “Monologue” and the title track. Two shining examples in which that blues vein is declined both in a more modern and contemporary key, and in one that feels slightly retro.
Rich of musical gems, “City of Love” is an album full of details and facets that make it a work that deserves to be savored and listened to in all its nuances. We could continue to write about it for hours, if not for days. Time that, we are sure, is better spent listening to this album.
On the occasion of the release of his album “City of Love“, we reached Ron A.P. for a short yet exclusive interview. To find out more about Ron A.P. and his creative vision, read on!
Welcome on Nova Music blog, Ron. Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions.
The colors of the intermediate inflections, the ascending and descending tails and breaks with which you harmonize the phrases in your songs, sound like subtle references to blues musical structures. That’s one of the genres from which hip-hop and rap partly derive. How much blues does flow through your musical veins?
Blues is a major part of my music. A lot of people think blues is about being sad, but blues is mainly about love. It’s about the good, the bad, and hurt that comes with it. And, that is what runs through my veins. I feel love in every line that I write. If it’s good, you feel it in my music. Also, it makes me angry, you will also feel that in my music. You will feel how I feel.
The organic and fluid way with which the tracks in “City of Love” are articulated is truly formidable. Each track possesses a delicate balance, where every single element of the sound spectrum is calibrated with an almost scientific precision. Yet, in the musical delivery that reaches us we find a sinuous and soft warmth that sounds genuine and sincere. What is the secret to succeed in such a feat?
There is no secret for me. It’s similar to a therapy session. I hear the instrumental and it puts me in a mood. And While I’m in that mood, I can go digging around inside of me and pull up my true feelings and put it to the music. That’s the only way you can be genuine and sincere.
“City of Love” is a production that sounds flawless. With this release it seems that you have reached a new important stage in your recording career. What do you see in your long-term future?
This definitely is a new stage. I definitely feel like a “foreal” artist now. The music I had before this doesn’t really give the world an insight to what I’m about. “City of Love” is like my “Sonny” from I, Robot; this is music that supersedes the current mold of the hip-hop trend. I guarantee once the world hears this, they’ll be ready to move in this direction. Truly, I see in the long-term future that I’ll be the summit of hip-hop.
But what about a nearer future? Can you give us any anticipation on your next releases, or on what you are working on right now?
I’m always making new music; I mean that doesn’t stop. Just know that there’s more on the way. Currently, I am working on building a consistent team to help me promote my shows, and market and promote my music. I did “City of Love” on my own. Even though it is great to say that, I’m now at a point where the creation has to be seen and heard all over the world, and that is going to be difficult to do on my own.
Listen now to “City of Love“, the latest album from Ron A.P. on:
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