GRAMMYs

King Bach

News

King Bach On His Comedy Album 'Medicine,' Loving Ludacris & Trying Not To Throw Up

Facebook Twitter Email
The YouTube and former Vine star opens up to the Recording Academy about creating his first comedy album, who he listened to growing up and why laughter has been a cure-all in his life
Rachel Brodsky
GRAMMYs
Oct 4, 2019 - 12:54 pm

Andrew Bachelor, otherwise known as rising comedy titan King Bach, is definitely on his way to achieving royalty. 

Starting out producing comedy sketches on YouTube, Bachelor eventually switched to the now-defunct short-form outpost Vine, where he'd go on to amass more than 15 million subscribers and more than five billion views. Nowadays, the funnyman is dipping his toes into the TV and music world, where he currently stars in IFC's variety sketch series "Sherman's Showcase," among other things.

Meanwhile, Medicine, which dropped in mid-August, is his debut comedy album, and is filled with 15 true-to-life tracks—with music videos—that skewer everything from his weak stomach ("Bulimic") to the lies people tell each other when they first meet ("Secrets"). 

Below, Bachelor opens up to the Recording Academy about why laughter is truly the best Medicine, who he listened to growing up and the different ways he utilizes social-media platforms to reach new audiences. 

What sparked the idea to make a comedy album?

I've always loved music, ever since I was younger. And when I started making the comedy skits, I actually thought of making a parody music video, and I just love putting together music that people just like to listen to and have fun with listening to it and having a laugh at the same time.

So I figured why not make original music that I own and, I could just share with everyone and not feel any type of way of me taking someone else's style. This is my style, my unique style. So yeah and then I figured it's a comedy album and they're saying laughter is the best medicine, so I named the album Medicine, because every track they're laughing at.

Who did you listen to growing up?

I listen to a lot of Ludacris, Ludacris is my favorite rapper since I was little. Just his style, his energy, I like songs that have a lot of energy behind them. Now music has changed though we realize, that energy has kind of tapered down a little bit. So most artists, it's a lot of mumbling going on, it's more like vibes and feeling it out as opposed to the lyrics. So I'm doing a mixture of both.

Yeah, we've been hearing a lot of "genre labels don't matter anymore" nowadays.

Yeah the whole thing is, what I realized in doing comedies, why it's so good, when you're laughing about a joke or anything, you forget all your problems. You forget about the bad day you had, you forget about your breakup, you forget about somebody who's passing. You just forget about everything and you're literally focused on that joke that that made you laugh in that moment. So that's the mood that I want people to feel like when they listen to the album, they can just forget about everything else and just enjoy the music and just stay present.

Have you personally used comedy as a coping mechanism?

Yeah, with everything, it kind of puts me in a better mood and lets me forget. The way I look at is, I'm being myself, I am being unique. Some people may find it funny but I'm being me, like these are my point of views. Every song on the album is a situation that happened in my life. So it's a situation that happened in my life and I took it and I found the comedy in it.

There's a song on there called "Bulimic." I have a very weak stomach and throughout the days I'm constantly trying to stop myself from throwing up. And it's just been something I've dealt with since I've been seven years old. So I tried to find the light of that and I made a song called "what you going to do if I throw up on you?"

Are any other themes that have come up repeatedly in your comedy that you've touched on with Medicine?

Yeah, there's a song on there called "Secrets," and it's about everyone letting out the secrets and being honest. And the way I directed in film, that music video was pretty much like a YouTube skit. The concept of the video was the speed dating situation, and everyone thinks that speed dating is going regular, but then the speed dating announcer, he announces that she puts truth serum in the guys drink. And it forces them to let out their deepest and darkest secrets. So these guys are confessing their secrets against their will. So that's how I kind of shoot my skits as well, I come up with a concept and I just shoot it around that.

You became pretty famous from using Vine, which sadly doesn’t exist any longer. Have you embraced the similar-minded Tik Tok to create the same short-form comedy? 

Yeah, listen, I'm a creator at the end of the day and I am on the social media application. So I'm on Tik Tok, I'm on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, I'm on everything. And I'll just take one video and I'll just post it everywhere. So if someone only has Tik Tok, they're getting it on Tik Tok. If they only have Facebook, they're getting on Facebook, so I use them all. You name the app, I got it.

So what's your strategy when deciding how to best utilize different apps?

I kind of see how the platform is being used and I kind of adapt to that. So Tik Tok is more music-based, so if I have an idea and it's music based and it's a fun, bubbly, energetic vibe that'll go on Tik Tok. So yeah definitely got to think about, it's like you got to know your audience.

Bob Marley's London Home Honored With English Heritage Blue Plaque

GRAMMYs

Chorus practices outdoors this year at Countryside High School in Pinellas County, Florida.
Photo courtesy of Christy King

News

Puppy Pads And Slit Masks: How COVID Changed The Look Of Music Education

Facebook Twitter Email
COVID-era problems put pressure on teachers to work creatively, while fearing for the future
Emilee Lindner
GRAMMYs
Sep 21, 2020 - 9:01 am

Those living in Kingsman, Arizona, shouldn’t be surprised if they hear 30 kids yelling simultaneously from Lee Williams High School. That’s just Shannon Bascombe’s marching band letting out their COVID-19 frustrations.

"The kids were like, ‘Hey, Ms. B, can we, like, scream into the void for 10 seconds at the beginning of practice?'" Bascombe recalled. "'Yeah, sure, I’ll give you guys 10 seconds to just yell it out.' … Then they’ll start learning drill."

The coronavirus pandemic has made returning to school this fall a touchy debate. With each district whipping up its own tentative plan, students are either attending school armed with masks, learning virtually from home or doing a half-and-half schedule. They’ve pushed start dates, altered schedules and introduced new technology. Several schools GRAMMY.com contacted for this story set a date in September or October to reassess and adjust, aiming for in-person instruction by 2021. Needless to say, a little scream therapy is warranted—not just for students, but for teachers, parents and administrators as well.

So how does music education fit into the new school plans? Unlike math or history, which can rely on individual study, collaborative ensembles like band, chorus and orchestra cannot. With social distancing measures in place, getting a band of 50 students placed six feet apart in one room is, well, impossible. Not to mention the whole aerosol concern with kids blowing on their horns. Online group rehearsal doesn’t work either, due to latency issues.

With those difficulties in mind, districts across the country have already cut arts programs. And those teachers who still have their jobs are feeling the pressure to keep them by proving their worth.

"[Parents are] OK with the core teachers being at home and being able to give assignments," says Jake Olimpi, marching band and orchestra director at Marple Newtown High School in Pennsylvania. "But what is the art teacher doing, what is the music teacher doing? They’re getting paid and where’s the result?"

That pressure, atop the duty to keep students safe, healthy and engaged has become the new challenge for teachers, who are also haunted by the pandemic’s long lasting effects on music education.

Masks On Instruments And Puppy Pads

The spread of aerosols, a.k.a. air and saliva, forced the Centers for Disease Control to recommend the six-feet social distancing rule months ago. But when it came to the performing arts, there was little scientific evidence on how singing and instrument playing contributed to aerosol spread. A study from the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), published without peer review in July, gave music teachers some answers.

Conducted by the University of Colorado Boulder, the study found that instruments released fewer aerosols if they were masked at the bell. They found even fewer aerosols when the player wore a slitted mask. In order to return to in-person ensembles, authors of the study also suggested these points:

  • Musicians must stay six feet apart (nine feet for trombonists)
  • Bell covers should have a Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV) of 13 (although any covering is better than none)
  • Spit valves should empty into absorbent sheets like puppy pads
  • Rehearsal times should be limited to 30 minutes
  • Instructors should wait one HVAC air change between classes
  • HEPA filters should be in rehearsal spaces
  • Outdoor rehearsals are recommended over indoor ones

With the scientific guidance, teachers got to work crafting what fall 2020 would look like… and now that school’s back in session, music classes certainly don’t look like they did before. At Bascombe’s school in Arizona, they’re following the NFHS guidelines nearly to a T.

GRAMMYs

The students at Tarpon Springs Leadership Conservatory for the Arts stick to their cones and try out their new bell covers.
Credit: Anna Ottens

"When they come into the room, they have to wash their hands, drop their stuff off," Bascombe says. "We go through the symptom checker from the Mayo Clinic every day when they walk into the room… All of the doors are propped open so the kids have minimal touch. There's hand sanitizer everywhere. Mouthpiece cleaner everywhere."

Bascombe's woodwinds, brass, percussion and colorguard all get their own room. Every Friday, she spends an additional hour and a half disinfecting each room, including the bathroom her students use.

At the Southern Nevada Homeschool Performing Arts, program director Bonnie Buhler-Tanouye says brass players wear slitted masks, akin to "boys' underwear," and flute players wear shields. She says parents are willing to do even more in order to get their nearly shutdown Las Vegas music scene rolling again.

GRAMMYs

The students at Southern Nevada Homeschool Performing Arts wear face shields and slitted masks on the first day of band practice. 
Courtesy: Bonnie Buhler-Tanouye

"One of the parents I was talking to the other day, because I was reminding her of masks for her trumpet player, she said, ‘You know what, put me in a hazmat suit, if you have to. Whatever we have to do to get back to playing music together,'" Buhler-Tanouye recalled.

The NFHS study deemed outdoor rehearsal better for dispersing aerosols. Summer band camps served as positive test runs for the rest of the school year, with students respectively keeping their distance. Water and sunscreen breaks are frequent and essential. In Pinellas County Schools in Florida, humidity plagues practices, but kids are happy to endure sweating for a chance to play together, says Jeanne Reynolds, performing arts specialist for the district.

"If you teach in Florida and you're a band teacher, you become a meteorologist," Jeanne said. "'Cause it’s not just hurricanes; we’ve got pretty good thunderstorms, so you have to know when to get out of harm’s way. Which we all do."

What happens when the temperature drops? When playing outside is no longer an option, bands will be forced to limit the size of their ensembles, based on dimensions of their rooms and state guidelines. Some schools have already taken band class off the schedule completely, exchanging it for smaller groups, broken up alphabetically or by instrument.

Smaller ensembles introduce two problems, though. First, smaller groups equate to more classes, meaning teachers' course loads have increased. Music programs like the one at Bergenfield High School in New Jersey rely on a large staff, which allows them to assign one teacher each to virtual and in-person classes for all of their ensembles. Bergenfield’s band director, Brian Timmons, considers his program lucky; not all schools have the resources.

Second, teachers must find music for a ragtag chamber ensemble. For example, if groups were split numerically by students' names, a director might end up with a flute, three trombones, five bass clarinets and a french horn in a class, and music for a combo like that is rare. Thankfully, publishers like Alfred, Hal Leonard and RWS Music Company have flexible arrangements that can be split into a few basic parts, and have become more available during COVID.

GRAMMYs

The supply of cleaning materials Shannon Bascombe uses to disinfect the band rooms at Lee Williams High School. 
Courtesy: Shannon Bascombe

But will the music ever get performed? State guidelines vary, but indoor maximum capacity has been limited to as few as 25 people per room. Gathering an audience would be infeasible.

Perhaps concerts aren’t even necessary. According to Timmons, it’s time to shake up the dusty format anyway.

"Music education has been so performance-driven all the time," Timmons says. "And we never take time to explore the other things like the chamber playing or the composition or just ear training in and of itself or theory."

Students taking virtual band obviously don’t have to deal with these new precautions and guidelines, but they also don’t get to play together. As Timmons says, they’re working on individual assignments, like learning music production, which allows them to sew together an ensemble, piece by piece. Timmons' students will work on a shared online workspace to record music. It gives students the power to collaborate remotely, he says.

"They can listen to each other’s part and say, ‘OK, our articulation is not punching there. We’re going to have to rerecord this section,'" Timmons says. "I have three teenagers of my own. I watch them killing it on TikTok. If you can do that, there’s no reason why I can’t teach you how to do this."

And then there’s the fact that some schools are taking little to no precaution. Music teacher Nathan Smith says he was fired from Oakdale Academy in Michigan after expressing his concern over the safety of students and staff. The private Christian high school is not requiring masks this fall, per a letter sent home to parents.

"I had so many plans for this school year," Smith said. "I certainly wasn't ready to leave without seeing any of my kids again."

The Lost Generation And Long-Term Effects

It’s a struggle to keep current music students engaged, but it’s a completely new challenge to get more kids involved. Recruitment requires getting instruments into the hands of fourth graders and presenting the allure of a polished, performing ensemble—hurdles made higher by COVID.

Lackluster recruitment will have damaging effects on the future of music education, says Robert W. Smith, a composer, arranger and professor at Troy University, who has written hundreds of works for high school-level ensembles.

"We cannot have a lost generation of musicians, and we’re about to have it," Smith says.

If too few young musicians join band, orchestra and choir programs, the ensembles will see dwindling numbers in each subsequent year, all the way up to college groups.

"This is like aftershocks of an earthquake or second and third waves of a tsunami," Smith says.

Current music students also face the loss of competition and adjudication—third-party feedback that lends itself toward improvement. Many in-person music competitions have been canceled for the fall. On the upside, some organizations have offered virtual adjudication, where students and ensembles can send in their performances for assessment.

But the long-term effects aren’t all bad. Timmons insists that it’s only shifting focus for COVID-era students to prepare for a more viable music career—one that isn’t totally based on performance (though still valuable), but digital skills.

"If you’re going to be successful in music, you have to have a basic understanding of how digital audio works, even if you’re a classical-style player," Timmons says. "You gotta have an understanding. If we can teach them how to use a digital audio workstation, even if it’s some kind of cloud-based thing, recording themselves and then as a chamber ensemble recording their own product, we’re kind of unlocking skills."

All of this means that music educators are getting even more creative than before, out of necessity.

"Music teachers by nature are problems solvers. It’s what we do," Timmons says. "Listen, troubleshoot, feedback, adjustment, listen, troubleshoot, does that sound good? This is just another problem to solve. It’s just a little more problematic than fixing the intonation of a chord."

Marching Six Feet Apart: How High School Marching Bands Are Coping With The Pandemic

Grammys Newsletter

GRAMMYs

Curtis Waters

Photo by Hassan Rashid

News

With A New Single, "Freckles," And Upcoming Album 'Pity Party,' Curtis Waters' Year Only Gets More "Stunnin'"

Facebook Twitter Email
The TikTok-famous performer reflects on his smash-hit year and looks ahead to what's next
John Norris
GRAMMYs
Sep 1, 2020 - 9:04 am

Four years ago, a heavily depressed 16-year-old Nepali immigrant living in Calgary named Abhi Bastakoti was told by his grandmother to hang in there, because she had looked at his future, and had a feeling his life would take a turn. She even made a prediction: that her grandson's best year would come at age 20.

That’s the kind of woman you want picking your lottery numbers. Because four years later, only months after turning 20, Bastakoti’s ship came in. Under his artist name Curtis Waters, he became one of this challenging year’s breakout stars. When most of the world had gone into COVID quarantine, he expertly employed the viral powers of TikTok to tease out the impending release of "Stunnin'"—a sly, raunchy, hilarious and insanely catchy two-and-a-half minute collaboration with Canadian pals Harm Franklin and Declan Hoy that has, no cap, changed Waters' life.

The star-making powers of TikTok were on full display when those teasers caught fire, priming the pump for the May release of the song, which was a monster. "Stunnin'"s numbers lived up to its name: 700,000 streams a day by early summer; 70 million plays on Spotify alone as of late August; hundreds of thousands of TikTokers have posted their own clips to the song, including platform superstar Dixie D’Amelio; and an irresistible D.I.Y. music video featuring a tux-clad Curtis busting some moves and a cameo from his younger brother Albert has, to date, 11.6 million views.

To borrow one of "Stunnin'"s lyrics, Curtis busted quick, and sure enough, the labels came circling. Even before the song's release, based solely on the TikTok buzz, industry players waved lots of deals with lots of zeros. But rather than opt for a quick payout from people who, Waters sensed, were more interested in a dozen more "Stunnin'"s than in the totality of what he wanted to do as an artist, he and manager Chris Anokute (an industry vet, former A&R for Katy Perry and Joss Stone, and the founder of Young Forever Inc.) opted for a more artist-friendly license-only deal with BMG.

Waters soon proved himself much more than that one viral hit, with two summertime follow-up singles, each dramatically different from "Stunnin'"s horny flex. In June there was "System"—a pugilistic, electro-punk indictment of both music biz commodification of artists and the cancer of racial injustice that America was once again confronting with the killing of George Floyd; followed by July's "The feelings tend to stay the same," a shimmery, sentimental pop reflection on a college romance that had to end, with a misty, Wes Anderson-worthy video to match.

Now Curtis, who says he loves upending genres and "pushing boundaries," adds yet another chapter to an eclectic image, in the new single "Freckles." The first taste of Waters' upcoming album Pity Party is a bright and tender ode to a survivor, and it was the first song that made Anokute interested in working with Waters. The manager happened across it via an algorithm in February, when both "Freckles" and the entire album were briefly online (Pity Party was soon taken down, but gets its official release next month).

"I think it probably says more about me than 'Stunnin'' to be honest,” says Waters of "Freckles," which was born out of a friendship with a girl he met when he was in a mental hospital, and her determination to carry on in the face of numerous traumas. The artist's own mental health struggles have long informed his music. He's been making beats since he was 14, started making songs for himself a few years after that, and a visit to his Soundcloud page reveals plenty of earlier songs that vary wildly, from trap to straight pop-punk—including a first album, 2018’s Prom Night—which, despite being consistently upbeat and often funny, mine themes of depression, anxiety and inadequacy.

Waters was born in Nepal, moved to Germany at 4, Canada at 10 and North Carolina at 17, where in 2019 he was diagnosed as bipolar. That led to a slippery slope of over-medication and a sabbatical from college—a chapter of his life that will be chronicled on Pity Party. He hopes his candor about those struggles will reach other young people in similar situations, and it’s one topic we touched on with him over Zoom in mid-August. Also discussed: his conservative parents (academics with multiple degrees) and what they make of his rawer lyrics; the glory of the Smashing Pumpkins’ "1979"; the complexity of Curtis’ musical hero Kanye West; and Waters' challenging musical ambitions, which go far beyond "Stunnin'."

Congratulations, man! What a crazy last few months it's been for you, and what a year for it to happen in.

Thanks! It’s only been I guess, six months?

I saw you tweet the other day, "Usually I wake up so anxious but lately I have felt so f**king good, waking up every day excited to make music."

And I have been making a lot of music too!

In one of the Nepali papers this summer you said, "I see myself as more of a producer who knows how to make myself sound good," rather than a great singer or rapper.

Yeah. I only started making music for myself when I was 17, with vocals? But I’ve kind of finessed my way into knowing how to produce really well over the years. And I’m getting better at singing. I want to challenge myself to make more acoustic, stripped-down almost folk-type songs too. But so far it’s just been like—I wake up every day and I make like five beats a day. I’m just always working on stuff. So I don’t think I am an amazing singer by any means, but I think I’m—I kind of know how to write songs, and I know how to make cool stuff. You know what I mean?

Having a breakthrough year in this crazy pandemic year—it’s got to be great and a little weird. But you said your grandma predicted this would be the year for you back when you were 16?

Yeah. I was going through a really difficult time. I had left high school because of my depression. And I was just looking for hope. And I was talking to my mom, and my mom told my grandma without really telling me, and my grandma went and saw a fortune teller. And for years I wasn’t religious or superstitious, so it was hard for me to be like, "Oh, things are gonna work out one day.” But she said 20 will be the year where I start finding happiness, and things will really start looking up. It was always this like self-fulfilling prophecy where I was like working really hard to making sure something would happen by the age of 20. But then also knowing something would happen because my grandma said so.

Since "Freckles" is the new single, tell me about that one first and we'll work our way backwards. It was the first song Chris [Anokute] heard and made him want to work with you?

Yeah, a hundred per cent. I don’t think Chris ever really cared for "Stunnin'," to be honest. It’s not his type of song. Honestly, even for me "Stunnin'" is—it’s a fun song? But I don’t really listen to music like that most of the time. I mean, of course it’s been awesome for me because I get to live out my dreams. But "Freckles" was a song that I had my heart in.

You had posted "Freckles" online early this year, before "Stunnin',” along with the whole Pity Party album, and then took it down?

Yeah, from the very beginning I was like, "Okay I don’t have any industry connections, but I know my music and is gonna get slept on and I don’t know what to do about this. I made this entire album in my bedroom, mixed and mastered, everything, but I just don’t know how to get it out there." And you know I would send it to these A&Rs, these label people, and finally I was like, "F**k waiting." I knew in my heart it was amazing, thought people were gonna love it and whatever happens, happens. And it kind of did happen. Chris found me randomly, just really naturally because of a Soundcloud algorithm, he heard the record and just loved it so much.

"Freckles" is sweet, but there is this intense line about "Band-aids on your arm/ Your scars they remind me/ All that you’ve been through/ But you’re still here smiling." Is there a story behind it?

Yeah the whole album kind of started because I was in a mental hospital and I was diagnosed with bipolar [disorder], and then I came back home. And it relates because this girl I met in this mental hospital, I reconnected with her, maybe like six months after I came back home? And she was just telling me about traumatic things that were happening, but like the whole time we hung out, it was such a pleasant conversation. She was just so strong, and so happy. And so much happened in her life, but she still had such a positive mindset. She was like, "I’m gonna become a flight attendant," and she was just excited about her future.

And another girl was at the heart of your recent single "The feelings tend to stay the same"—which may be the most sentimental thing you’ve put out. Definitely a world away from "Stunnin'."

What’s interesting is for me, now—I’m sort of playing catch-up. Because people are finally hearing the stuff from the album, and I’m already thinking about what’s next, right? So people are discovering "The feelings tend to stay the same," whereas really that’s what I was feeling back like a year ago, when I wrote it. But that song is probably the best look into where I am most right now—emotionally.

And it’s got this great video out on a lake, in a field…

Yeah that was in the park around where I live. My brother’s in it, and my friend Fallon that I went to prom with in high school, and my friend Jailyn from college. So it was easy, because it was all friends.

Speaking of high school friends, I actually retweeted you recently when you talked about your love for the Smashing Pumpkins' "1979"— which is truly one of my favorite songs of all time.

Oh, I love that song!

So great. It’s such a quintessential teen-years song. I told [Billy] Corgan years ago that as far as I’m concerned that song is so perfect it would be like "Drop the mic, I’m done" after writing that.

I love that video too. I want to capture—that’s what I want my music to be. Like, what I feel when I listen to that, that’s what I want. It’s like—I know how to make beats, I know how to do this, right? But I’ve been making more stuff like that recently, for sure. Regardless of sonics and stuff, that’s the emotion I want to really hone in on.

You’ve been really open about your mental health and being diagnosed as bipolar. Do you still have high highs and low lows?

This year I’ve controlled it. I’ve controlled it way better. I mean I am a stable guy, for sure. But like when I was younger, it was really hard. Even when I was writing this album it was really hard. But at this point—I hope nothing goes wrong where I go completely off the track again? But I am in a good spot for sure, at this point.

No celebrity has been more open in recent months about his own bipolar condition than one of your personal musical heroes, Kanye West. What are your thoughts on his artistry, his openness about that side of his life and his more divisive political involvements?

It's hard. You idolize certain people, and then at the end of the day they're just like you. And that can sometimes be good, and other times you can realize they’re just as flawed, or just as incoherent, or they’re just winging it. I don’t know. All I can really say is I hope he finds happiness. I hope he finds stability. Sometimes I just feel like, none of this shit matters. Just be with your family, be happy, be healthy, you know? But he’s changed my life, with his honesty. And the thing about honesty is, you’re not always gonna like it, right? I don't agree with everything he says. I don’t support a lot of things he says. But I can’t ignore how much [he] impacted my way of thinking and my life, and how it liberated me, creatively and as a human, growing up.

Who knows if we would be here talking if it weren’t for "Stunnin'." So much has been said about the TikTok campaign. But what do you remember about that song coming together? It was your friend Declan [Hoy] who did the beats?

Yeah he sent me the original beat, and I played the chords on it, and I rapped on it, and I did the chorus and I rearranged it and all that stuff. Usually I make the beat, and finish everything myself. But this time I took what he sent me, made my version of it, and at first I—I kind of hated the song. [Laughs.] I sent it back, he was in the same city with my friend Harm Franklin, and he sent me his version back. I put Auto-Tune on it, mixed and mastered it, finished the song. And I just didn’t know what I was gonna do with it, because I was really trying to do songs more in the realm of "The feelings tend to stay the same," just reflecting all this stuff that I had been going through emotionally, right? And then I had "Stunnin'," which felt like a detour from where I was trying to go artistically. But, then corona happened, and so I was like, "Okay, no more sad music. Everyone’s already sad. Let’s cheer people up." So I teased it, saw the response, and then I was like, "Wow, okay. This is not a bad song. People love the song." It got such a crazy reaction. 'Cause usually the people who react to my music are a certain demographic, you know? I mean, I know who likes sad, emo pop-punk, whatever you wanna call the type of energy I’m on usually. And "Stunnin'" was a different energy, and it was like—not to say "normies," but the casual listeners were really in for it. So, you know, when it’s reaching the casual people that’s when you know, it’s like, "Okay. This is not just for me."

I thought of your now-infamous "Good p*ssy sound like pasta" line when Cardi B talked about hers being like "Macaroni in a pot" in "WAP"! You guys were in sync there!

Yes sir! Known fact! [Laughs.] But the thing about that is—the shit that I say in "Stunnin'"—that doesn’t have to be me. You know, I could be an actor in a movie and do all this crazy shit, and no one’s gonna be mad at me, because I’m acting, right? So I can just take on this dickhead character in a song, where I just say vulgar stuff. You know what I mean? But sometimes people message me like, "I can’t believe you said this!" And I’m like, "Why would you believe that—I'm not…! It’s just a fun song!" It’s entertainment.

But lines like that one, or "I can go slow or go faster, if I bust quick that’s a bastard"—you can play that stuff for your parents?

I don’t think they even understand most of what I’m saying. Uh…which allows me to get away with stuff? But there’s like an unspoken rule where, if there’s some lyrics that are questionable, we don’t talk about it? You know, they listened to "The feelings tend to stay the same" and they read the lyrics and they were like, "Yeah this is amazing" and they loved it and we talked about it. But we’ve never talked about "Stunnin'" lyrics and I hope we never do. [Laughs.]

This year alone you’ve shown a lot of variety. You think it’s reductive to call Curtis Waters just a hip-hop artist?

I don’t think any label is accurate. I don’t know what I am—I’m finding out every day. Some people will tell me "You’re a pop artist" or "You’re a hip-hop artist," you’re this, you’re that. I’m just a dude making stuff that I like every day. I mean the way I think about my albums is like, eras of Kanye, or eras of Tyler, the Creator. You know what I mean? I mean I am already thinking, "What is the next era?" And not even albums—even just songs. Those three songs—"System," "Stunnin'" and "The feelings…"? For me, those are completely different songs. I don’t know what genres they are. And I love that. You know, I want to keep doing that. I want to keep challenging, pushing myself, pushing whatever boundaries there are already. I feel like my music is not even weird enough right now. I want to get weirder!

Curtis Waters' "Freckles" is out now. His album Pity Party is set to drop Oct. 9.

Read more: Dua Lipa Talks 'Club Future Nostalgia,' Working With Madonna And How She's Navigating The Music Industry In The COVID-19 Era

Grammys Newsletter

GRAMMYs

Black Lives Matter Protest in New York City

Photo by Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images

News

Live To Tape: How To Safely Film Police Misconduct

Facebook Twitter Email
As racial justice protests continue to thrive across the country, the Recording Academy has compiled a list of ways to safely and ethically film incidents involving police misconduct
GRAMMYs
Jun 10, 2020 - 1:58 pm

Over the past few weeks, protests have been staged across the nation in response to the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, David McAtee and many other Black people at the hands of police. Due to increased police presence and the deployment of the National Guard to several major cities, thousands of protesters have been arrested, and many violent incidents involving the police have been filmed and subsequently gone viral. 

Palika Makam, who works at the human rights organization WITNESS as senior U.S. program coordinator, writes in Teen Vogue: "Using the camera in your pocket can be a valuable way to ensure the world bears witness to abusive policing and systemic racism, help hold authorities accountable, and advocate for the real safety of our communities."

As protests continue amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Recording Academy has compiled a list of ways to safely and ethically film incidents involving police misconduct.

Record With The ACLU Mobile Justice App

Depending on which state you live in, you can download the ACLU’s Mobile Justice App (for example, in California, the app is called “Mobile Justice CA”). The ACLU’s app lets you record and report interactions with law enforcement, and all footage and reports submitted are sent immediately to your local ACLU affiliate.

Understand Your Rights

As WITNESS explains on its website, laws around filming authorities vary by country, so it helps to understand your rights before you hit “record.” In the U.S., you have a 1st Amendment right to record law enforcement in public spaces as long as you don’t interfere. Check out these tips from Makam:

  • Whether or not you are interfering is totally up to the police officer in the moment (and later up to a judge or jury), so it’s best to keep at least six feet of distance (or a car’s length) between you and the incident while filming, especially during social distancing.
  • If the police officer tells you to back up, comply with their orders. You can even film your feet as you’re backing up and say aloud, “I’m complying with orders.”
  • If the police officer tells you to stop filming, you can assert your right to film if you feel comfortable doing so.
  • You can stay safe and still film critical footage from a distance, like from a window, balcony, rooftop, or fire escape.

Verify That You Are The One Recording, And Where You Are

WITNESS recommends speaking into the camera to verify that it’s you doing the recording. “Alternately,” they write, “keep a written record with the original video file. If you need to be anonymous for security reasons, use a code name.”

WITNESS also recommends that you document where and when the incident is occurring. “Your media is easier to verify if you capture the date, time and location of your footage. If possible, turn on automatic date, time and GPS location capturing features. Alternately, film newspapers, intersections, street signs and landmarks.”

Prepare Your Device

If your phone does not have a six-digit passcode, it would be wise to set one up—in addition to a touch ID, face ID and/or pattern lock. As Makam writes, “You have a 5th Amendment constitutional right to not give up your cell phone passcode during a legal search. But that right is murkier when it comes to touch ID, face ID, or pattern lock, and courts have ruled both ways in the past. So it’s safest to just stick with a six-digit passcode for now.”

Also, Makam recommends that you set your phone to automatically back itself up to the cloud, be it Dropbox or Google Drive. Therefore if you were to lose or break your device, anything you record won’t be lost.

Know The Right Tools To Bring

WITNESS recommends a checklist of tools for capturing your surroundings, should you be out at a protest: an external microphone to potentially record interviews, extra memory cards, headphones, a tripod, a notebook and pen for recording dates, times and locations, and an extra battery and charger.  

Have Help Readily Available

WITNESS also recommends bringing a partner or friend with you to protests to help keep you safe and watch out for important situations to document. “Memorize emergency contact information, or keep it written in a secure location,” they write on their site. “Use a camera strap or tie your camera to your wrist. Know your equipment. If you can’t run with it, don’t bring it.”

For more information for how to safely and ethically film police misconduct, visit WITNESS’ site, the ACLU or read Makam’s Teen Vogue piece in full. 

Want To Support Protesters And Black Lives Matter Groups? Here’s How

Grammys Newsletter

GRAMMYs
News

The Best Apps & Tools For Recording And Monetizing Music In The COVID-19 Era

Facebook Twitter Email
Here's a rundown of some easy-to-use apps and tools for recording and monetizing your music in the COVID-19 era
GRAMMYs
Jun 9, 2020 - 3:04 pm

We are currently living in an unprecedented era around music creation and touring. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all business has been forced to become remote, making it difficult for artists to maintain their usual level of activity. Of course, though the music landscape looks totally different right now, artists are finding new and innovative ways to get their music heard, be it through livestreams, engaging with fans via social media or launching subscription models that offer exclusive content to fans. To that end, here's a rundown of some exciting new apps and tools for recording and monetizing your music in the COVID-19 era. 

Recording Tools

There are plenty of social media options for getting your work out there: Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Twitch are just some of the possible platforms you can use to capture your recording. 

There's also a new all-in-one app called RMusic, which allows songwriters to collaboratively write music on the go. Not only does RMusic let you to record ideas directly onto a virtual project file, but you can punch in new lines, edit takes, invite other collaborators from your address book, type lyrics, undo takes and communicate with project members from within the app.

Live Broadcast & Streaming Channels

Facebook: According to a new Remote Musicians Handbook put together by the Berklee College of Music, Facebook is the best venue for livestreaming if your audience skews a little older. 

Instagram: Meanwhile, Instagram, which has a feature that allows other people to join your live stream as guests, is ideal for younger audiences. "Based on your social media engagement on each platform, you can make an informed decision about which platform will be best for your fans," the handbook writes. "Both of these are well-suited for unannounced livestreams as notifications will go out to engaged fans, as well as letting your fans know ahead of time when you will be streaming."

YouTube: Then there's YouTube, which offers a number of monetization options and scheduling tools, such as pre-stream and in-stream ads, donations and merch sales. YouTube will even notify your followers when you go live and will allow you to schedule a live stream ahead of time. And as the stream takes place, YouTube lets viewers ask questions and interact with the streamer. 

TikTok: If you're on the super music-friendly app TikTok, did you know that you can activate a live stream if you have more than 1,000 followers? Once watching your livestream, viewers can purchase stickers, and a portion of the money is donated to the streamer. According to the aforementioned handbook, on TikTok these purchases are made using "coins." Coins start at $0.99 for 65 coins and go up to $99.99 for 6,697 coins. In turn, users can buy stickers, called "Virtual Gifts," for anywhere from 1 to 100 coins.
     
Twitch: The video game streaming platform can be useful for engaging new fans. Because this app hosts as many as 4 million viewers at once (according to TwitchTracker) actively encourages discovering new streamers, artists can show up under Twitch's "Music & Performing Arts" section (with 2.3 million followers). Here, according to the handbook, "the music ranges from metal to violin covers to singer-songwriters, and is generally more diverse genre-wise than more mainstream platforms."

If you want to monetize your work on Twitch, know that streamers get paid when new subscribers follow them and viewers donate to the streamer. Some streamers use new followers and donations as mechanisms to unlock new content or segments. Some will take requests at certain follower count or donation levels, others run merch giveaways, or give followers access to exclusive content.

OBS Software: OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) is free and open source software for video recording and live streaming. Stream to Twitch, YouTube and many other providers.

Nugs.net: Get live music on demand. Nugs.net offers a collection of more than 15,000 full-length concert recordings from the likes of Pearl Jam, Widespread Panic, Umphrey’s McGee, Dead & Company and more. Try it free with a 30-day trial.

Houseparty: This social networking service enables group video chatting through mobile and desktop apps. Users receive a notification when friends are online and available to group video chat. 

StageIt: Founded in 2009, Stageit is a web-based performance venue that hosts paid livestreamed performances. Artists choose when they want to perform, for how long, and how much they want to charge. 

Crowdcast: This video platform hosts live video Q&As, interviews, summits, webinars and more.

Streamlabs: This streaming platform can stream audio to Twitch, YouTube and Facebook. 

BandsInTown: Use BandsInTown to promote your live stream shows. You can even engage new fans and monetize shows through BandsInTown's Twitch partnership.

Fan & Membership Platforms

Patreon: Patreon gives fans access to exclusive artist content for a monthly fee, might be the first option that comes to mind when it comes to fan and membership platforms. But Patreon is only the beginning. Gumroad lets creators offer digital and physical products for sale, while its dashboard provides insight into how your sales are doing and how fans are consuming your content.

Squarespace: Offers subscription products in their store, integrating directly with your website and can be sold alongside your other merch products. 

Shopify: For $40/month, Shopify offers apps that allow you to offer subscriptions from your Shopify ecommerce store, which is helpful if you are offering physical goods as part of your subscription. 

Bandzoogle: Sell music, merch, downloads  and tickets, commission-free. Once you add a store, you can start selling music, downloads, tickets and band merch. Monthly fees start at $8.29.

Ghost: With Ghost, which is free to join, you can publish content online, grow an audience with email newsletters and make money from premium memberships.

Memberful: Memberful helps independent publishers, educators, and creators sell memberships to their audience and build sustainable businesses. You can integrate with Wordpress, send email newsletters, create private podcasts and more. Pricing is free to start and goes up to $25 or $100 per month.

Digital Production Marketplaces, including licensing and sell music, samples, and custom sounds:

Splice: Splice Studio gives you access to millions of royalty-free samples, MIDI and presets on mobile, web and desktop for $7.99/mo. 

ScoreAScore: This music production, licensing and supervision company puts producers in need of original music directly in contact with the composers who create it.

Beatstars: Beatstars is an online marketplace to buy and sell beats.

Putting The Plan Into Action

Now that you have the tools, all you need is to put a plan into action. The Remote Musicians Handbook suggests that you first analyze your audience to get a sense of their social media profiles. Then, you may want to run an unnanounced test live stream, just to get a sense of who's showing up. Then, schedule a series of announced live streams on the platform(s) of your choice. Once livestreams are part of your routine, consider partnering with artist friends on YouTube where you can cross-promote each other's work. From there, consider monetizing your work on Patreon with exclusive content. All the while, to engage new fans, hop on music-discovery tools TikTok and Twitch.

Now that you have the resources to build a fully functional music online platform from the safety and comfort of your home, the rest is up to you. Good luck!   

How Musicians Are Staying Positive & Productive Amidst A Pandemic