VERITY FEBRUARY 2015
V M
EDITOR
Adrianna Velazquez
DESIGN/PHOTOGRAPHY
Amber Ainsworth Danyyil Nosovskiy Brian Puninske Aubree Stamper Adrianna Velazquez
WRITERS
Amber Ainsworth Jessica Gavrilovski Courtney Rose Aubree Stamper Adrianna Velazquez Nikole Vendl
CONNECT
www.veritymag.com veritymag@gmail.com @VerityMag
WHO WE ARE Verity Magazine is a digital magazine dedicated to bringing you the latest news in the music industry. We are passionate about promoting both local and well-known artists through interviews, album reviews, concert coverage and other exclusive features.
FEATURES Oh Honey [04] Yelawolf [06] Vacationer [10] G-Eazy [14] Vinyl Theatre [20]
EDITORIAL Pinyata [08]
Artists to Watch [22] Reviews [24] Live Performances [26]
04|VERITY MAGAZINE
OH HONEY Words by Nikole Vendl Photo by Adrianna Velazquez
You many not recognize the name Oh Honey just yet, but you’ve probably heard their catchy tune, “Be Okay.” Their first single has already been featured on an episode of Glee, in commercials for Chili’s, the ABC comedy, Selfie and the film The Hundred-Foot Journey. This New York indie-pop duo, made up of Mitchy Collins and Danielle Bouchard started just two year ago when Bouchard and her captivating vocals came into Collins’ life at a time when he needed it most. “I was very poor for awhile. I was dodging eviction notices; I didn’t pay my rent for months,” recalled Collins. “I literally had to ask a stranger to buy me a bagel because I hadn’t eaten all day and I had no money and I wasn’t getting paid until next week. That was the lowest point for me.” During this time Bouchard just graduated college and began to experiment with music. “I had just graduated college for acting. I was living in the city just auditioning and also trying to do music on my own, just trying to figure out my life,” said Bouchard. The two met through a mutual friend years prior to their musical venture. It wasn’t until Collins put everything on the line to pursue music that the two reunited. “A buddy of ours sent me a voice memo of her singing and I was like ‘Who is this?’ and we kinda fell back into that way,” reflected Collins. “She was the missing link.” After reuniting they began writing music together and in no time they released their first EP With Love in November 2013. Just three months later they inked a deal with Atlantic Records and the rest was history. One of Oh Honey’s first bouts of commercial success came when Lea Michele and Naya Rivera performed a cover of “Be Okay” on an episode of Glee, a rare occurrence for the show to cover a song that was not already a hit. “That was unbelievable. I went to school for acting, so I used to watch the show. It’s so crazy. We watched it together at a friend’s apartment and had a little watching party,” recalled Bouchard. “We kept rewinding it and watching it over and over again. It was cool seeing our YouTube and Twitter and Instagram blow up; it was a really surreal moment.” With their instant success, the pressure to release music skyrocketed, leading them to release three new EPs in the past year, including an EP of “Be Okay” remixes. “We had a lot of momentum going on with the song on its own. SiriusXM was playing the record, the song was selling and we had tour offers coming up. So to wait was going to be very detrimental to what we were doing so we were definitely in a unique position just getting stuff out, like pouring gasoline on the fire,” said Collins. For Oh Honey, keeping each record organic is important. Although inspiration can be found anywhere, living in New York
City offers an abundance of inspiration itself. “I feel like when you live in New York it has a tendency to bring out the worst and the best in you. I’ve lived there for six and a half years and I feel like I’ve lived a lot since I’ve lived there and I’ve experienced all kinds of things like heartbreak and happiness and success and a lot of failures so I feel like it also gives us a lot to talk about,” said Bouchard. Despite all of the duo’s success to date, the most rewarding thing for Bouchard was hearing “Be Okay” on the radio for the first time. “I think for me it was the first time hearing our song on the radio because I dreamed of it. I was actually with my dad in the car, he was following our tour around and we were driving to the next show and I started freaking out and my dad started tearing up and it was just one of those moments. This is what I’ve worked for and it’s finally coming true,” said Bouchard. It’s through new experiences that Oh Honey continues to grow and progress along the way. The duo spends most of their time touring, having toured with acts like The Fray, James Blunt and more recently, American Authors. Although spending the most part of each year out on the road living out their dreams, touring can also have its down sides. For one, finding out who your real friends are is the tough reality the duo has faced. “Sometimes it’s hard being in a van for hours on end, living out of a suitcase, being away from your friends and family. You feel like people forget about you. You find out who your real friends are really fast on tour because they’re the ones that’ll stay in touch,” explained Collins. For Bouchard, the most challenging obstacle in her pursuit of music is personal. “For me, it was always the fact that there was going to be failure and there was going to be rejection in this field and it was about not letting that get the best of me and keep going no matter how many doors were slammed in my face. I think you just have to grow from that, to grow and adapt and change and keep going and keep persevering until you get where you want to be,” she confessed. With their rising success and two EPs plus a full-length album in the works, there is little time when the members of Oh Honey are not writing or performing together. When those rare moments do occur though Bouchard can be found at the gym or catching up with friends, two things she misses while on tour. “I love to shop and go to the gym. I love hanging out with my friends, especially my girlfriends because I’m in a van with a bunch of dudes,” said Bouchard. For Collins, it’s catching up on his favorite TV shows during his limited free time. As for how the duo came up with their name? Surprisingly, it came from Collins’ love of Katy Perry. “Oh Honey” was the title of the episode of How I Met Your Mother that the “Firework” singer guest-starred in— a perfect intersection of his love for television and music.
OH HONEY|05
Y E LA W O LF 06|VERITY MAGAZINE
Words by Courtney Rose Photo by David McClister We often find ourselves soul-searching in a world far beyond reality. The moment you open a book, you become invested in a story that is no longer your own. For Yelawolf, born Michael Wayne Atha, the story begins in Gadsden, Alabama. Growing up he became immersed in the sport of skateboarding at a young age and spent most of his time at skate parks with friends where they honed their skills and began rapping. Atha’s passion for skateboarding led him to Berkeley, California with intentions of pursuing a professional career. After becoming homeless he discovered that skateboarding wasn’t for him, but rather just a hobby and soon asked his mother for a one-way ticket home. Although skateboarding didn’t evolve into a profession, it opened the door to what would later become a career. Between working 9-5 jobs and searching for his purpose, Atha retracted to hip hop, spending more time writing and learning about hip hop culture. It was through his musical interest that Atha came to the realization he had a story, one that he would spend the rest of his life narrating as Yelawolf. “I decided in 2000 that it was something that I needed to do seriously and stop fucking around. It took me until late ‘06 to really hone a style that was going to work for me,” he said of his career. Growing up, he was heavily influenced by his mom’s love for classic rock. Along the way he began to influence his own taste in music, hip hop especially. “My mom’s first boyfriend was doing lights and sound for Ted Nugent and Alice Cooper, Fleetwood Mac. Her next long term husband was the tour manager for Randy Travis so there was the country music side,” he began. “So I was always around it, a lot of music. Hip Hop was something I was getting from skateboarding and being on the street. The other music was just always
in my household.” Much like skateboarding, Yelawolf quickly learned that anyone can rap. Although figuring out that anyone can rap took time, being original is what he aimed to be. “I guess it’s hard to be skillful, but it’s not hard to rap. It’s the story of the person and who they are and their style and how does what they say match up to where they’re from,” he explained. “It’s the whole thing. It was important for me to create something authentic. I’m still doing it, still getting sharper and still figuring it out.” A firm believer in the importance of songwriting, Yelawolf takes it upon himself to give his raps meaning. “I’m a melody driven songwriter. Writing rap verses is just fun, it isn’t even a challenge. It’s writing a song conceptually from front to back, that’s what’s up,” told Yelawolf. In 2011, Yelawolf was signed to Shady/ Interscope Records. The same year, he dropped his first studio album Radioactive. Yelawolf began touring with Travis Barker and Lil Wayne on the I Am Music tour shortly after the album’s release. After the release of his sixth mixtape Trunk Muzik Returns in 2013, Yelawolf started consistently working on his third album Love Story. His evolution as a songwriter came during the album’s creative process. While Radioactive was more collaborative, he praises that his latest album was infact more of an animate project. “As far as collaborations go, I wasn’t thinking like that on this album. My last album, Radioactive, I just learned a lot,” he said. “Love Story is just something that I wanted to handle and if there was a feature to come around it would be something so necessary and organic and cool, the right thing, you know?” Yelawolf brought in artists Eminem and Slaughterhouse to work on the album along with other producers. The album was finally completed in January 2014, after two
years of waiting. “Box Chevy V” was the first track to drop from Love Story, which was the fifth segment to his Box Chevy series. The third single off the album, “Till It’s Gone” was first previewed on Season 7 episode 2 of hit TV show Sons of Anarchy and was released the next day to the public. The track itself empowers the album’s message with it’s lyrics about his struggle with fame and grappling the exasperation towards the ones who think he owes them something now that he’s made it. “Till It’s Gone” is undoubtedly Yelawolf ’s biggest hit so far, and shortly after the tracks release Eminem dropped the Shady XV compilation, which Yelawolf is continuously featured on. “The one record that we did work on together was the one with Skylar. He called me and basically asked me to narrate it with a verse, it was a lot of pressure. It was a challenge,” he said. “The other records, ‘Pop the Trunk,’ ‘Going Down,’ ‘Let’s Roll’ I think is on there, it’s just a compilation of kind of the brief history. The record we got to get down and get creative on, ‘Psychopath’ was a fun one to write. I just did the best I could do with my style and try to make a good song.” While Love Story has only released three tracks, the album already contains enough power and passion to prove it’s quality and message. “Love Story is about passion. It’s about the passion for everything that I do. Writing Love Story was about being alive. The album itself is a testament to continue, otherwise I would have hung it up, quit when I hit hard times,” clarified Yelawolf. “Love Story is a fucking love letter to music, to my life, to celebrate growth and evolution.”
YELAWOLF|07
08|VERITY MAGAZINE
Introducing Pinyata— a new simple, free and fun app that allows you to get the full story of your favorite artists’ and friends’ adventures because it takes more than one photo to tell the whole story. Interview by Adrianna Velazquez with Steven Puri Q: What inspired the idea for Pinyata? A: A good friend of mine, Justice Laub, and I were talking one day about how none of our friends posted to Facebook anymore. We used to use it all the time to share photos and talk about what we were doing IRL. We looked at each other and wondered if we could make something that we would use— so we set out to build a fun and easy way to tell stories with our friends from our cell phones. As we were building it we found other people that had been craving the same thing and we’re really honored to watch it take off not just with groups of friends but also musicians, YouTubers, bloggers, and others. Q: Where does the app name “Pinyata” come from? A: We loved the idea of a treasure chest— something you cracked open that was filled with golden goodies. We realized treasure chests pretty much make you think of Johnny Depp and Pirates of the Caribbean now, so we searched for something with the same metaphor. It was one of my co-founders, Justice, who shouted out, “Pinyata,” one day and we all were like, “YES!” It just had a sense of fun— you can’t say it without smiling a bit...and it had the metaphor: you crack it open and all the goodies your friends packed for you tumble out. Q: Much like Instagram, users are able to upload photo and video clips. How does Pinyata strive to differentiate itself from other social media platforms like this? A: Instagram is an awesome platform that we love. With Pinyata, though, we wanted to create a place where you and your friends can take a whole bunch of photos, group them together and talk about them. It was important to us that Pinyata was collaborative because a lot of the photos we take are while we are out with friends at the same concert, party, whatever. And, when the event is over, Pinyata saves the story on a neat timeline that’s really easy to browse later. Q: What is the purpose of the calendar feature on the application and how far back can users browse through posts? A: When we were designing Pinyata, we asked friends how they would want to organize all the stories and they said
they’d want the stories stuck on a calendar so we did that! And Pinyata keeps your stories forever— there are no limits to scrolling back and forth. Q: How are users able to interact with one another aside from following those with similar interests? Is there a messaging option? A: We’ve noticed that fans are finding other fans in the artists’ stories and following each other and starting stories together. It’s really cool to see that develop. Q: Who are some musicians or celebrities currently using the application? A: You’ll find cool stories from Tyler Glenn, Gerard Way, Ryan Seaman, Telle Smith and others! Q: Describe the “Explore” feature on the application and how users can take advantage of it. A: When you’re new to Pinyata, the “Explore” button (the magnifying glass at the bottom) is a quick way to find fresh exciting stuff— you can see storytellers grouped by genre, you can browse the most popular storytellers on Pinyata or you can use “PhotoStream” to scroll through the most recently taken photos. Q: Are users able to search specific hashtags? A: In Pinyata, you can easily search for the story you want by its name or the person who posted it. In talking with users, we found that they could find their content faster by searching by the story’s name that using a hashtag. They told us that hashtags were often frustrating since when you search for a hashtag you get a ton of photos that you don’t want because they were randomly tagged with the same word. Q: Is there anything else that users should know before signing up for Pinyata? A: Really, we love to hear from our users so anyone who has a great idea to share or a problem they want fixed, we’re here to listen. Our company mission is to delight people. PINYATA|09
Interview by Jessica Gavrilovski Photo by Matt Schwartz I remember feeling my stomach drop the second my phone rang for my first interview with Vacationer’s Kenny Vasoli. While the call was expected, it still left me worried that I was bound to mess up one way or another. My first instinct was to apologize right away, as to put in an initial caution sign, which turned into Kenny reassuring me that while he has done plenty of interviews, I wouldn’t believe how nervous he gets as well. That immediately put me at ease. Jessica Gavrilovski: So, I was doing some research and it said that you were discovered at 14, right? Kenny Vasoli: It was actually the first tour I went on at that time, but I didn’t get a record deal until I was about 16 or 17 years old. 10|VERITY MAGAZINE
J.G.: Was something becoming dull that you wanted to create Vacationer, or what inspired you? K.V.: I really wanted to make dance music, and I wanted to make electronic music too, and it sort of inspired this idea of experimenting with electronic music. I started to dabble with the idea a little bit towards the end this band, Person L that I was in, and I just really got this bug. And I also wanted to create music that wasn’t loud, because I was pretty tired of singing at the top of my lungs and like losing my voice every week, so I wanted a more relaxed kind of music. The person I was growing into was more of a relaxed person than I was in my earlier years. J.G.: Was a music career always your dream or did you have other plans for a career?
VACATIONER
K.V.: I was pretty much just into it and learning how to play this thing, we both liked rock music, but we were sort of on the opposite ends of it. He was really into Aerosmith and Guns N Roses and I was just more into Nirvana and Green Day and stuff like that, but we could meet in the middle of some stuff. It was mostly grunge that really got me into it. J.G.: What inspires you guys creatively the most? K.V.: Well, for Vacationer specifically, I try to take inspiration from a place of relaxation and exploration, sort of like wander, and also amazement at beauty. I try to take it from a very positive place and to capture the best parts of the mentality of being on vacation. It’s not meant to be this long list of things, it’s supposed to be, for myself, just this sense of being able to get away from things that are really loud and abrasive and sometimes just negative quality of music; which, I love and listen to all the time, but I felt there was this sort of gap between getting out the reggae message without actually being reggae music, so it’s very much like a ‘no worries’ inspiration. J.G.: I was listening to your music and it’s definitely something you want to listen to at a beach or something like that, you know what I mean? K.V.: Yeah, that’s really what it was meant for. It’s like the tank top of music. J.G.: Do you ever kick back with your bandmates and listen to your own music as leisure? K.V.: It’s more like, once or twice when we’ve just finished the record, because we’ll be very excited about it and it will be newly mixed and mastered and we’ll be excited about how good it sounds, but past that, we don’t make too much of a habit of it. Mostly because we’re playing those songs every night at that point, so just for the sanity of everybody to sort of cleanse our minds with something that’s usually as far away as our music as I can think of. Occasionally we’ll put on some beats or some hip hop, and a lot of times recently we’ve been putting on punk and hardcore music, just to get a dip out of the cold water for a minute.
K.V.: No, this was it. I mean, joining that band when I was 14 with 20-year-olds and stuff was sort of giving me the mentality of like, ‘Alright, these kind of guys are on the same page as I am,’ so I was pretty much all in. It was sort of just convincing my parents that everything would be okay. J.G.: Are any of your families musically inclined? K.V.: Yeah, my brother is a really great guitar player. He can carry a tune. He’s never been in bands, but he loves to play. He played even before I did. We may have had a little bit of a competitive thing going on. J.G.: Did he influence you at all as a musician, or did how you were brought up influence you at all?
J.G.: What would you say has been the biggest struggle as a band? K.V.: Well, I think the biggest struggle was like our first stages of trying to make the leap into being a full time touring band. The leap with that was having to give up stability and whatever job we had going on at home, and you have to love being in the band enough that you kind of have to tighten the belt of starting a band. Even past that, there’s still a lot of luck with it as you keep going. I knew I really wanted to do this, and that this was the only thing that really holds my interest these days, so I was 100% lucky to have the sort of guys into it and dedicate so much to this band, and also to be such great players and friends of mine. I feel lucky that they could do that for me. J.G.: On the contrary, what would you credit as your biggest achievement so far? K.V.: I guess that it’s like our home, I’d say. I know that kind of sounds like a weird answer, but just from playing bass and singing and writing these songs, I have like a roof over my head that I guess I could call my own. VACATIONER|11
J.G.: You were just on a mini tour with St. Lucia, what was your favorite experience on that tour? Least favorite? K.V.: Well, I mean, the whole experience was really awesome. Getting to play two sold out nights in Chicago was pretty awesome, and just getting exposed to those guys personally was really cool. They’re really delightful and nice people to be around, like they were a lot of fun and very welcoming with us to the tour, and the friendship is the best thing that came out of that. But there wasn’t really anything I didn’t like about that tour, I guess the biggest challenge of the tour was shifting all of our stuff on the stage, because they had like some massive production, which looked really badass, and they did their best to move to their stuff back as far as they could, but there was just limited space. Which generally is a challenge of tour because I like to dance a little bit on stage. J.G.: Do you guys have any preshow rituals and do you ever have stage fright or get nervous before your set? If so, how do you handle the nervousness? K.V.: I personally don’t have a whole lot of stage fright, I experienced it a little bit on this last tour. We played this show in Vegas called Life is Beautiful, and when I got out there, I think it was the biggest crowd we’ve ever played by far, like there was around 8,000 people watching us, which I hadn’t experienced anything like that, so I got a little bit shaky with my voice and just sort of had to remind myself to take deep breaths out there, but it went away after a couple of songs. We only seem to get nervous if we know we’re getting filmed for something, because then it’s like ‘Ah shit, this is always gonna be recorded,’ like, if we mess up, everybody will see it, but otherwise we’ll be fine. It’s just the thing of knowing you’re being watched. As far as rituals go, me, Mike, and Greg will do vocal warm ups, like scales together, like ‘ma ma ma ma,’ like that stuff, and then we’ll sing our harmonies to our song “Everyone Knows,” like the three of us will do our three part to that. We’ll lock it in, and Ryan will be off in the corner playing on his drum pad, and then we head out there. J.G.: How do you manage to keeps fans invested and make each show special opposed to hitting “play” every night when you take the stage? K.V.: Well, you have to make it an experience with people. You know, you can’t just be playing like you’re in the basement, at least for what this is, I like it to be able to transport people, if I can. Sort of like get them out of their heads without being too semantic or anything. We want to have a light show, but I want to make it look like a pool, you know, something simple that makes it look like there’s water with the reflective light, because I just want people to feel like they’re at this really cool and relaxed place. J.G.: Your most recent album was released last summer. What’s your favorite record off of Relief? K.V.: I really like “Shining,” I think that’s the one I listened to most often, and I really enjoy playing that one live. That song came from a good place and it reminded me a lot of my influences that I really like and at this point, we really like playing it live, anywhere in the set, it’s always really fun. J.G.: Do you feel that the album is an accurate representation of 12|VERITY MAGAZINE
the band’s artistry? K.V.: Yeah, I’m really proud of it. It’s exactly what I wanted to achieve with this band and this record, I feel like we’re getting more adapt to the sound we set out to play and I really like how much composition is in the orchestration of that record. You know, I wanted it to remind me of like 60’s/70’s exotic soundtrack music, and to me it really does that. And I don’t know if that’s exactly what everyone’s looking for, but I’m really alright with that. I’m pretty clear with identifying what music really means a lot to me and it’s becoming very clear that that’s not always the popular music, but it’s special to me, and it’s important to have it mean something to me and have that variety. There’s gotta be more people out there like me who like this kind of stuff. J.G.: That’s really awesome though, because it’s coming from
your heart instead of somebody else’s, you know what I mean? K.V.: Yeah, thank you. That’s how it’s gotta be. There’s nothing more embarrassing than doing something to make someone else happy, and then they don’t even pay attention to it, so you have to look out for what you like. J.G.: Social media has undoubtedly leveled the playing field a lot more for independent artists. What is your take on social media’s influence on the music industry? K.V.: It’s fascinating, I’ll give it that. I can only pay attention so far into it, until I just can’t. It’s strange, because I was 12 when the internet started happening, so I was pretty much right on the edge of being a kid that’s super interested and paid attention to it, but now I’m a 30 year old, and to be engaged on social media as much as someone that’s in their early 20’s, I don’t know, the motivation isn’t really there for me. So, I think it’s
interesting because it’s a really powerful thing, but it’s all about how much energy you’re willing to give to it. My energy is pretty moderate, at best, so I think the world is just going to have to work with that. The thing is, I know that for just as many young people that are all about the internet, there’s still enough people that are my age that are still on the same sort of page with it and going on the same channels to find out about music. My nerves were quickly put to rest after the third or fourth question. My talk with Kenny Vasoli took me to a place of relaxation and positive vibes, much like what he aims to do through the music. After giving Vacationer’s music a listen and hearing what he had to say about the band’s latest record and their journey thus far, it’s obvious that Vacationer will be setting sail sooner rather than later. VACATIONER|13
G-EAZY Words by Amber Ainsworth & Adrianna Velazquez Photos by Adrianna Velazquez
G-Eazy stands in the corner and takes a swig of whiskey from a bottle passed to him by his entourage. He makes his way to the stage that rapper E-40 has just set for him. It’s a moment of humble pride for the 25-year-old who grew up listening to E-40’s music long before his career began. Years of hard work, dedication, and rice have led up to this moment. Yes, rice. “We used to pile into an SUV and sleep on friends’ floors and we used to travel with a rice cooker. We all had Tupperware and we would eat rice all day, that’s all we ate,” said G of the beginning of his rap career. That SUV became a van, which then finally
became four buses on his most recent tour. G refers to those nights on his friends’ floors as being “the fires of hell of touring.” Combined with the grueling experience of being on Warped Tour in 2012, he was able to gain the stamina to propel him into a fame that is still fairly new to him. That fame can be traced back to an interest in music that continually grew as he aged. It started in his hometown of Oakland, California when his aunt and uncle’s band often rehearsed in the basement of his home, and quickly catapulted into a fullblown passion when he fled his hometown at the age of 18.
He made his way to New Orleans to study at Loyola University, where he would earn both a degree and new influences for his already blooming rap career. “Somebody named Lil Wayne was the biggest rapper in the world at that time, it was just before Carter III and his presence in that city was felt everywhere you went, and he became a really big influence on my music,” said G. Between the Hyphy Movement back home and the New Orleans music scene, he devoted more time creating beats and honing his songwriting skills. Attending college full time was no easy task as music became
more distracting, but for G, school was not optional. “My grandma and mom had worked really hard to save and put money away for me to be able to go to college. I had a big scholarship to be there and they were helping me,” he said. “It was a huge opportunity. It just didn’t feel right messing up so I just kind of stuck with it for the bigger picture, but it was definitely a big challenge.” After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Music Industry Studies, dedicating more of his time to his musical aspirations became a priority. G-Eazy’s path to success has been attained through continual practice. For G, rapping and crafting songs was something he developed a skill for through continuous practice over the years. His skillful rapping wasn’t a talent he was born with, but rather a passion he’s spent his entire life trying to perfect. “The thing is...it’s half soul and half technique. Stories come from inside of you, but your technique as a writer evolves just like it would as a painter or a photographer. The first day you pick up a camera you may suck, but 5 to 10 years into studying your craft you get better at it,” explained G. “But your perspective is something that can’t really be taught or trained so it’s half and half.” In 2012, he independently released his album Must Be Nice following momentum built touring with the likes of Drake, Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne and Hoodie Allen. The success of his album among old and new fans alike ignited a fire that still burns strong today.
He managed to hook even more fans with his debut album, These Things Happen, before hitting the road on a tour that was so popular that it was given a second leg. “At this very moment there’s like tons of people around the world probably looking at a picture of me, or listening to my voice in their ears, or reading an interview, or talking about me, saying good or bad things,” he said about the limelight that he now finds himself living in. “You’re vulnerable, you put yourself on display as an artist and that’s scary as fuck,” he added, “but getting over that is important.” Once afraid of the stage and spotlights, G-Eazy has conquered fear, his talent shining brighter than any light cast upon him once he hits the stage. Watching G-Eazy on stage, it’s almost obvious that he has gotten over that and he is the most confident person in the world, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Despite climbing to the top and honing his talents, there’s still that hint of doubt that lingers in the shadows. “I doubt myself all the time, it’s this crazy duality of self-loathing and unstoppable confidence. On one hand, I would wonder every day, ‘Am I crazy? Is this ever actually going to work? Am I even good enough to be here?’ and then on the other hand, I felt like I would be a star eventually and it would all fall into place,” explained G. That it did. These Things Happen topped both the US Top R&B/ Hip-Hop Albums and Rap Albums Billboard charts after its release this past summer. With faith and a dedicated team,
G-Eazy put everything out on the line when he invested $100,000 gathered from the success of his independent record, Must Be Nice to create visuals that would catapult his debut record into the spotlight. “We kind of put it all on the line and basically bet the house on an idea and ended up getting a breakthrough moment,” said G. “Actually, about a year ago, These Things Happen was maybe 80-90% done. We had ideas for three music videos, we had $100,000 saved up and we shot those music videos with that money. I believed in the album and I wanted to really make a splash and I knew we needed content and music videos were key. It was a leap of faith, that’s an obscene amount of money, a down payment on a house. But I believed in the album and I believed in the ideas we had. It was a huge dice roll.” Despite the thoughts that can sometimes plague him, he has set a standard for himself that he must reach. His mentality won’t allow him to create anything new below a certain quality standard he has set himself while shaping his musical career, even if the job gets a bit exhausting or overwhelming. While this can be a daunting task and many artists put out new music just for the sake of doing so, G accepts and acknowledges the struggle with growth and improvement. Although he’s faced his own fair share of struggles throughout his journey, they come with the job. It’s much less about the outside factors, as G-Eazy loves things like touring although it can be difficult being away from the people he loves. “It’s ironically where I feel the most at home,” he said about touring and waking up in a different city every day. If that’s not the hardest thing for a musician, it raises a question of what
could be worse. For G, the biggest problem he comes face-to-face with is purely mental. “Half of me is the most confident person in the world, I think that I can do anything, the sky’s the limit,” he said, “and the other half is totally unsure of myself at all times.” G’s energy seems to be natural as he takes the stage, abandoning his liquor backstage and dropping off his leather jacket as the performance heats up, but it’s something he truly has to put his heart and soul into. He’s invested; he’s put his all into it, but with that come the pitfalls and constantly nagging threats of failure. “Now that we’ve got momentum, it’s also really easy to lose it,” he admitted. It’s his humble nature that continues to polish his success as an artist, but most importantly, handling change as it happens and staying true to himself as fame and that dream he planted so long ago becomes his reality. “Change is natural but I think it’s important to know yourself throughout it all and to keep your soul,” said G. From being a 9-year-old kid in love with Dr. Dre and looking up to his aunt and uncle’s band, to drumming in the bus with his friends, to graduating college and finally being able to dive into a serious music career, G-Eazy’s journey is a representation of who he is entirely. Though he has endured extensive changes since music first interested him up until recently topping Billboard charts and living on a tour bus, he credits who he is to his past. There’s a sense of comfort when G speaks about his family back home and the influence they have had on him as a person and a musician, a comfort that shows just how equally important they are to everything he’s become.
VINYL THEATRE Words by Aubree Stamper Photo by Lindsey Byrnes
The guys in the upbeat, indie-electronic band Vinyl Theatre went to great lengths to form the band. Made up of Keegan Calmes (vocals/guitar), Chris Senner (keyboard), Josh Pothier (bass), and Nick Cesarz (drums) the quartet came together through one strange encounter eight years ago when Calmes met Senner during a cross country track meet. “He said he was gonna beat me,” Calmes laughed. “It was a strange encounter.” That strange encounter led to the two writing music together and recruiting two more musicians, Josh Pothier and Nick Cesarz, two friends of Senner’s. Although Calmes attended college in Colorado while the rest of the band was in Milwaukee the quartet would assemble over Skype, email each other about ideas, and practice while he was in town. Cesarz was the last to join the band, “He actually thought we weren’t 20|VERITY MAGAZINE
gonna ask him to join,” Calmes remembered, “but he fit like a glove.” Once they all came together in Wisconsin and began creating music and playing shows from pay-to-play shows to battle of the bands shows, they knew they still had a long way to go. “Sometimes we played awkward shows with only ten people, I don’t know how we kept going. I look back and think ‘Wow, we were crazy,’ but we kept going and put everything into it,” said Calmes. Eventually, their dedication and intelligent use of the internet, SoundCloud specifically, they caught the attention of indie label, Fueled By Ramen and inked a deal alongside bands like Paramore and Fun. “We would post our songs in two week increments and announce it over social networks,” explained Calmes. This tactic resulted in every single song they posted to trend on SoundCloud which in turn, helped the band gain fans from around the world and build momentum. The band accumulated over
one million plays on SoundCloud by the time they announced their record deal. “If this label believes in you, it’s very validating. We had lots of energy and fight in us,” said Calmes. With the help of their label the band released their debut album Electrogram in 2014. The alternative-pop album is described by Calmes as a happy dance record with a heavy indie-rock influence. “The album is genuine and true and came from within us. The name Electrogram literally has to do with the electrical readings from your body,” explained Calmes. The record represents Vinyl Theatre and their potential; it’s a record touched by all bandmates that makes it authentic. “It’s not just one person writing these songs. This record is the four of us cumulatively, all of our minds together,” continued Calmes. With four different people coming from four different musical backgrounds, a diverse yet cohesive and eclectic sound is created throughout Electrogram. While the quartet is mostly influenced by alternative and
indie rock bands such as The Killers, Nirvana, and The Foo Fighters, they also have electronic influences as well. Although Vinyl Theatre remain relatively new having just released their debut album this past year, they aim to create music that will resonate throughout the world for as long as possible. “We want to be around for a while and build a lasting fanbase. We don’t want to fade into the abyss,” explained Calmes, “every time we perform we also want the fans to get everything out of it that they possibly can.” It’s no surprise that Vinyl Theatre’s upbeat and eccentric live shows are memorable. In fact, the band was once followed back to their hotel after a show by fans who had mistaken them for Twenty One Pilots. When told the band they were following was actually Vinyl Theatre, the fans were shocked and impressed by Vinyl Theatre’s captivating live show and resonating sound that will continue to draw new listeners as their journey continues. VINYL THEATRE|21
BLEACHERS Founded by Fun member Jack Antonoff, the music of Bleachers is quickly gaining popularity. You might have heard (and seen) Bleachers on an Apple Pay commercial by Chase Bank in November, when the song “Rollercoaster” was featured in the ad. With peppy and memorable lyrics and a vibe that comes straight from the 80s, there’s something oddly addicting to Bleachers’ songs. Even when you don’t know the lyrics, they’re feel-good songs that will end up sticking to you. It’s nearly impossible to listen to Bleachers’ music and not be in a good mood. Plus, a spring tour was recently announced. What better time to give Antonoff ’s project a listen? LISTEN TO: “Like a River Runs”
BRANDYN BURNETTE A native of St. Louis, Brandyn Burnette found himself shielded in his dorm at NYU where he began to craft songs. A singer-songwriter who has crafted a surefire formula that has led him to establish himself as an impressive wordsmith, Burnette combines lyrics that embody transparency and truth with pop savvy and radio friendly beats. Having co-wrote “First Flight Home” with Warner Bros. Recording artists Jake Miller and released three of his own mixtapes in 2014 alone, Burnette still has a lot to share in 2015. LISTEN TO: “Thanks For Nothing”
ARTISTS 22|VERITY MAGAZINE
OWATCH
SAM HUNT Hunt’s musical career began with writing songs fo popular country singers, including Kenny Chesney and Keith Urban. Best known for his chart-topping single, “Leave the Night On” from his chart-topping debut album, Montevallo, he has made his strong debut into country music as not only a songwriter, but a singer as well. With his success and reception of debut album and first headlining tour, Hunt has established a clear indication of his popularity in which he has garnered in a short period of time. With conversational lyrics and just a pinch of pop in the mix, Hunt is taking a fresh and punchy approach to making country music. LISTEN TO: “Break Up in a Small Town”
BEA MILLER X-Factor finalist Bea Miller released her hit single “Young Blood” last year and caught the attention of Demi Lovato who invited the stylish teen to join her on tour last fall. The youth empowerment anthem is impressive from beginning to end, showcasing Miller’s powerhouse vocals that are sure to leave new listeners in awe. At just fifteen, it’s hard to imagine what Miller will do with her captivating vocals in the future. “Young Blood” was perfectly crafted to encompass her skills and vocal range that we will surely continue to hear for years to come. LISTEN TO: “Young Blood”
RIXTON Made up of Jake Roche, Charlie Bagnall, Danny Wilkin and Lewi Morgan, Rixton began like any other modern boy band — posting covers to YouTube. That is before they caught the attenton of Justin Bieber’s manager, Scooter Braun who took the Manchester, England quartet under his wing. The quartet is now gaining momentum with songs like “Me & My Broken Heart” and their latest release, “Hotel Ceiling.” It’s the band’s mature vocals and infectiously catchy melodies that will catapult them following the release of their debut studio album, Let the Road this March. LISTEN TO: “Hotel Ceiling”
ARTISTS TO WATCH|23
ALBUM FOUR
RATING 4/5
By Nikole Vendl
In One Direction’s aptly-titled fourth album released in four years, FOUR, the X-Factor superstars prove they are much more than your typical boy band.
The album tends to focus on expanding the 80s influenced folk and acoustic-rock aspects of their sound that the group introduced in their last album, Midnight Memories. What is most impressive about FOUR is that it seems that as the 1D boys become more involved in their songwriting, the more mature sounding their songs become both lyrically and sonically. At least one member of the group co-wrote every song on FOUR
with the exception of “Girl Almighty” and the Ed Sheeran penned ballad, “18.” The most noteworthy tracks on the album include “18,” their new single, “Night Changes,” the midtempo track, “Stockholm Syndrome” about falling in love with someone holding them hostage, and “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” which they recently had the honor of performing live with the Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood.
SONG We Move Like The Ocean
RATING 4/5
By Courtney Rose song is undoubtedly an alt-rock necessity with its authentic artistry. Inspired by a few guitar licks followed up with harmonies, “We Move Like The Ocean” was the first track the band created. Kicking off an entrancing guitar piece and a perfect drum intro, lead singer Christo Bowman takes control of the Bad Suns didn’t disappoint when they track with his melodic vocals. released their track, “We Move Like The “I’ve been just coasting / My mind put Ocean” from their debut album, Lanto motion,” he sings. “We move like the guage & Perspective earlier this year. The ocean / But I can’t swim anymore.”
Clearly a song about a broken relationship, the band carves the memorable chorus into our minds allowing us to read between the lines. With an infectious beat and killer lyrics, Bad Suns took a different route when creating “We Move Like The Ocean,” striking up an ideal rock anthem.
SONG American Beauty/American Psycho By Jessica Gavrilovski “Centuries,” and “Immortals,” Fall Out Boy is still at the top of their game. “American Beauty/American Psycho” brings out a sound that is not something you’d expect from them, but it’s catchy and sexually enticing. With lyrics like, “All those dirty thoughts of me, they were never yours to keep,” and “Us, we were pity sex, nothing more and nothing Since the release of their single “Ameri- less,” it’s obvious that they aren’t “beatcan Beauty/American Psycho,” Fall Out ing around the bush,” but rather aren’t Boy has proven that nothing is stopping ashamed to get dirty. them from going after what they want. Bassist Pete Wentz described in his blog Despite some fans being unimpressed by that collaborating with DJ/producer 24|VERITY MAGAZINE
RATING 5/5
SebastiAn enabled the four-piece to evolve their sound in which he describes as a throwback rather than futuristic. His description couldn’t be more accurate. The single sounds like something you’d hear in a late 80s, early 90s dramatic comedy, yet with a kick of triumphed power; almost like something you’d hear during an intense basketball game in the prime of Michael Jordan’s career. With straightforward lyrics, powerful vocals, and foot-tapping instruments, “American Beauty/American Psycho” is an absolutely killer single.
MIXTAPE #000000 & #FFFFFF
RATING 4/5
By Amber Ainsworth
The Neighbourhood found a comfortable niche amongst the radio the past couple of years with singles like “Sweater Weather” and “Afraid” gaining popularity. While working on new music, that niche was completely slashed apart for a new and unexpected sound that broke all the boundaries and combined an extensive mix of sounds and styles. #000000 & #FFFFFF dropped last fall and was available for free download through the mixtape site Datpiff. The title of the mixtape is the HTML code for black and white, a suitable name because of the eerie vibe the band has worked to
build up. Plus, the song titles are normal names with a twist, examples of the way The Neighbourhood has presented themselves (Hate Machine is a great example of this, titled H8M4CH1NE on the track listing). The mixtape is a perfect mixture of Jesse Rutherford’s smooth and melodic verses and heavy beats. By featuring a handful of not yet mainstream rappers on the tracks, the songs become a blend of highs and lows. Most of the songs stem from bad relationships, using the beats and combinations of rapping and singing to keep the mood of the mixtape from ever getting too depressing. “#icanteven” featuring French Montana, tells the story of being cheated on, and while going into the details of the toll cheating takes, never gets to the point where the track isn’t enjoyable. While the rapping is left mostly to the
ALBUM 2014 Forest Hills Drive
featured artists, Rutherford rhymes a bit. Overall, his lyrics do an amazing job of expressing feelings and giving a peek into his head. Lines like, “Rest in pieces, peace of mind,” from “Jealousy,” are brief but deep. Through the emotion drenched lyrics, the mysterious air of the band, and the addition of rising rappers such as G-Eazy and Danny Brown, #000000 & #FFFFFF definitely embodies what The Neighbourhood has been leaning towards since they first made their breakthrough. The only pitfall is that the downloaded songs from Datpiff included introductions from the producers of the mixtape, Don Cannon and DJ Drama, negatively affecting the flow of the songs.
RATING 4.5/5
By Adrianna Velazquez protests in Ferguson, J. Cole stays connected to the real world on tracks like “January 28th” where he questions, “What’s the price for a black man life?” The album’s first track, “Intro,” begins with J. Cole showing off his best vocals as he sings, “Do you wanna be happy? Do you wanna be free?” You may be wondering what he’s speaking of, but he immediately answers that. “Free from When I first heard “Apparently” from J. Cole’s third studio album 2014 Forest pain, free from scars, free to sing, free Hills Drive, I was left in admiration for from bars,” he continues singing. The the rapper who bleeds honesty through- track contains thoughts outlining his hopes for the future while providing a out the record. While straying away clear warning about pitfalls that inevitafrom collaborations and the release of singles, J. Cole shared his story on 2014 bly lie ahead. Forest Hills Drive which he let speak for One of the most stunning moments on the album comes from “Apparently,” a itself — and it spoke loud and clear. It’s J. Cole’s authenticity throughout the piano-based arrangement where J. Cole album that makes it a surefire success— sparks vulnerablity as he sings about being a college student in NYC while his a rather personal one at that. From mom was left back home in North standing on the frontlines during
Carolina facing foreclosure on Forest Hills Drive; a moment of truth that stirs up a mix of emotions. Overall, the album is polar opposite of J. Cole’s last album, Born Sinner which was full of enticing beats and radio-ready hits. Rather, the album is dominated by dull beats that accommodate the rather slow and relaxed pace. Despite not being a radio-savy album, it’s hard to say that it is anything short of impressive. 2014 Forest Hills Drive is J. Cole’s best album yet for the simple fact that it is the most personal one to date. The North Carolina bred rapper opens up, showing his vulnerability as not just an artist that often finds himself at the hand of fame and fortune and its evils, but also as a human being who experiences life just as the rest of us do and that is respectable-- that is real. REVIEWS|25
Papa Roach The Fillmore Detroit, MI
Photo by Amber Ainsworth
Kip Moore The Fillmore Detroit, MI
Photo by Adrianna Velazquez
Memphis May Fire The Crofoot Pontiac, MI
Photo by Brian Puninske
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