Tag: Audley

Audley Collabs with JJ Baker on Artistic “This That” Video

Audley This That
Audley This That
Photo Credit: Eugene Fryer

Audley has returned with an artistic new visual for his song, “This That,” a track from his latest LP, ROY. Produced by GrandAce, the four-minute track finds Audley flexing his lyrical prowess while riding a jingling beat. The new “This That” video, creatively directed by Death To Brand Guidelines, matches the single’s off-kilter energy.

Audley raps to the camera while artistic drawings representing his lyrics are set on fire. All the while, the video’s focal point is constantly changing, as the Cincinnati-bred MC’s face appears in different boxes that pop up in rotating corners of the screen. “Minimalism is dead!” Audley declares with the captivating clip, which features illustrations by artist JJ Baker.

The visual also ends with a cliffhanger: “New music on the way.” Watch “This That” below, and read on for a Q&A between Audley, JJ Baker, and Audiofemme. 

AF: Congrats on the release of your “This That” video! The concept for the clip is really cool, where did the idea come from?

 JJB: Thank you! The ideas basically came from Johnny (Audley) and from the lyrics. He put together a PowerPoint with pictures and images based off of the lyrics and I used those as the starting point for my drawings. Some drawings were straight up what Johnny’s idea was, but a lot of the drawings I added my own ideas and inspiration too. 

A: Thank you so much! It’s been a 19-month process, so we are thrilled this babe is out to the digiverse. Once the song was recorded, I knew I wanted to work with JJ to bring the lyrics’ random imagery to life. Initially, we were strictly focused on producing a sketch for each stanza and as that process developed, we organically took note of what visuals we could collage together to make a compelling, stimulating piece.

AF: The artwork is unique in that it’s reflective of the song lyrics, but also tells a story on its own.

JJB: Thank you, I appreciate that. I like the idea that the art tells its own story. I wanted the art to simultaneously reflect the images of the lyrics while also expanding the meaning of the song. A lot of the drawings are references (Dimmsdale Dimmedome) or mention other artists ([Devin Burgess’] “Bounce Back,” Goulet), so it was fun to draw these people. It was also a blast to incorporate text into the drawings. Audley and I are both drawn to fonts and typography, so it was fun to combine image and text for a delightful, visual cornucopia. 

AF: I especially love the different media boxes drawing your eye to all parts of the screen. What made you want to format the clip this way?

JJ: All the FaceTimes that me and Johnny had! Picture-in-a-picture is a ubiquitous aspect of our lives and I find it a fascinating visual trope. I’ll be browsing on my laptop with 37 open tabs, a different window streaming a documentary, Spotify playing music, and Photoshop. It’s wild. It’s part of our lives these days. There’s so much going on. We wanted to use this maximal approach, but still harness it together to create an impactful and compelling video. We also had so many different ideas and videos that we made in the process, so using picture-in-a-picture allowed us to combine basically everything we created into the final product. 

A: Minimalism is dead! We are in a loud and bright era of expression. Artists are weaving twelve textures onto a canvas and sending it to their friends to add 3-D shapes and text and then they are sending it to a virtual photographer to take pictures of it “in the woods.” The dial has been turned and that inspired JJ and I to do the same thing, but from our perspective.

AF: Audley, the last time we spoke you mentioned some of your ideas for new ways to format visuals and marketing; can fans expect more creative videos like this coming their way?

A: I will always attempt to push the envelope when it comes to creativity. What that means and where it lives is a friendly mystery that I am semi-solving one project at a time. I truly believe that the work should speak for itself, and the marketing should be rooted in amplifying the ideas presented. Bells and whistles are an afterthought for me at this point. We still like bells and whistles, but not as a driver of the experience.

AF: The video ends with a cliffhanger promising more music. Audley, what are you working on right now?

A: I’m working on a few audio projects with some very lovely superhuman creatives. All very different, but they all feel honest. Outside of tunes, I just moved to Chicago and am delicately absorbing what it has to offer. I intend to interact with the community and hope to assist in its growth. A big line item for me over the next two years is to cultivate a space for creatives to connect. I want bands in the corner, visual artists projected on the walls, vendors in a circle facing the projections. Death To Brand Guidelines!

AF: Is the city skyline in the clip from Chicago or Cincinnati? 

JJ: Funny enough, it’s Houston! That’s where I live these days even though I’m a Cincy boy. My studio has a pretty dope view of the Houston skyline, so we were able to include that shoot when filming.

Follow Audley and JJ Baker on Instagram for ongoing updates.


PLAYING CINCY: Audley Talks ‘ROY,’ Poetry And His Colorful World

Audley

Audley
Photo Credit: Annie Noelker

Audley’s world is colorful, honest and full of possibilities. The 27-year-old singer/rapper just released his new album ROY—a glittery yet deeply personal offering that shifts between pop, R&B and hip hop sounds and combines introspective tales of love, pain and moving on.

Since Audley released Pink – his debut effort and ROY’s predecessor – in 2018, a lot has changed. The artist swapped an unhealthy environment in Cincinnati with a move to Dayton; left a high-intensity job in digital media after suffering burnout; and has spent the past few months flourishing in sobriety.

“It was such an organic movement, getting this album done, and I think it happened so fast because I’ve been holding in this expression for so long,” he told me over coffee in our socially-distanced interview. “These last three years, I was not confident enough in my art to finish it, and once I moved, slowed down and found my true colors, I became so confident in who I was, that no matter what I created – I wanted to share it.”

Color is everything to Audley. It began with Pink – a rosy love album that sent him on the path to streaming personal-bests, media attention and two Cincinnati Entertainment Award nominations.

“With Pink, we created this beautiful explosion,” he reflected fondly.

The artist admits he set out to create a kind of Pink 2.0 for his sophomore effort, but felt that colors – which were once a door to his emotional expression – were now boxing him in. He scrapped two potential albums rooted in other hues: Chrome, which was going to be an electronic album, and john. – a self-produced indie-rock album that made him think of the color brown.

Poetry became a new creative outlet for Audley, where he could put pen to paper without the limiting self-doubt that encumbered songwriting. After jotting down dozens of free-flowing poems, he decided to try them out against beats.

“I had hundreds of beats, all from people I really admire,” he said. “I decided one day that it’s a cop-out for me to think that I can’t write music right now. I would put a pack of about 40 beats from [producer] Luna (aka internetboy) on shuffle and just sing in the shower – every day.”

When verses turned into songs, Audley started recording three new projects inspired by the colors green, black and mustard yellow.

“They were all sonically so sporadic that none of those songs made it on to ROY,” he explained. “But, I think it’s really interesting that I wanted to do three colors, and then now ROY – Red Orange Yellow – is three colors. The vision was there, but it didn’t let me tap into it because it knew I need to do some more work before I was ready to receive that blessing.”

ROY first took form with “Right Now,” which is track No. 3 on the album and the first song he recorded.

“I was at the point where I was writing half-songs and thinking, ‘This is trash. This is trash,’” he said. “So, with track No. 3, I was like, ‘Just finish it and then sit on it.’ And it was like, the moment I finished that song, I recorded myself performing it and I sent it to Luna and I was like, ‘We’re gonna make an album.’”

“Right Now” opened the floodgates. As he began writing and recording his way through ROY, Audley also launched a campaign on Instagram, where he posted a new verse and video every day for two months.

“I’ve been creating so much and now it’s even bigger than that. I’m making clothes, I have my own LLC – it’s so much bigger than music,” he gushed. “It’s one medium of me, vomiting my truth into the universe.”

Audley
Photo Credit: Alexa Gallo

That truth found a home in ROY. Sonically, the album sees Audley deviating from his past hard-hitting raps and swimming to warmer pop and R&B shores – although he knows he won’t stay away from hip hop for long. A competitive yet tender voice in Cincinnati’s rap scene, he forewarns other emcees of his return with: “Let me flex on you by spreading love.”

“Utilizing hip hop sonics with the message being finding yourself and loving everyone around you is powerful,” he said. Laughing, he described his rap style as “so pristine that a 70-year-old woman is gonna listen to a good trap beat about spreading love” and say, “This is fire.”

ROY helped Audley find his way back to his world of color, too. Hues became a way for the artist to visualize his emotions and – when he allowed himself the freedom – he realized he could push the boundaries of that expression by showcasing more than one feeling; more than one side; and more than one shade.

“I realized that Pink was a piece of me, and all the colors of the spectrum are me,” he said. “If you look on the album’s cover art, you’ll see a pink gemstone. It is a visual representation that I proudly wear Pink as a magical gem right on my head; right in front of my mind. Pink is a part of me, but it’s not all of me. It’s just a beautiful tip of the hat to say, ‘We’re not disowning 2018 Audley,’ because you’re gonna hear that on the album, but it’s just so much bigger.”

Even after our hour-long chat, Audley is still buzzing with ideas. ROY is just one universe in his mind; he’s currently working on an experimental synth record, a rap album and two other projects, all of which he aims to release next year. As for their thematic hues – that remains to be decided.

“The next album, obviously, is gonna be rooted in color, but I don’t think it’s gonna be named a color because we’ve established the game we’re playing at this point,” he said. “Now it’s just, ok cool, what’s the next level?”

Follow Audley on Facebook for ongoing updates.

PLAYING CINCY: Singer-Songwriter Audley Wants To Be The Light In Your Life

Audley takes in a performance at his residency last month. Photos by David Chimusoro.

It’s been a banner year for Cincinnati hip-hop artist Audley, who kicked off 2018 with the release of his debut studio album Pink in January and just finished up a month-long residency at Cincinnati’s The Comet. The weekly shows were named The Love and Light Series, which he says was inspired by the musicians he’s met and lessons he’s learned this year. Though he reps impressive rap skills with an energetic flow, what really shines on Pink are his buttery smooth R&B vocals—it’s no surprise that he names Childish Gambino as a musical influence. Here, Audley reflects on The Love and Light Series, how he manifests success through positivity and uplifting others around him, and gives us a sneak peek of what he’s bringing to 2019.

AF: How did your Love and Light Series go?

A: I honestly don’t even know where to begin! It was probably the biggest accomplishment I’ve ever done in my life. There was a lot of talent in one room every Thursday, just really good music bringing the community together. It felt like the perfect way to tip our hat to 2018, just one big celebration, and then MOTR Pub was absolutely nuts. TRIIIBE came up and did a guest performance out of nowhere and just slammed it down. It was everything I hoped for. I almost didn’t even do it.

AF: Really? Why not?

A: It’s just a huge commitment. If I wanted to do it, I wanted to do it right. So I told everyone I had too much going on at work, I had too much going on in my personal life, I just didn’t have time to do this and they’re like, ‘If there’s any time for you to do this, it’s right now.’ So I literally booked the whole series in four days and made it happen.

AF: What drew you to the Love and Light theme?

A: This year has been positivity-driven. I met Jess Lamb and The Factory last year at the CEAs [Cincinnati Entertainment Awards] and their message is very self-empowering, very spiritual. They’re just very much a beacon of light to tell you everything is gonna be okay. Their mantra is you’re beautiful, you’re powerful, you can make it. I was in a really rough spot when I met Jess and it really got me through the year, so the mantra has always been be a light, spread light, spread love.

AF: So based on the experience, would you do a residency like that again?

A: Something like it. I like the idea of a recurring event, just because it builds an audience and garners excitement. Would I do it every Tuesday for a month? Probably not. Would I pick a bigger venue and do it quarterly and do blow outs? Potentially. I’m looking into what that could be. Each venue has its pros, but it has its huge cons also.

AF: Your album Pink came out in January. Do you have a favorite song off the record?

A: I’d have to say my favorite song is “Sleep Alone.” That is like the best songwriting I’ve ever done. The melody, the progression from small to big from verse one to verse three, the beat is a banger—Devin Burgess produced it, he’s super talented. That song is just really pretty and I wrote it right before “Awaken, My Love!” came out, [Childish] Gambino’s record, and it just reaffirmed Pink for me. It was like, if he’s gonna dive into this beautiful funkadelic vibe, I can do the same. So I’d say “Sleep Alone” is probably my favorite. Obviously the bop of the record is “Game Over;” everyone loves that song. Honestly when I wrote it I didn’t know it was gonna be the song and then out of nowhere it had four times the streams as the other tracks, so it was like this one’s it, I guess.

AF: I love the R&B feels. Would you say Childish Gambino is a big influence on you?

A: Oh yeah, later Gambino. Because The Internet and on really spoke to me. I love his writing, [on] 30 Rock, and Community. He’s so funny and even his stand up is great, to the point where when I saw he was trying to make music I was like, dude, stay in your lane, because to me his music wasn’t as good as his writing. Now that I think of it, that’s such an ignorant perspective. He did a freestyle over Drake’s “Pound Cake” and it was amazing and I fell in love with him watching that.

808s & Heartbreak by Kanye West is my favorite album of all time. It’s the most vulnerable he’s ever been on a record, the best melodies he’s ever written, and I love 808 drums. André 3000 was the first rapper to show me that you can flex with class. He literally would be in a suit, but you’d still be intimidated. There’s such an elegance and fluidity to his flow, but that was his flex, and that was during the time of G-Unit and The Game. It was like these people that were really stunting on people, and I was like I wanna be like that guy.

AF: Looking into next year, what can fans expect?

A: Next year fans can expect definitely a new record. I think I’ll be able to make one relatively quickly. I can’t promise that it’s going to be [themed around] a color, which likes breaks my heart to even say, but I’ve learned and grown and have shifted my perspective so much this year that “colors” is such a single-faceted through-line. There’s textures, there’s emotions, there’s literal artifacts that symbolize things. I love the idea of owning a color because you get to own a world through a hue, but I think I’m ready to do something bigger. I’m ready to make a bigger world.

AF: You said you’re looking to collaborate more. Does the collectivity and openness of the Cincinnati hip-hop scene make that a little easier?

A: I would say a year and a half ago, it wasn’t like this. Everyone was so worried about putting themselves on that people didn’t understand that when you help someone else out, you get to elevate together. They thought that there was this finite amount of energy in a box and they thought people were taking their shovels and they were like, well, if I give him some then I don’t get some. Energy is infinite and the more that people have the more that people can grow off of each other’s energy. We’re all playing the same game. We’re all in the same scene; we all have the same obstacles. If you are trying to pull someone down to your level, that’s the same amount of time you could’ve used to elevate yourself to theirs. That’s why Love and Light was so important because we drove home every single Tuesday [that] you have to spread love, you have to be a light, even in your darkest of times. That’s when you need to shine your brightest because other people may need that light, too.

AF: That’s beautiful. Anything else you’d like to say to your fans?

A: I can promise that I will be doing a lot more shows out of town next year, and as of right now I’m working on the 2019 game plan. But I know that whatever I do, I’m going to curate something really special for this city, whether that’s a monthly or quarterly something—it’s gonna be Love and Light on steroids.