GRAMMYs

Salvador Santana and Asdru Seirra

Photo by J.A. Moreno

News

Exclusive: Salvador Santana And Ozomatli’s Asdru Sierra Announce New Politically Charged Project RMXKNZ

Facebook Twitter Email
With the duo's debut album set to be released this fall, the Recording Academy has your first listen to their joyful debut track, “Canvas”
Crystal Larsen
GRAMMYs
Jul 18, 2019 - 8:01 am

If you look back on decade’s past, you could say that some of the most trying times, whether for an individual or an entire nation, have produced some of the best music. For renowned producers, songwriters and musicians Salvador Santana (son of GRAMMY-winning guitarist Carlos Santana) and Asdrubal "Asdru" Sierra (lead vocalist, trumpeter, and pianist for GRAMMY winners Ozomatli), who have announced a new collaborative project titled RMXKNZ (pronounced "remix-icans") and will release their first album this fall, the point of inspiration was the turbulent aftermath of the 2016 U.S. presidential election. 

But what listeners shouldn't expect from the forthcoming self-titled, self-released album, due to drop during National Hispanic Heritage Month later this year, is a set of songs lamenting the state of the country. Instead, the songs on RMXKNZ serve to uplift, make you dance and inspire action. Santana and Sierra are using their new artistic platform not just to call out those to blame for the current contentious climate of society, but as a call-to-action for those who believe we can be the change we want to see.

The first song on the album, and the duo’s first-ever original song, "Canvas," is a funky, jazzy, hip-hop-tinged danceable track featuring the notable sound of Sierra’s trumpet that sounds like a call-to-action itself. Through the lyrics on "Canvas," the duo encourage listeners to look at their lives as a blank canvas with which they can design who they want to be. The coinciding music video further enhances the song's message, depicting the lively Latinx neighborhoods of East L.A. and Downtown Los Angeles and addressing the issues that affect it: women’s and abortion rights, LGBTQ+ rights, immigration rights, gender inclusivity and more.

“What we wanted to do was [not] just talk about the obvious and create more problems. … We decided that…we want to just wake people up to what is going on,” says Santana.

“Everyone has a blank canvas when they walk into this world,” adds Sierra. “You could draw on it and that’s what your world becomes. It’s really about walking the walk of what you believe. About being the change.”

The songs on the genre-blending debut address the issues that continue to affect the diverse communities of the duo’s city of residence—Los Angeles—including immigration, racism, social injustice, identity and humanity. As Santana and Sierra would say, RMXKNZ is music for the world.   

In an exclusive interview with the Recording Academy, Santana and Sierra discuss the making of RMXKNZ, the inspiration behind the songs and for whom the songs were written. Listen below for an exclusive first listen of the debut track "Canvas."

Let’s start from the beginning of RMXKNZ. How did you guys meet?

SALVADOR SANTANA: We met in 1999 on the Supernatural tour when Ozomatli—Asdru’s band—was touring with my father. It was in the summer, so, since I was in high school, I could go out and hang out with dad and the band. I got to meet Ozomatli, which, at the time—and still now—I was a huge fan of. … Meeting Asdru, and … just everybody that was part of Ozo, it felt like reuniting with a long-lost family. … From day one Asdru has been like an older brother to me.

ASDRU SIERRA: I remember being really young and my wife was pregnant with our first son. Obviously, there was a lot of fear and a lot of wondering what it was going to be like. A lot of [my] anxieties got calmed down when at the Gorge [Amphitheatre in Washington] I saw Sal when he was a teenager sitting in with his dad onstage. I was like, "Wow, that’s cool." … Everybody in the band had families and every time they would see us like all young in our early and mid-20s about to have babies—I guess we looked like babies to them—they all had their turn sitting us down and talking to us and letting us know what it’s like. And just helping us out.

It was actually Sal that introduced Ozomatli to his dad. He showed him the demo and that’s how we ended up hooking up with Carlos. It was all meant to be. Every time we work together, it’s like working with family.

It sounds like it was really an instant connection with you guys. How did the conversation start to work on the RMXKNZ project?

SS: It all just kind of happened organically and naturally. When I first moved into my house that I live in now—it was my new place—Asdru came over and we hung out. I just showed him what I was trying to build—my home studio and everything.

He was like, “Yo, man. I got these couple of demos that I’m working on. I think it’d be really dope if you mixed it up with some lyrics and piano stuff. Just put your fingerprints on it.”

The first song we wrote happens to be the first single, which is "Canvas." And he just played me the beat and I was just nodding my head. For Asdru and I, it either has to make [people] get up and dance. … Or it’s got to have that head nod factor. If you don’t want to dance, then you have to nod your head. So, if it doesn’t have any of those two ingredients, we don’t mess with it. Because it’s just not going to do anything for us, and that’s how we built our sound sonically was between those two things. And it started with "Canvas."

The songs on the album sound very happy and uplifting. Lyrically, there’s huge stories behind every song. What was the impetus for a lot of the songs? What was "Canvas" about and what’s the story behind that?

SS: Lyrically, at the time when we first started writing a lot of [the album], it was during and around the time of the 2016 elections. So, there was a lot on our minds. … We felt like we wanted to express how we were feeling, musically and lyrically.

But [we also wanted to keep] it palatable and not be too preachy. [We wanted to] make people dance. And if you don’t want to dance then just listen to the lyrics. Hopefully they uplift … and rearrange the narrative. At the end of the day, when people put on the record, we just want people to enjoy what we were able to create. 

AS: Watching in 2016, how the world is in that moment, instead of really having a fighting spirit about it, let’s have a realization moment, and understand that we have to be the change that we want to see in the world. … It’s us walking the world as an example for our children. That’s the best thing we can do is just to be that change even though things are a little crazy. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for a lifetime, it’s always been that struggle. It’s always been there. It’s just now there’s somebody out there that’s pretty blatantly being that way and it’s emboldening the evils that are in the world. The divisions rather than the similarities. 

We can put on the canvas the compassion that people need to remember and need to have for humanity before we start dehumanizing everything that we don’t understand. 

SS: We’re all blank canvases when we come to this planet. We’re born here. We have the opportunity to create exactly who we are. To define who we are with our canvases. … The key is to not allow anybody else to paint on your canvas and define who you are. … For us, what was inspiring about the elections and what was going on around that time … was that Asdru and I realized that it’s not about trying to control others, it’s about influencing. And what better way to influence than through music and through uplifting lyrics. 

It’s for the people. It’s for everybody out there that wants a positive distraction from all the craziness that’s going on.

There’s a song on there, "Make it Betta." It sounds like a call-to-action, like you’re giving people tools through music for how they can do their own part to make the world a better place. How do you think each of us can do our own part to make sure the future canvases that come into this world aren’t corrupt or negative, but peaceful and loving?

SS: Basically, we walk around with this flame. And every single person that we meet has a pilot light. Some people’s pilot lights are out. It’s not that they’re lost or forgotten. It’s just the pilot light is out. And they just need to be ignited. And that’s our job. Especially on songs like "Make it Betta." We’re not trying to tell people what to do. We’re just reminding them of what their purpose is and what we’re all here to do, collectively. And what better way to do that than through music? Through uplifting and conscious lyrics. That was our overall mindset with creating this whole album and that song in particular. 

AS: Martin Luther King [Jr.] had this quote about people that know that something is wrong, and they stay in silence just letting it happen without saying anything. …  The best way we can make it better is to be those lights in darkness. To speak up when these things are happening. It doesn’t necessarily mean to go out there and cause a fight. It’s not about fighting. But to hold accountable everything that we see in this world. If that means speaking up, that’s fine. Just let evil know that you see it because only the ugliest things happen in darkness. 

"Martin Luther King [Jr.] had this quote about people that know that something is wrong, and they stay in silence just letting it happen without saying anything. …  The best way we can make it better is to be those lights in darkness. To speak up when these things are happening."

I want to switch gears and talk about each of your upbringings. Sal, you were raised in San Francisco. And Asdru, you were raised in Los Angeles. How do you think the environment of the cities in which you were raised shaped the music you’re making today with RMXKNZ?

SS: I was always encouraged to just understand as much as you possibly can. There’s not just one culture. It’s one world but there’s so many people and cultures and beautiful things that people offer and make up, musically and sonically. For both Asdru and I, both in Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay Area, we just heard pretty much about everything. It’s not that we gravitated toward one music or one style or one sound, we just took a little bit from each so that we could create our own sound. And I think that’s what makes our album and collaboration so unique because you hear all of the sounds and music that inspired Asdru and I from all the cultures that make up both the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles.

AS: I grew up in Glassell Park in L.A. It was a small town in Northeast L.A. But I was there in the '80s before all the gentrification and everything now. Back in those days there was a lot of gang violence, there was a lot of drugs, there was a lot of poverty, but for the most part it was like maybe 10 percent of the population was about the gangs. When you would watch the movies, it was everything else. On my block everyone was a hardworking homeowner. Latinos just trying to make the best they can in the world we lived in. But again, there was a lot of gang influences and that was something that we as a community tried to deal with, you know?

Through my community, that is what defines what I do with music. … It’s a trip because in my world when I was a kid there was a lot of things going on. But the only thing that I saw was a battleground. … I saw a lot of people get shot. I guess because we’re minorities it didn’t really matter to the news or something. But with that said, it’s all these neighborhoods in L.A. that the only way that I could speak up about it was with music. 

Other than preaching to the converted or singing to the same choir, we have to let somebody in the middle of America know what’s going on. The best way that I know how to do it is with music. Just to let them know that it’s just a stereotype they’re seeing. … There are a bunch of people that were cartoonists, that were artists, that were actors, that were people. What happened to the children of all these gang members? What kind of journey did they go through? The immigrants. It doesn’t always look like they’re out there trying to get your jobs. Other people are just trying to escape from whatever craziness is going on in the countries that they’re in and seeking asylum. There’s so many things going on in this world and the best way that I know how to explain it is by that same canvas. That same music. At the end of the day, I’m ultimately trying to reach the people that don’t understand it.

SS: [We want to] reach out to those that need to be woken up. They’re still asleep. They need to be awake to understand what we’re talking about. But also, to acknowledge those that want to say, what we have the opportunity to say with our platform, with our microphone and with our studio and with our ability to be able to express that.

Would you consider yourselves activists before musicians, or vice versa?

AS: I know activists. I know real ones that dedicate their lives to it. I play a little guitar but I’m not an activist. I like to say that I have been active. As activists, [people] have died, they’ve been shot at, they’ve been beaten by clubs by the police. … As a member of the human race I had to be involved somehow. When real activists would actually call me to support the cause I would show up. But it’s hard to call myself an activist. 

SS: Being an activist is not a part-time gig. You’re either in it or you’re not in it. For me, it’s just about being a musician and supporting activists that we know. … So as opposed to necessarily calling us activists, we are of service to those in the community to be of service.

We’re going to continue through our music to just wake people up and make sure that they stay woke because that’s really what it is at the end of the day.

The activists you’re talking about that are out there doing the work full-time need people like you who have the platform to be able to continue to spread that message in a different way.

SS: Exactly. Both of my grandfathers and Asdru’s were living in a different time and era where it was illegal just to be who you were. The skin tone, where you come from, and how you immigrated here. It was illegal just to be you and that is just crazy to me. For me at the end of the day that’s why I’m just so grateful to be able to use our platform, our talent, our passion, which is music, to be able to express and abolish that old way of thinking.

AS: We answered the call to arms. We show up at the marches. But calling ourselves activists, there’s a certain humility about that.

SS: We’re musicians that aspirer to inspire. That’s who we are.

What’s the meaning behind the name RMXKNZ?

AS: If you look at who we are—both Sal and I—we’re of Mexican descent. [But also] there’s Irish in my family. I have freckles. And obviously Salvador has African-American in him. Mexico is very similar to the U.S. in many ways. It’s not just the natives who are the original Mexicans. … It kind of plays into wordplay about doing remixes and stuff and the fact that we’re Mexicans, with the "mix." It kind of makes sense. The world is a lot bigger and smaller at the same time. 

SS: It’s paying homage to who we are and highlighting who we are. But at the same time, it’s also leaving room for how we’ve evolved. We’re not just Mexican. We’re a little bit of this; we’re a little bit of that. It shows in the music. It shows where we come from and our upbringing.

AS: We also don’t want to limit ourselves either, just because we’re of Latino/Mexican/Latinx decent. Just because we’re that doesn’t mean we only do Latin things. It could be from Africa. It could be from the Middle East. It could be Mongolian. 

It sounds like that ties in to what you were saying earlier about educating people. Letting them know there’s many different types of people all over the world. 

SS: We didn’t mean to, but I think in making this record, we stumbled upon a new genre of music. So, when people say, "What type of music is RMXKNZ?" Asdru and I, we play life. It’s life music. All the music that is in our lifetime that we have loved and just continued to dance to, nod our heads to, inspire to. Is life cumbia? Yeah. Is life Afrobeat? Yeah. Is life hip-hop? Yeah, it’s all that stuff. That’s what we play.

You’re calling this music for the people. It’s heavily influenced by the current climate of society. Who did you write these songs for?

AS: For me, and I think this resonates for Sal, everything we do echoes back to our children. Whatever we want to change is what we want to do. For me, I just want to create a world in which my children can live comfortably long after I’m gone.

SS: When my son was born, I literally watched the future being born. And like what Asdru’s saying, it makes us now as parents realize, man we gotta set up the future right. We gotta make sure we teach these kids right so that they’re good for whatever they’re going to encounter in the future. To make sure that they know that they can have either control or especially influence in what happens in the future. For me, that’s what it’s all about. 

Salvador Santana and Asdru Sierra are involved with the following causes and non-profit organizations: Change.org petition, and Letters of Love to Kids, along with Al Otro Lado and Haitian Bridge Alliance, two groups at the forefront of the crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Jennifer Lopez circa 2000

Jennifer Lopez

Photo: WireImage.com

Feature

1999: The Year Latin Pop Conquered America

Facebook Twitter Email
1999 saw an unprecedented dominance of Latin pop sounds in American music, opening the public's ears to multilingual songwriting
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Oct 6, 2017 - 3:15 pm

The U.S. music scene in 1999 saw an unprecedented surge in the popularity of Latin pop.

Hispanic artists and various elements of Latin sounds dominated the charts to such an extent that by the end of the year even artists with no Latin heritage to speak of were looking to capitalize on the movement by recording Spanish-language versions of their singles in hopes of activating the crossover market.

Sure, there were prior Latin crossover rumblings — remember Dru's Hill's 1998 Latin-inflected Top 3 hit "How Deep Is Your Love" from Rush Hour? But most argue that it all started with Ricky Martin.

Ricky Martin

"It was completely sudden, and it had a lot to do with Ricky. After his performance at the GRAMMYs, everyone was on alert, so to speak, and expecting his new album. The first hit, of course, was "Livin' La Vida Loca" with that sensational video. I think that was the beginning." — Leila Cobo, executive director of Latin content and programming, Billboard

As a young man, Martin came to prominence between the ages of 12 and 17 as a member of the GRAMMY-nominated boy band Menudo. The Puerto Rico native was also a successful actor and solo recording artist before he burst onto the U.S. music scene in 1999. In the '90s, he acted in TV series such as "General Hospital" and "Getting By," telenovelas and stage plays, and he'd released four successful Spanish-language albums.

Martin won his first career GRAMMY — Best Latin Pop Performance for Vuelve — at the 41st GRAMMY Awards in 1999, but it was his show-stopping performance of "La Copa De La Vida" that same year that made it clear something big was on the horizon.

Martin's "Livin La Vida Loca" was released one month after his spectacular GRAMMY performance, and quickly became his first-ever No. 1 charting single, holding the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks. 

The singer's self-titled fifth solo album — his English debut — was released two months later, and hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 almost immediately. The most successful album of Martin's career, it has gone on to sell well over 15 million copies worldwide. Needless to say, 1999 was a big year for the Puerto Rican pop star.

Leila Cobo, executive director of Latin content and programming for Billboard, was working as Miami Herald's pop music critic at the time, recalls one event that served as an interesting tell sign.

"I went to cover [the signing] and found a line of hysterical girls at 11 a.m. on a school day that went on for blocks," she says. "I had never seen anything like this, ever."

Writing for Billboard roughly a month after "Livin La Vida Loca" hit store shelves, Michael Paoletta, now executive producer, A&R and music supervision for Comma Music, commented prophetically, "In the weeks since [the GRAMMYs], it seems like every record label exec has been in a heated search for the next Latin hottie."

Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez had worked as a successful dancer and actress during the '90s, notably appearing as a Fly Girl on Keenan and Damon Wayans' sketch comedy and variety show "In Living Color." In 1997 Lopez earned a huge breakthrough in the leading role as GRAMMY-winning Tejano singer Selena in the titular biopic about her life and tragic death. The Bronx native's performance in the film was lauded by critics and fans alike, putting her in the entertainment spotlight and at the same time making her ripe to become the breakout female star to help propel the Latin pop movement.

Lopez's debut single, "If You Had My Love," was released in May 1999, just a week before Martin's self-titled album hit the shelves, arriving at the perfect time to sate the appetites of stateside listeners. The single climbed to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and became one of the best-selling singles in the U.S. for 1999. Lopez's first studio album, On The 6, released a few weeks later, also skyrocketed, debuting at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 and ultimately earning triple-platinum status.

"Waiting For Tonight," the second radio single from On The 6, would go on to be nominated for Best Dance Recording at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards.

J.Lo, Pharrell Williams, Lady Gaga: 13 Iconic GRAMMY Fashion Statements

The same month that saw Lopez release On The 6 also saw another well-established Latin pop star blow up in the U.S.

Enrique Iglesias

Enrique Iglesias had previously won his first GRAMMY for Best Latin Pop Performance for his first self-titled 1995 studio album. The Spanish singer also came from an impressive musical pedigree, being the son of GRAMMY-winning Latin pop crooner Julio Iglesias.

"Bailamos," the junior Iglesias' inaugural English language release, was selected for the 1999 blockbuster action flick Wild Wild West, thanks in part to a request from GRAMMY winner Will Smith. The single would top the Billboard Hot 100 and become an immense success, eventually selling more than 5 million copies worldwide.

Almost certainly the biggest success story of the 1999 Latin pop explosion, however, was to be the eponymous band led by then-52-year-old guitar god Carlos Santana.

Santana

"We connected with hip-hoppers. … We connected with middle white America, we connected with Latin America, Africa, Asia, Australia. It's like the Champs-Elysées in Paris: This CD is connected to all the streets." — Carlos Santana on Supernatural, 1999

When Santana's 17th studio album, Supernatural, was released in 1999, the group had been playing live together for longer than the likes of Martin, Lopez and Iglesias had been alive. The album's lead single, "Smooth," featuring Matchbox 20's Rob Thomas, was an absolute phenomenon that year. It spent an astonishing 12 weeks in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100, marking Santana's first chart-topping song.

For The Record: Carlos Santana

Supernatural would net Santana a total of eight GRAMMYs at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards, including Album Of The Year and Best Rock Album, with "Smooth" taking home Record Of The Year, Song Of The Year and Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals. Commercially, Supernatural would eventually sell more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. Due to its equally strong chart performance, "Smooth" would be the final song of the decade to stand atop the Hot 100.

The Latin GRAMMY Awards

Following the incredible explosion of Latin pop music in 1999, the year 2000 heralded the inception of the Latin GRAMMY Awards, hosted by the Latin Recording Academy, which was established in 1997 as a counterpart to the Recording Academy.

Nuyorican Marc Anthony would become the first artist to take home the inaugural Latin GRAMMY for Song Of The Year, Record Of The Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "I Need To Know (Dímelo)," from his Top 10 1999 self-titled album.

While some later argued that the 1999 Latin explosion was a brief high-gloss blip on the pop culture radar, its impact cannot be underestimated. The 2000s and beyond have seen a steady stream of Latin artists dent the Billboard charts — including Shakira, Juanes, Luis Fonsi, J Balvin, and Nicky Jam, among others. The past year has seen the continuing dominance of Latin sounds in the modern pop scene, with crossover hits such as Fonsi and Daddy Yankee's "Despacito" serving as but one example.

And the Latin GRAMMY Awards has emerged as The Biggest Night in Latin Music, honoring top Latin music talent and featuring top-shelf performances that thrill millions worldwide — a testament to the staying power of Latin music.

"To have a song in Spanish, and to be in the top of the Hot 100, that's something that rarely happens," Fonsi told CNN regarding "Despacito." "I'm just very proud that Latin music has grown so much and people are just really connecting to it."

GRAMMYs

Christopher Cross at the 1981 GRAMMY Awards

Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images

News

Soon I Will Be Free: Christopher Cross' Self-Titled Album Hits 40 & Gains A New Legion Of Fans

Facebook Twitter Email
From indie-pop acts like Toro Y Moi to Vampire Weekend, the "yacht rock" sound is, seemingly for the first time, outpacing other genre influences of its era
Ron Hart
GRAMMYs
Jan 15, 2020 - 11:57 am

Coming up on the outskirts of the music scene in Austin, Tex., GRAMMY winner Christopher Cross spent the '70s gigging around locally in cover bands, playing the music of the Eagles, the Beatles and Billy Joel on a nightly basis on the bar circuit.

By day, however, this young father would use naptime for his son as an opportunity to pen songs like "Sailing," a song that helped Cross rocket up the pop charts as at the turn of the decade 40 years ago as one of the four Top 20 hit singles contained within the scope of his classic eponymous debut, released during the holiday season of '79. 

"I think disco and rock was fading," Cross told music journalist Gary James in an interview for ClassicBands.com. "I think pop was ready to make a resurgence. I think I was in the right place at the right time. I think I had talent and style and worked real hard, but I think I was also very lucky."

Indeed it was a bit of kismet that led Cross to session cat Michael Omartian, who had been cutting his own teeth as a producer in the '70s working on everything from the soundtrack to "Young Frankenstein" to the seriously underrated Dion studio LP Streetheart to albums by Cher and Dionne Warwick and employing a who's who of session musicians at the time. Reading the liner notes and following the path of those who performed on his favorite pop albums was what helped lead acclaimed keyboardist Roger Joseph Manning Jr., a founding member of the legendary Los Angeles alt-pop group Jellyfish who is currently a key part of Beck's touring band, directly to that first Christopher Cross record.

"I remember when I was really getting into stuff like Linda Ronstadt, Chicago and Fleetwood Mac around the same time," Manning explained to the Recording Academy. "I would read the credits as a young keyboard player and I was so fascinated by all the people who played on those records. And I would start seeing their names over and over again, people like Steve Gadd, the Porcaro Brothers, Leland Sklar. I began to see this succession of names and I think my mom had bought the Christopher Cross record; we got it through Columbia House, and I knew the name Michael Omartian because he had played on a bunch of stuff already. He came up in the Christian music scene and then became an ace session guy here in L.A. I remember being so fascinated by all of that, and I liked the fact that Michael McDonald was singing on it, because I was on the same Doobie Brothers crest as everyone else, as it was so keyboard-friendly."

The end of 1979, of course, saw our country merely limping into 1980, mired by a previous decade of crippling economic stagflation and the perilous early stages of the Iran Hostage Crisis that would come to define the immediate era. And while many music fans in this period had already established their identities within their own sonic tribes, be it punk or New Wave or the nascent stages of hardcore, hip-hop and thrash metal, for the average radio-listening commuter, the infectious harmonies of "Say You Are Mine" and "Ride Like The Wind" provided a sense of sophisticated cool that was a calming alternative to the alternative.    

"Michael Omartian, who produced me for Warners, was in Steely Dan and knew a lot of musicians like Larry Carlton and Michael McDonald and invited them down when he was working with me," Cross told James. "When McDonald came down one evening at Omartian's invitation, he just liked what he heard and said if you want me to sing something just let me know. So, we stuck him up there with a mic. Henley was from Texas and I knew him from my days in the Texas band circuit. A lot of the California people were exposed through the label. I think they're not gonna sing on something they don't like, but I think they genuinely liked the music and that's a compliment."

"There's something so perfectly melancholy about Christopher Cross’s voice," explains musician and non-fiction author Karen Pittelman, whose group Karen & The Sorrows is breaking barriers for queer country music as fervently as Lil Nas X and Brandi Carlile combined. "I remember sitting in my mom’s car as a little kid, listening to 'Never Be the Same,' and feeling swept away by some kind of wistful nostalgia and strangely upbeat grief. Of course, at that age, I knew nothing about any of that, but the music was still able to make me feel it. Even in a song like 'Sailing', there’s such a deep sadness to his voice underneath all that shimmer. After all, sailing may help him escape, but I can’t help wondering why he needs to escape so badly."

Perhaps one of the most astounding revivals in this new young century—at least as far as music is concerned—is just how far we've come in terms of our collective perception of such icons of "soft rock" or "yacht rock" or whatever you want to call it in these last 40 years. The Christopher Cross album would spend 1980 building up steam in terms of chart success and massive radio play that lead up to the guitarist's game-changing victory at the 1981 GRAMMYs, where he remains the sole grand slam champion for sweeping all five categories in the general field, including Record Of The Year ("Sailing"), Album Of The Year (Christopher Cross), Song Of The Year ("Sailing"), and Best New Artist. That kind of shine also led to many detractors, including rock critics at the time turning their poison pens on his efforts, which also went 5x platinum, as of today.

"They always hated me," Cross told James about Rolling Stone, in particular. "I think partly because they didn't have to discover me. I wasn't some cult band they discovered under a rock. I kind of sprung up on 'em when they weren't looking. But, they've never regarded me. They never reviewed my album or taken me seriously. When they put out the Top 200 Albums of the 80s, I wasn't even in there, which is ridiculous, whether they liked the style of my music or not. I was certainly in the Top 200 albums of the 80s. That kind of critical acclaim is certainly elusive for some like myself."

The funny thing, however, is that 40 years later, that distinctive green cover with the pink flamingo gracing its centerpoint has retroactively grown in acclaim, as more and more modern music acts look towards the supple, creamy grooves of soft rock favorites like Cross, Little River Band, Andrew Gold and Boz Scaggs for sonic inspiration. From major indie-pop acts like Toro Y Moi, Vampire Weekend and Drugdealer to the leftfield swagger of such artful West Coast jazz-hop acts as Thundercat and Dâm-Funk, the "yacht rock" sound is, seemingly for the first time, outpacing the other genre influencers of its era.

"What's terribly fascinating for me is that there have always been nostalgia crazes, but I never thought there would ever be one for yacht rock," admits Manning. "Its wild to think of how popular it is now and how business generating. I mean, obviously people will remember all kinds of movements so I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise to see some nostalgia over the easy rock stylings of that time, be it Steely Dan or the Doobie Brothers, Pablo Cruise or whatever. But it's gotten so large and it's such a money-generating thing now. I've got friends in bands where all they do is devote full businesses as yacht rock cover bands. And it really blows my mind, because there are moments of that scene, like any scene; disco or whatever, that I enjoyed but a lot of those styles were the whole reason why we all played punk rock to begin with. We were fed up and tired of AM radio, which is what our parents were tapping the steering wheel to at the time. We wanted our own sound, and England and places in the states like Cleveland and New York City provided that for us. But here we are, years later, and guys like Michael McDonald, Christopher Cross and Daryl Hall are doing just fine. They're probably as big a business as ever."

Pittelman, meanwhile, is glad to see the overall renewal of appreciation for Cross' musicianship.

"I’m a fan of both yacht rock and '90s country for similar reasons: I love really well-produced, carefully crafted music," she tells the Recording Academy. "People also criticize both those eras for similar reasons. They conflate smoothness and polish with a lack of authenticity. But I would argue that the rawest, least-produced song isn’t necessarily any more authentic. All art has to be constructed one way or another, and polish or lack of polish are just different choices. What makes something authentic is the truth of the feeling and the care that you put into making it. You can certainly spend countless hours in the studio and still create garbage. You can also make music that’s authentic but awful! But the best musicians and producers use the studio to make something that’s both beautifully polished and deeply felt. And I think a lot of the songs on Christopher Cross' first album are exactly that."

In the grander scheme, it only took 40 years for music to catch up with the realization behind why Christopher Cross deservedly bested Pink Floyd's The Wall as Album Of The Year at the 23rd Annual GRAMMY Awards. But for lifelong fans of the record like Manning, the cognizance of its enduring appeal has been at the forefront the whole time.

"A lot of the songwriters of the '70s, they had all grown up with jazz. Those audiences were raised within a very sophisticated time for pop music," he reflects. "You had Burt Bacharach and Richard Carpenter making hit records for Middle America, but it was all very harmonically advanced stuff. I remember when I first heard 'Sailing,' I was so intrigued by the guitar chord progressions, they were very moody to me. I love when music makes me feel a certain way, viscerally, in my stomach. The Beach Boys did that a lot. Chicago as well. And this first Christopher Cross record really, really intrigued me in that regard all the same."

Grammys Newsletter

Peter Frampton On His Farewell Tour, Living With I.B.M. & Reclaiming 'Peter F**king Frampton'

GRAMMYs

FINNEAS

Photo by Luke Fenstemaker

News

Meet The First-Time GRAMMY Nominee: FINNEAS On Billie Eilish & "Doing Production That No One's Ever Done Before"

Facebook Twitter Email
The L.A. super-producer, up for five golden gramophones, also lists his soundboard inspirations and what he feels makes for a successful collaboration
Rachel Brodsky
GRAMMYs
Jan 15, 2020 - 9:19 am

If you followed L.A. pop wunderkind Billie Eilish's exploding career over the last few years, you no doubt are also familiar with her super-producer brother, Finneas O'Connell, who goes by the stage name FINNEAS.

The 22-year-old, who produced all of Eilish's haunting bedroom-pop debut WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? from the comfort of his own tiny childhood room in Highland Park, is also on a collision course with the upper echelons of fame. Since the enormous success of WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP..., not to mention its preceding singles and Eilish's 2017 EP, Don't Smile At Me, FINNEAS has become an industry household name, with five 2020 GRAMMY nominations (including Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical), high-profile collaborations with established pop royalty (he produced Selena Gomez's "Lose You To Love Me" and two tracks on Camila Cabello's latest album, Romance) and a burgeoning solo career all of his own, having released his first EP, Blood Harmony, in October. And that's all on top of being the youngest person to be nominated for Producer Of The Year since Lauryn Hill, who was 23 when she was nominated for The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill in 1998.

If the swarm of attention has affected FINNEAS, you wouldn't know it. When we hop on the phone to talk about his and Billie's first-ever GRAMMY nominations, he's casually out walking his dog, Peaches. When asked about his hyper-minimalist production style, where most of Eilish's songs sound near-whispered against a series of spare, tip-toeing beats, FINNEAS just says that he's not afraid of a little empty space. His main goal, ultimately, is to place the artist's vocal front and center. "It's like a room with furniture," he says. "To me, my favorite bedrooms just have a bed in them, you know what I mean? Like, you don't need lights, 16 pillows and, you know, armchairs and sh*t. You could just have a bed."

In the lead up to his and Eilish's first time at the 2020 GRAMMY Awards, happening on Sunday, Jan. 26 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS, FINNEAS told the Recording Academy a bit about his reaction to earning five GRAMMY nods, his favorite past GRAMMY moments and why he doesn't necessarily want to work with his favorite artists.

FINNEAS | Meet The First-Time GRAMMY Nominee

Congrats on all of your nominations! Where were you when you heard you were nominated?

I was asleep the second they came out, but I did wake up quite early. I woke up at like 6:45 a.m. and was like, 'Oh God, Oh my God, they're out." I've described it to people as like, the same feeling as like falling asleep on Christmas Eve except for like you might wake up and have no prep. That's kind of the line.

At what point did you connect with Billie to tell her?

I called my mom like, "You guys get Billie" and mom was like, "Billie's still asleep." I called Billie back later.

To what extent do your nominations feel validating? You recorded WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? in your bedroom. I expect the industry Powers That Be were eager to get Billie in a giant studio with a bunch of big-name producers.

Well, you know, we were doing okay before the album. We had an EP [2017's Don't Smile At Me] that did pretty well and we were going on tours, and so we were feeling really good about ourselves. There were really great producers that were interested in working with us. And that was appealing to us because we love so much music and sometimes the producer would reach out and they would have made music that we loved in our childhood. And it's like, "Oh my God, we should meet with them." Truth be told we were open to it but every time we would work with other producers and other songwriters on our stuff, it just was never very good. It just didn't work very well. And whenever we worked alone, we made all the stuff that we were proud of, that we're excited about.

And I think the GRAMMYs, I couldn't feel more honored and it couldn't be more meaningful to me because it's such a celebration of the actual creative process. And I think the other cool thing that I feel very proud of, it's like, you know, very rarely now are producers doing entire records or even entire songs. Like, [there will be] two or three different producers for a song, 20 producers on the album, and Billie had only one. And I'm very proud of that. I'm really proud that it's just me and her figuring it all out, making sure it was exactly how we wanted it to be. That made me feel really good.

I think that's really true. In the past, you could directly attribute popular albums to one producer. And today, popular albums feature a mixed bag of sounds and personalities.

All the albums that I grew up listening to were produced by one person. One producer and now it's like dozens of producers on each record, you know?

Totally. But then on the other hand, we’re living in a time where albums don’t necessarily need to sound cohesive to be marketable. The end goal, from an industry perspective, is to get individual tracks on whatever Spotify or YouTube playlist is trending.

Well, Billie and I like eclectic music. Like, our records have a lot of mix. I think it's more like, if you do an album with 12 different producers, you're going to sound like someone else's album because those 12 different producers are going to do other people's records too. That always puts me out, you know?

That makes a lot of sense. Well, speaking of other peoples' records, now you've worked on "Lose You To Love Me" with Selena Gomez and "Used To This" and "First Man" with Camila Cabello. What do you look for when considering working with different artists?

I usually let it just be really natural. Like if an artist makes something that I love, I'll just reach out to them, and say like "I love your music." And then if they like what I do, they write back and say they're fans. Then we'll make something together. But I'm not very, like, thirsty. Like I don't try to work with artists because I think it would be a good career opportunity. I only want to work with people that make music that I love, like Camila, I truly love her first record. I just thought it was so cool and I thought, I just wanted to make an album with that artist. I saw her play live and I was blown away. I just thought she was a true pop star.

What makes a true pop star, in your opinion?

I think people who feel like they have something to say to me and people who have a really unique thing about them, whether it's a unique voice or a unique opinion, or unique life story, you know? Just something that really pulled me into them and makes me feel like they're telling a story that I want to listen to. 

One thing that stands out about WHEN WE ALL GO TO SLEEP is that, unlike so many of its peers, it’s the sort of record that sounds best in headphones. Is your production minimalism influenced by anyone?

Well, I mean there are so many producers that inspire me. I used to try to imitate production by certain people. And now I'm only interested in doing the opposite of that. I'm only interested in doing production that like no one's ever done before.

But yes, [I love] Kanye West, Timbaland, Rob Cavallo. So many producers are so good but I’m only interested in carving out my own thing, which seems to be the minimalist approach of making room for every element. You know, it's funny like talking a lot about me being a minimalist producer and really like there's a lot of layers but they're all out of the way of the vocal. I'm mostly just trying to make so much room for the vocal.

Yeah, I get the sense that many producers get nervous about unfilled space, if you will. Kind of like when you’re having a conversation with a quiet person and you automatically feel like you need to talk a little too much.

Totally. People are just trying to fill up the whole thing. Like it's a room with furniture. To me, my favorite bedrooms just have a bed in them, you know what I mean? Like, you don't need lights, 16 pillows and, you know, armchairs and sh*t. Like you could just have a bed.

So, I imagine all of this GRAMMY recognition has put you on a lot of artists' collab wish lists. Is there anyone you haven’t worked with yet that you’d like to? Who's on your wish list?

I don't actually have one anymore. I used to but I don't have one anymore. I feel like the thing that I've learned a lot is when you're involved in something, you don't always get to appreciate it for what it is as much. You're focused on the details and how you can make it better. It's kind of torture. I felt really lucky in that I've gotten to know some of my favorite artists; I get to tell them how important they are to me. But that doesn't always make me want to work with people. I feel like if I'm going to work with somebody, it's because I feel like I actually have something to add to them. Like, I don't have anything to add to Paul McCartney. You know what I mean? It's Paul McCartney, he's doing fine. I'm happy to just be a fan and go to the concert.

How do you envision splitting your time between working with artists and developing your solo work?

Well, I work with other artists sort of seldom, I'll do like a couple days a month with other artists. I try to be really careful about them. And then I work on Billie's stuff whenever she wants to. Whenever she's inspired, whenever she has something to say, whenever we're trying to finish something, I work on her stuff. And then whenever she doesn't have time or she's done a photoshoot or she's burnt out, feeling uninspired, I'll go work on my own stuff. 

You and Billie have talked a lot about watching the GRAMMYs from your living room at home in previous years. What was one of your favorite GRAMMY moments?

Man, every time Bruno Mars has ever performed, I've been so into it. There was that one performance several years ago that was Lil Wayne and Drake and Eminem and I remember just watching that and my head exploding.

Grammys Newsletter

Keep up to date on all the latest 2020 GRAMMY performers, presenters and host news here, and be sure to tune in to the 62nd GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020, and broadcasting live on CBS at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

GRAMMYs

Tayla Parx

Photo courtesy of Atlantic Records

News

Thank U, Next Chapter: GRAMMY-Nominated Singer-Songwriter Tayla Parx On Writing With Ariana Grande, Going Solo & More

Facebook Twitter Email
The songwriting powerhouse, who has also penned tracks for Jennifer Lopez, Janelle Monáe and Mariah Carey, is nominated for her contributions to Grande's 'Thank U, Next' at the 62nd GRAMMY Awards
J'na Jefferson
GRAMMYs
Jan 13, 2020 - 12:01 pm

At 26 years old, Tayla Parx has solidified her spot as an industry force, thanks to her songwriting accomplishments on the pop, rock and R&B fronts. She began penning hits for superstars like Jennifer Lopez, Fifth Harmony and Mariah Carey as early as 2013, and since then, she’s added Alicia Keys, BTS and Anderson. Paak to her roster of clientele. When it comes to thematics, she's not a one-trick pony—her songs feature concepts pertaining to following your dreams (Panic! At The Disco's "High Hopes"), relationships and trust ("Love Lies" by Khalid and Normani) and female empowerment (Meghan Trainor's "Woman Up"), to name a few.

In 2018, she garnered recognition from The Recording Academy for her contributions to Janelle Monáe's Album Of The Year-nominated project Dirty Computer. Her work in 2019 with close friend Ariana Grande on her smash-hit LP Thank U, Next resulted in another GRAMMY nomination for the 62nd annual ceremony's biggest honor. She provided her lauded songwriting assists on "Needy," "NASA," "Make Up," "Ghostin," the album’s title track and "7 Rings," which is also up for Best Pop Solo Performance and Record Of The Year.

2020 GRAMMY Awards: Complete Nominees List

A triple-threat by design (many may remember her as the spunky, scene-stealing Little Inez Stubbs alongside Queen Latifah in 2007's "Hairspray"), Parx released her debut studio album We Need To Talk in April 2019. Encapsulated by addicting production that plucks inspiration from pop, R&B, reggae and more, the 15-song project finds Parx stepping into the light and developing her identity as a sweetly ferocious vocalist. Aside from being a steadily rising figure in music, Parx works tirelessly to assist other songwriters and creatives in their self-care journeys through her latest venture, Camp Burnout. 

We recently caught up with the GRAMMY-nominated artist to hear more about her songwriting successes, her solo project and more.

This interview has been condensed for clarity.

How did growing up on the acting scene help you approach music and songwriting? 

Well, coming from the world of acting taught me two things. First of all, it taught me work ethic, you know what I'm saying? It was instilled very young because the schedule of an actress is completely different than the schedule of a musician. There is no being "an hour late" or "30 minutes behind," because it obviously costs a lot more money. [Laughs.] So, it taught me that type of work mentality first. 

The other thing that I learned, later on, was the fact that, when I listened to these artists' stories, eventually it [would] become my own story. It was like you were kind of acting, and you were becoming them. It's like method acting, and when you take every emotion that [the artist] has and break it down, it's like, "Okay, if I were you, I would say it like this," which is essentially what acting is. I realized later on that [this is] the way that I connect to artists. Any time you're writing for somebody, you want to make sure that you're being authentic to them. You're saying you love somebody the way that they would say that, versus how you would personally say it. It's all about getting out of your head and really paying attention, and soaking up this other person. 

From my understanding, your songwriting gifts weren't really discovered until later—​after the acting, after the singing. When did you realize for yourself that this was another gift that you possessed and something that you could take far? 

I think the writing portion of my career kind of started off out of necessity. I was so young and was so wrapped up in the acting world, that [songwriting] was something that I had a lot to prove when I came back with it. I [had] to come back around and prove that I deserved to be in these studios, and show that music is where it all started for me. I [didn't] want to act anymore outside of voiceover, I really wanted to find myself as a musician. 

My dad used to always tell me that I should never want to be an artist that had to rely on somebody to write their songs for them. So, he encouraged me to pick [songwriting] up. I started off like any other kid—writing in my bedroom. I would literally be engineering and writing and was this one-woman show until I was able to get into the different rooms and start to learn from other people. 

What does it feel like to have a nomination for the biggest award of the night for what was such a therapeutic project for your friend, Ariana Grande? 

It feels incredible, simply because [Thank U, Next] is more than just a song and album at this point. Anytime you're helping somebody go through their history and it's something so genuine to them, I think it's more than the numbers that it does in that way. It becomes this moment in history for you—when do you remember making that song? Why did you make it? Why it was necessary for that artist? That's more of an experience. 

When Ariana started to discuss some of the things she was hoping to do with this project, did you have a feeling that it was going to be different than her other projects in terms of content? In terms of impact? 

I definitely assumed that it would be something different and unique because of the fact that she just seemed like she was in a different mindset. We hadn't worked in years before that, and to see her from a fresh perspective as somebody that that wasn't as close as some of her usual collaborators, I think that it allowed us to just approach the project differently and have fun, and she was already approaching it in an unconventional way. I think that it was a recipe for innovation. 

For her to approach it in that way of saying, “F**k all of the rules, it doesn't matter that I just put out a project, it doesn't matter that I might be considered a "pop star…'" The only thing that mattered in that time was getting out authentic music in the studio. She wasn't like, "We're gonna make an album," she just needed to get it out. The best way to do that for her is through music.

From a personal standpoint, did working on Thank U, Next help you in any way?

I think the best part about this project is [that] it reinforced how I always approach music: work with people that you enjoy working with. I think that sometimes, a lot of writers and producers will get caught up in what everybody else is doing, whatever hits that everybody else [tries to] achieve on the radio. It becomes this frenzy, and you forget the type of music you enjoy making and the people that you enjoy making it with. [The title track] really became one of my favorite songs, one of my favorite experiences in my entire songwriting career, and [the album] is one of the biggest albums that I've worked on. That proved to me that I could have my cake and eat it too—I can have success doing the things that I want to do as a writer and producer. 

You have a new album out called We Need To Talk. When you're working with so many people behind-the-scenes, there are a couple of apprehensions that come with stepping into the spotlight as your own person. Did you have any fears about putting out your first project since your 2017 mixtape?

When I dropped the Tayla Made mixtape, it was my first kind of opportunity to say, "Hey look, I’m either going to go for it, or just stay behind the scenes as a songwriter," because I really enjoy that. After the tape, there was something about me that was like, "I still have more of a story to tell, and there's still not a way that I hear this perspective to these types of beats and in this type of language." I feel like We Need To Talk was something that came so naturally. 

At first, it was very, very scary. Obviously, [songwriters] are this muse that people don't see, it’s like the curtain is being pulled. I think that's probably the biggest fear that most people have, but once I got over that fear and anxiety and just said, "You know what? I'm not going to be afraid anymore," I just started to be more open about discovering my story. You can listen to [the album] from the front to the end, but you can also just bump whatever song relates to you. I'm telling you my story, this is what has happened in the past few months or a year. We Need To Talk was me really discovering myself in a way that I hadn't before. It was perfect timing for me because I'm also allowing myself—somebody who’s been working since I was nine years old—to live my life. I've been just living my best life these days and really discovering who I am. 

You also have a tour coming up to support the album. So what are some of the things that you're looking forward to? 

The most exciting thing is getting my own vision out there on that stage, and really being able to create my world. It's different when you're opening up for artists because I have to respect that that's somebody else's show, and you're here to also to be a part of that, which is amazing in its own right. But now this time, I get to say, "This is how I want my stage to look, and this sound, the lighting…" and I'm really excited to show people how it adds to the experience of listening to the album.

You have a camp for songwriters and creatives that focuses on self-care called Camp Burnout. Burnout is not just with working and writing—​burnout can mean feeling like no one is really paying attention to your work or valuing your effort, your time, and your talents. How are you able to nurture yourself and focus on making sure your mental health is on point? 

It’s just self-accountability. It should be easy to say, "Hey, I deserve to take care of myself." I started to discover myself and really reassess my own life... I find new hobbies all the time. I find new ways to keep inspiring myself. I learned how to bake a cake one day, or I cook a few times a week. There's a million different things that you can find that will inspire you. [Self-care] became something that went from "I enjoy doing it," to me realizing that this is a necessity amongst the entire creative community. 

What is the importance of being multifaceted and having the gift of working with so many people regardless of genre? 

[Laughs.] I think that the funny thing about this is that all music comes from around one or two genres if you really know about the evolution of music, right? So, once you become a student of music, you realize that you can allow [yourself] to be open to not being put into a box, a genre box. That's what the evolution of music is: a mixture of genres that just happen to lead to a new one. It's definitely interesting to be able to go on that adventure and continue to break these boundaries.

I've kind of gone away from saying "What is mainstream?" and "What is cool to other people?" to "What is cool to me?" Genre does not matter, it never has. If you're really pushing yourself as a songwriter, you can write any genre. You can be a sponge and you can co-create, and write anything bigger than a genre. It's all lyric and melody. 

What are some of your biggest aspirations for 2020 besides getting that GRAMMY win? 

Besides the GRAMMY win, My biggest aspirations for 2020 are killing it on tour, and really getting to see each and every one of my fans, vibe with them and perform live with them.

Then the other thing is that my publishing company (Parx Publishing) has been doing really well. My writers and my producers are killing it, they have so many records coming out that are changing their lives, and for me to be a part of that is beautiful. I want to continue to instill what I'm instilling with them: that publishing and the music industry in general is going in a new way. If you can be creative enough, it can work in your favor. 

Grammys Newsletter

Ariana Grande To Perform At 2020 GRAMMY Awards On Jan. 26