Red Bull SoundClash with Bren Joy

December 29, 2021

After a show-stopping year of events, Red Bull closes this year out with a show unlike any other. SoundClash, aptly named for a competition-like show where two artists face off in a battle-like performance against each other. Held all over the country, this SoundClash landed in Nashville, where music is born, inspired, and performed by the country's most musically talented people. This SoundClash invited R&B singer Bren Joy, and rising pop star Jake Wesley Rogers, to battle it out on their hometown stage.

Held at Marathon Music Works, over 1,000 fans gathered to view their favorite artists and cheer them on, the louder the sound decibel, the greater chances of the artist winning. Both Bren and Jake took the stage and put on a show both exciting and that showed off the immense talent that each of these artists exudes. Superstars in their own rights, Jake and Bren performed their own songs, performed each other’s songs, and brought out special guests to accompany them on stage. Sheryl Crow, Lennon Stella, Joy Oladukan, and Landon Sears made appearances that aided the crowd-buzzing artists and shocked all of the guests as they came out one by one.

Interview by Cassie Jekanoski
Photos by Andy Barron

Prior to the show, office sat down with Bren Joy and talked about how he was preparing for the event, what inspires his sound, and his place in the music industry. Through inspiring conversation, gentle humility, and an undeniable it-factor, the Nashville-born artist proves that he has a promising future for himself.

Continue reading below.

Hi! How are you today?

Amazing. How are you?

I'm good. I'm sure you've had a pretty busy day.

It's been insane. Yeah, it's been good. We just got off tour. So we're still on tour actually. We leave in the morning to play Atlanta.

What have you been doing to prepare for the SoundClash tonight?

Learning lyrics. You know, learning Jake's songs. I think I've just been trying to get into the headspace of this is not just a concert and it's kind of this incredible celebration almost, so getting into that headspace. I'm so competitive like, it's bad. And so I'm trying not to be that guy.

So is it you singing his songs as well?

Yeah, I'm singing some of his songs. And he's singing some of mine as well as our own, you know? So it's gonna be fun.

That's a really cool twist to going to a typical show. So you kind of talked about how you're from here, you are moving to LA and just got back from London. So what is it about these places that inspire your songwriting? Could you pick a specific place that you get inspired by the most?

California right now. I get inspired by places in eras, especially songwriting right now, like California in the 80s and 90s right now is my biggest inspiration for this next project. Anything that I can hear in the 70s or 80s in a vintage Cadillac, is what I want my stuff to sound like right now. But California, I think it's just the air. It has this essence of freedom and this essence of individuality and authenticity. And I think that's what really inspires me about that city.

You also talked about architecture, too. When did you first start getting interested in that and how does that ties into your music?

I just always, even as a kid, always just loved buildings which is weird. But my mom does interior design and stuff on the side. So I always was that mama's boy with her while she's shopping and doing that. And my grandfather built houses and so did my dad so I feel like I've always been around it. It's just really inspiring seeing how people are able to create shapes in light and in air through placement. I kind of see where I can place things in a mix and music to create new shapes and new things. That's the way my brain works.

Did you know that you always wanted to become an artist or performer?

No, when I got to college, I just recently started singing so I was just surrounded immediately by friends that were just blowing me out the water. I'm surrounded by so many still. I think junior year came and I just really had a lot to say and I didn't really enjoy singing other people's songs, I just wanted to sing my own. I think there's power in finding your place in music. I think comparison is a very big thing. I think that's why I was able to grasp on to being an artist so quickly because as soon as I let go of that comparison, I found what I'm good at. You know, my niche.

You being true to yourself.

Yeah, fully. It's very important and a lot of people don't want to hear that. And I think that's why a lot of people are like, fearful of being artists. And I'm like, "No, fuck that." If I'm gonna do it, I'm gonna do it now. You don't want to look back and be like, "Oh, damn, I wish I could have done it this way." So many people do that. And they start so late. And I'm like, "Nah, bro, just go for it."

I feel like there's never a time where it's too late to start doing something that you want to do.

Someone's gonna listen to your music. Even if it's one person, that's somebody. That's where it starts, though. And that slowly grows to, you know, a SoundClash.

Was there sort of a pivotal moment for you where you kind of sat down, you're like, "Damn, I'm actually doing this and people are listening to me."

That's a good question. I don't know if I've had that moment. Yeah, but there have been moments where I'm like, this is kind of wild. This is kind of crazy. My first show at EXIT/IN definitely was a very big moment of like, "This is sold out. This is crazy." But I think finally announcing the tour. It was the first time I felt deserving. Like it was the first time I felt like, "Fuck yes, finally." Pink Sweat$ is a dime, you know? So I'm very honored. I think it's just very surreal going from city to city and seeing people in Toronto singing my shit. And people in Montreal, and Minneapolis was crazy.

It's like actually seeing real-life people. Yeah, streams are streams, you see the numbers go up, every month. But when you're actually face to face with people.

Yeah, it hits different. It's so inspiring because it just reminds me of like, this is why I do it. I don't do it for any executives, I do it for the people listening. And it's nice to be reminded of that right now.

So I know we are still in a pandemic, but shows are kind of happening again. What's that sort of feeling for you when you're up on stage, and you get to see the people singing your songs?

It's power. I think in the least narcissistic way possible. It's power. I think it's the one chance in my life that people are listening to me. When I step on the stage, people are just listening. And I think that there's so much personal power in that. I feel very strong. It's good that the messages I'm saying, and I'm singing about, I believe in, but it's very special. I can't really explain it, you know, you can't really describe it. It's just this sense that I hope a lot of people get to experience.

What sort of advice do you have to give for people who are looking to follow in your footsteps?

As a new artist, I still consider myself new, I feel like it's very easy to overthink things. And to be very like, "This has to be perfect." And I think what has worked for me is simply impressing myself and putting it out. I think so many young artists get so caught up in the labels and the executives being like, whatever. And I think they forget that like we're the ones hiring them. We're the ones that are the next up for Warner, next up for Sony, we're next up. And so I think people forget about that. And it's very important to remember that it's very achievable. It's hard work, but any job is.

Music

Jesse Jo Stark Is in a Genre of Her Own

April 19, 2024

In the midst of a total solar eclipse, I got the chance to talk about music and style with Jesse Jo Stark.

As I’m on the phone with her from New York, Stark is on a tour bus with The Veronicas, driving through the Colorado mountains to enjoy some time off in between shows. The Veronicas have just started their Gothic Summer North American Tour, and Stark is opening the show. What’s special about this tour for the lifelong music obsessive is the sense of powerful feminine energy encapsulating the tour. “We just started [tour], but it’s been really lovely. I’m obsessed with the fact that we’re all women — it feels like a very powerful crew. The Veronicas are lovely, the crowds have been so fun, and the venues are beautiful. It’s gonna be a good month.”

Photography Sophia-Liv Maguire
Styling Marc Eram
Interview Angelina Hazzouri
Talent Jesse Jo Stark
Hair Antoine Martinez with PARADIS using Roz Hair
Makeup Sydney Szramowski
Photo Assistants Mia O’Neal, Rashaun Richardson
BTS Ms Josephine
Creative Producer Olivia Roper-Caldbeck

This is Stark’s second time touring since the release of her full-length debut album DOOMED in late 2022, which was very well received and led to Stark’s first sold-out international headlining tour on behalf of the album. Previous to her solo tour, she’s opened for various notable acts, such as Guns N’ Roses and Jane’s Addiction. I asked Stark, who’s been writing and playing music since age 11, what it was like to prepare for her first sold-out headlining tour. Unsurprisingly, before any tour, Stark goes into what she describes as “bootcamp mode” — dancing every day, vocal training, rehearsing with her band, and of course, working on her outfits. “That’s the sort of homework I love,” she says, smiling. (Even though we’re on the phone, I can tell she’s smiling when she talks about the outfit part. I’d smile too if I had her tour closet.)

What’s unique about Stark as a musician is that she has ultimately created her own universe by embracing every aspect of her creative upbringing, her raw talent, her fascinating influences, and her unwavering beliefs in not needing to fit into a certain box when it comes to her art. She creative-directs and styles all her own looks, referencing an ever-evolving list of influences that range from Vegas showgirls to Halloween to old films to her parents in the 90s. “I think when I was younger, I had this rebellion against what I was made from,” she tells me, “but now it’s just my blood. I constantly reflect on my childhood and everything I was taught and everything I saw. My brother and sister and I are constantly pulling influences from our parents from the past. I think, more than ever, I’m heavily influenced by them.”

Stark, the daughter of founders and owners of the self-made American fashion brand Chrome Hearts, and now its creative director and designer, is someone who always knew what she liked, but as she describes it, had to ‘go through the motions’ that come with growing up and knowing one’s identity. Today, her self-efficacy is palpable — and it’s inspiring.

...when I was younger, I had this rebellion against what I was made from, but now it’s just my blood.

When she’s on tour, Stark is growing with herself and with her art — she’s not afraid to take life as it comes and learn through the process. With every show, regardless of whether it was on her DOOMED tour or this tour with The Veronicas, Stark understands the importance of human connection through music. Seeing faces of music lovers like herself, meeting those who have traveled to see her, and visiting familiar and unfamiliar cities has reminded her that she loves being on the road. “The growth that happens on tour is so important to me as an artist.” Sometimes we have to leave behind what’s familiar in order to rediscover what’s important, and Stark is a proponent of this growth mindset.

Growth doesn’t just happen on tour with Stark — this evolution of herself happens within genre as well, and for Stark there’s no such thing. Since her first release Driftwood in 2017, the artist’s sound has shifted year after year, but in a harmonious way that still feels central to her gothic Americana roots. When asked if she’ll experiment with genre in the future, Stark confidently answers, “I think I’ve only experimented with genre. I don’t think anyone knows what genre I am.” (She calls herself a “horrific hillbilly” — a perfect descriptor.) Steadfast in her belief that we as humans can constantly evolve in our work, Stark thinks it’s antiquated to fit yourself into a certain box and focus on one specific trade in order to succeed. “If you look at us as people, we’re seasoned. We change all the time. I want to experience different things.”

Since Driftwood, a two-song EP rooted in rock and country, Stark has experimented with more robust beats and 808s on DOOMED, and her most recent single “skeleton” features a softer, grungier punk sound. Without fitting into a specific genre, Stark’s music is undoubtedly and wholeheartedly her own, transcending the boundaries of what many artists struggle with when finding their sound. “I don’t think we should have to label ourselves in any way, shape, or form; so I’m not going to. I will continue to make all types of different music.” Fuck yeah.

If you look at us as people, we’re seasoned. We change all the time.

This goes beyond just music — in terms of her personal style, the same mentality applies. We discuss the idea that clothing and dressing is a sort of playground, and personal style comes from within. Stark isn’t about following trends, but rather, she thinks it’s important to tap into different stylistic elements that amplify who we are at our cores. On her DOOMED tour, Stark wore a lot of leather and stuck to a fairly dark color palette. Right now, she’s into more bourgeois satin and lace, experimenting with different textures and wearing things that feel slightly daintier and more delicate. On this current tour with the Veronicas, Stark is making it more of a point to take everything in — absorbing inspiration from every city, writing songs on the road, recording video on a friend’s super 8 camera, styling and wearing new outfits, learning and performing new covers — ultimately growing through the whole experience.

It’s endearing and inspiring how well Stark knows herself. A Los Angeles native, she proudly tells me that the tour finishes on May 5 in her hometown, a show that she’s especially excited for. While we can’t predict what thoughtfully-curated outfit she’ll wear or what songs will be performed, with new music already underway, one thing is clear: Jesse Jo Stark is just getting started.

Music

9lives' Latest Single Continues to Push Sigilkore

April 19, 2024

The versatile artist, producer, and pioneer of the sigilkore genre, 9lives, has recently unveiled his latest single "CANADA" featuring jnhygs. In less than two years since his emergence onto the music scene, 9lives has carved out an impressive niche for himself as a prominent figure within the digitally-driven sigilkore movement. "CANADA" sees him teaming up once again with experimental dance artist jnhygs, following their successful collaboration on "XTAYALIVE".

With aspirations to establish himself within the mainstream arena of experimental music production and artistry, 9lives is blending his distinct dark production style with collaborations with a diverse array of influential artists who trust him to create innovative sonic landscapes. "CANADA" marks his second release of 2024, as 9lives continues to champion the burgeoning sigilkore movement, pushing the boundaries of genre, evolving into a multifaceted artist, and solidifying his status as a rising star with an expanding audience.

Image by Connor Pritchard

Reflecting on their latest project, 9lives shares, “In early 2023 jnhygs found my music and we started chatting through TikTok, releasing our first song together called "XTAYALIVE"." He adds, We’ve been friends since this song had a viral moment, and fans have been heavily requesting for us to work together again all over our videos.” Describing their creative process, he explains, “I sent a bunch of new ideas to jnhygs via Discord and she sent back vocals to “CANADA”, which I then used to create melodic layers and extra percussion to complete the song.

Music

Eclipsed at Vampire Weekend

April 16, 2024

It had been about a week since the goosebump-inducing communal howls at the moon, as it covered the sun through a cloudy Austin, Texas sky, left me needing to take a seat—suspended in awe of the totality of the event and the synergistic break from routine. I overheard someone say, “I mean, it feels like we’re all going to die, but in a way that’s okay, you know?" under the shadow of the eclipse's peak, ceremoniously brought in as the band performed “Jonathan Low,” (in Vampire Weekend's familiar ironic hue) a track they wrote for the third movie in the Twilight series, Eclipse.

It had been five years since the band had released an album. In celebration of their latest album, "Only God Was Above Us," ticket holders wrapped the streets in blocks outside the venue for the band’s first Stateside show in about two years. Event managers searched to replenish the venue’s stock of eclipse glasses, while the band prepped a show reminiscent of 'getting the boys back together again'.

Words and photography by Rianne Akindele

In between newly released songs like “Classical” and “Capricorn”, the boys filled the almost two-hour-long show with old favorites like “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa”, “Diane Young” and a genre evolved rendition of “Sunflower” as the crowd danced barefoot feeling the Earth’s energy intertwined with their own and the vibrations from the amps on stage. People stole glances at the imminently darkening sky, artists doodled, friends grabbed onto each other to scream the lyrics in each other’s faces, and onlookers from the highest level of the parking garage across the street cheered on in a symphony of nostalgia and anticipation.

Adding to the layers of the celestial afternoon, the band invited to the stage the likes of Thomas Mars from Phoenix, Dave 1 from Chromeo, and guitarist Brian Robert Jones, inducing further levels of indie revival euphoria.

As the show drew to its close, and the zydeco/country-rock “Cocaine Cowboys” medley fiddled through the air, a conversation could be picked up between two sisters in search of their Lyft driver through closed-off streets,

“I wish this happened more often.”
“Eclipses or shows like this?”
“Both.”

It’s moments like these that remind us of our shared humanity and the power of collective experiences; a gathering of souls under the same sky, sharing the joy of music and a wonder of the stars above. Perhaps it’s the rarity that allowed such transcendence, reverence, and gratitude to be felt. Either way, what a beautiful moment in time it was.

Here are a few shots from the Monday afternoon: