Mark Saunders has released a new “BRUDDAHOOD” short film, which has come after the release of the well-received single of the same name. A multi-layered, expressive visual from Saunders that captures the song’s potency, Saunders directed the film himself alongside Luis Vazquez, and he provides the vocals on the lucid fifth verse alongside a talented cast of collaborators that includes TeeDotOhh, Ducksauce, Flii BooGiie, and SNS. The “BRUDDAHOOD” short film is a focused, engaging look into Saunders’ artistic realm with its cohesive synergy of sound and imagery that feels raw and authentic throughout. The visual’s stark, nocturnal shots and fast-paced editing give it a bracing energy while at the same time, it feels down to earth and intimate- giving it an intriguing contrast that adds much character. The short film captures the track’s themes of “BRUDDAHOOD” as it follows Saunders, TeeDotOhh, Ducksauce, Flii BooGiie, and SNS through captivating performances, as the song’s gritty instrumentation and heavy drums suitably soundtrack the dark, energizing feel.
The “BRUDDAHOOD” film further showcases Saunders ability to merge different mediums and release multi-layered offerings that fulfill a larger vision. With the film’s poignant narratives, dynamic shots, and memorable performances capturing themes of camaraderie and brotherhood- paired with the song’s textural, intense feel- “BRUDDAHOOD” makes for a cohesive, thoughtful new offering directed by Saunders and Luis Vazquez.
Mark Saunders is a multi-talented artist from The Bronx, New York who pushes boundaries with his releases by combining various artistic disciplines in ways that challenge convention. Driven by a desire to inspire, motivate, and tell a story of many, Saunders seeks to find something universal and bring it out in his work, giving his output an authentic, engaging feel throughout. His latest offering, the “BRUDDAHOOD” short film, marks another entry in his growing catalogue of multi-layered, thought-provoking releases. Watch the “BRUDDAHOOD” short film here now:
St. Louis native Chris Celestial is back with a new single called “Keep Holdin On”. Continuing his prolific run of organic, soulful tracks, “Keep Holdin On” provides a sense of relief with its emotive sampling, rich rhythm section, and calming, introspective verses from Celestial. Motivating and refreshing, the track blends imagery-rich lyricism with a tapestry of warm samples for a breezy, yet reflective, soundtrack for the summer. Accompanied by a fresh music video shot by Tobi that enhances the track’s colorful, thoughtful feel, “Keep Holdin On” is a memorable new offering from Chris Celestial. Give “Keep Holdin On” a listen here now and check out the new music video as well while you’re at it.
Los Angeles’ Nick Coleman and New Orleans’ The Adoni have dropped off a new collaborative single called “Count It”. On this new track, the pair demonstrate a kinetic chemistry atop an infectious instrumental that is both smooth and energizing. With undertones of triumph laced into reverb-soaked guitars, booming drums, and massive 808s, “Count It” is an empowering track that finds Coleman and The Adoni dropping charismatic bars that blend together seamlessly. A single from the pair’s anticipated collaborative EP, “Count It” makes for an enticing new offering. Give it a listen here now.
South Bronx, NY artist Seth Narley has dropped off a new EP, titled S.A.L.Y. Born Raymon Calleja, S.A.L.Y. is the latest offering in a series of potent releases that have included A MILLBROOK STORY, NIGHT AT THE ROXY, and more. Here, Narley tackles a set of soulful, stripped back beats that bring his present, clear delivery and penchant for introspective, cathartic lyrics to the forefront for a vivid listen.
Energizing soul samples, airy percussion, and rich bass-lines accentuate the warm, emotive feel of the set of four tracks, paired with an engagingly raw sound and approach. Tracks like “Chanel Rap 24” and “Harlem Nights” are vividly written with back-drops of lush sampling, while “Minnesota Fats” is a potent track alongside Really Jaewon that puts their technical skills on display atop layered instrumentation. S.A.L.Y. is a project that just grabs the listener and draws them in, with each line painting sharp pictures in the process. Give S.A.L.Y. a listen here now.
New York’s Ché is a dynamic artist whose versatile sound spans genre influences, with an ability to sound at home on both warm, soulful sounds and those noisier and harsh. Inspired by his diverse upbringing across the borough of Brooklyn, he’s an artist committed to staying true to his creative impulses while willingly exploring new territory with each release. Since his 2023 self-titled debut album CHÉ, we’ve been impressed by his sharp songwriting, ability to craft poignantly personal lyrics, and outside-the-box, creative approach. He has been continuing his trajectory with two recent singles, “JUDY” and “YUKON GOLD”, which both take on lives of their own with their character-rich sound- with “JUDY” displaying a vibrant, R&B-influenced style and “YUKON GOLD”‘s brash, raw lyricism presenting an enticing energy. At Roundhouse Music, we sat down with Ché to talk about his beginnings in music, recent tracks “JUDY” and “YUKON GOLD”, his independent label GLTTR Records, and more.
Roundhouse Music: Growing up, what initially inspired you to begin creating music?
Ché: My love for creative writing and poetry birthed my passion for songwriting and music. Initially (and still now) I wanted to be an author. Once I was introduced to the Harlem Renaissance back in middle school,and discovering rappers like Kendrick and Childish Gambino. A whole new dimension opened up to me in terms of what words can do.
Roundhouse Music:Where did you grow up in New York and how did being around the arts and music scene in NYC influence you as an artist?
Ché: I grew up all over Brooklyn. I started off in Park Slope for my childhood, then in sophomore year of high school we moved to Flatbush. Each of these areas was filled with so many different types of personalities and mini groups/scenes that I gained this super wide lens perspective on life. From hanging out with the private school kids. To playing basketball with kids from the hood. All of these friends that I had allowed me to tap into a bunch of different subcultures. It deepend my artistic reference pool.
Roundhouse Music: Your sound feels very versatile and genre-bending- which genres do you draw from most when creating music?
Ché: I’d say it changes depending on the space I’m in. But most consistently I draw from early to mid 2010s hip hop, 70s soul, and latin jazz. However recently, the music I’ve been workshopping has had a heavy 80s/90s punk influence. So it really depends on where I’m at in life and where I feel I need to go next.
Roundhouse Music: What’s your songwriting process like approaching a new track?
Ché: Typically I like to write at home when I’m alone. Since my music can get pretty personal, I don’t think I can produce the most honest work, when I’m around people. I have done it with success, but I think the best Ché comes from when I’m home alone and get to pace around and talk to myself. Most of my songs come from me just talking to myself and a phrase I said will stick out. That’ll be the launching pad for the rest of the track.
Roundhouse Music: How important is it to you to keep trying new things and staying creative as an artist? I feel like you’re not an artist who can be limited to one box.
Ché: I think it’s imperative. I’m a real human being, in real life, and I grow and change and develop new things. If I robbed myself of expressing that change in my music. I’m doing this for the wrong reasons. Music has always been a vehicle for self expressions and charting your personal changes. So as I mature I want the art to reflect that. I love MUSIC, as a whole, not just a specific corner of it. So when I feel like my skills match my drive and love for a sound, and if I feel it’s organic. I’m going to run towards it.
Roundhouse Music: Which song do you hold as the most special to you personally, and why?
Ché: I’d say it’s a song I actually just made and haven’t released. It’s this super bombastic and aggressive rap track with the nastiest beat switch I think I’ve ever made. But the reason I love it so much is because it’s EXACTLY what I want to do. I don’t feel like I pulled any creative punches. All the music to come out after this next EP is gonna be really shocking to some people. Because it’s me fully showing how deep the creative bag I have is.
Roundhouse Music: What inspired your recent song “Judy”?
Ché: Judy was such an organic and natural song. Me and Jared were just in the studio and he stumbled across the drums and I liked it. We kind of went into our own worlds for 20 minutes and afterwards I had fully written the song, and he had the whole beat finished. I was in a lovey dovey but somber mood and wanted to play around with inflection. In my mind I imagine some southern cowboy dude singing about his first great heartbreak in an empty saloon.
Roundhouse Music: How did your new song “Yukon Gold” come together? What was your experience like creating it?
Ché: Yukon Gold was kind of last minute. I knew I wanted the next EP to have four songs, but we were at three and If I didn’t make something relatively soon we’d either push the project back or release it with three. I was randomly crate digging one day and stumbled across the record we sampled, took it home, isolated the moments I liked most, completely wrote the song over the loops I made. Then I took it to Jared and he took it to the next level.
Roundhouse Music:It’s really cool that you have your own record label as well and are releasing music under it. Can you talk about what’s happening with your record label GLTTR Records?
Ché: I’m so happy you asked. I always wanted my own label, and beyond that, an art house. A space where myself and other people can be creative and actually feel represented and supported. While in its current state, I’m just trying to build up the brand and more so focus on myself. The goal isn’t to simply sign artists. I want to cultivate a communal space for independent creatives so they can have the resources to make music and have it be heard. There are so many gifted people in the world, and it’s so difficult to gain exposure. With GLTTR Records I’m aiming to establish a landing pad for new and novice talent, so when they do step into this industry. They don’t get ripped in half.
Roundhouse Music:What can we expect next from you on the horizon in music?
Ché: Consistency. I’ve hit a creative stride as of late and I want to keep the ball rolling. That means lyric videos, music videos, more singles, maybe even a Yellow Machine deluxe if it makes sense. I want to be creating and releasing stuff as much as possible. While also putting all the pieces together in the shadows for this next album. The next project is really special to me and I’m flooded with the same feeling I felt when I was a kid first making music. So while I put all that together, you can expect me to still be dropping dope stuff and staying consistent.
New Jersey standout Wiseboy Jeremy is back with a new single, titled “Temple Doors”. Produced by $UPREMELOOPDIGGA, “Temple Doors” weaving, psychedelic instrumentation blends jazzy grooves with ethereal tones for a potent listen, capped off by Jeremy’s sharp lyricism and vivid imagery. The sonics on “Temple Doors” are beautifully disorienting, with a thought-provoking, hypnotic feel that give it a character unto its own. On “Temple Doors”, Wiseboy Jeremy sounds poised and focused atop the smoky production, while his imaginative lyrical style and emotive delivery give the track added character.
Take a listen to the prolific New Jersey artist’s latest song “Temple Doors” here now:
Zahir has dropped off a new single called “CAN WE MOVE ON”, featuring Phoenix James. Zahir, who hails from Washington, DC, is a multi-hyphenate artist, director, and musician who started his career as a visual director, as well as a multi-instrumentalist playing piano, trumpet, and multiple percussion instruments. With a penchant for soulful, self-aware releases such as 2023’s Chaos St., Zahir has been carving out his own lane with his genre-bending sound. His latest offering, featuring South Florida’s Phoenix James, makes for an ethereal offering that neatly blends hip-hop, alternative R&B, and soul influences for an impactful listen. Atop layers of atmospheric guitars, rich percussion and potent bass, Zahir and James deliver smooth, emotive vocals that build dynamically throughout the track. Give “CAN WE MOVE ON” a listen here now.
chace. has joined forces with Malik Elijah for a fresh song called “love letters to myself”. The Boston producer, singer, rapper, instrumentalist, creative director and owner of Mind Flex Records has been carving out his own lane for his infectious blend of hip-hop, R&B, and alternative music. For his latest offering he connects with fellow Boston-based musician, the prolific and lyrically gifted Malik Elijah, for a new track that contains a uplifting mood and sharp rhymes that keep the listener engaged from the get-go. Containing production that elevates with soulful, potent instrumentation, paired with focused rhymes that give “love letters to myself” an inspiring feel. Check out “love letters to myself” here now.
Phoenix James is a rising force in the vibrant South Florida music scene, who has established herself as a daring, versatile singer-songwriter and producer across a vibrant discography. Soulful and genre-bending- her sound and songwriting emanates focus and intentionality while remaining expressively heartfelt. Phoenix’s versatile approach to music makes it difficult to place her work in one box, with multi-faceted releases that stay committed to remaining authentic. Her discography demonstrates range, with radiant projects like 2022’s New Stages EP presenting a refreshing, atmospheric take on alternative R&B, while her most recent solo release “Digital”‘s sleek, left-field electronic influences pushes towards the future. We sat down with Phoenix to discuss her beginnings, songwriting process, her new song “Digital” and more.
Roundhouse Music: What were some of your earliest inspirations to start creating music?
Phoenix: I think hip hop was definitely my first love. My Dad would put on MTV and I became obsessed with Missy Elliot, and when my dad explained that she was a producer, and what a producer was, I wanted to do exactly that. On the songwriting end, listening to the channel orange album was life-changing for me. The album felt like literature, and it made me dive into songwriting.
Roundhouse Music:What was it like for you growing up in Miami as far as being immersed in its music and artistic scene?
Phoenix: I literally would not have wanted to grow up anywhere else. Musically I learned so much from the mix of different cultures! The “Limbs” chord progression is derivative of a salsa progression. I grew up playing in different bands at house shows and student organized shows before dropping any music of my own. Miami and South Florida are filled with extremely talented musicians.
Roundhouse Music:What was your process like creating your latest song “Digital”?
Phoenix: “Digital” was really just a songwriting/beat making exercise. I was trying to get out of the slow song headspace. I like to practice songwriting by giving myself a prompt, and the prompt was “write about people who care more about the portrayal of their relationships on social media than the actual relationships”. I wasn’t going to release it, but I played it for a couple of people and they really liked it, so I decided to release it. It’s fun haha
Roundhouse Music: What inspired the electronic-infused sound on “Digital”?
Phoenix: I don’t think anything really inspired it directly, Ive just been making a lot of stripped down music, so I wanted to have fun!
Roundhouse Music:What’s your songwriting process like?
Phoenix: The answer to this question is constantly changing haha. My songwriting process always depends on what I’m doing, so it’s never a set thing. Sometimes a poem I write turns into lyrics (“Limbs”), sometimes I fully finish a beat and then I write ( I did that on “Digital”), sometimes I am writing lyrics in my head and producing at the same time (it’s weird) and sometimes Abner Dennis has me just start free-styling on the mic and we go bar by bar (“Peace” & “Contact High”), sometimes it’s Abner still working on the beat and I’m writing. It’s never the same.
Roundhouse Music: I know you recently performed at SOB’s in New York, what was your experience like performing there?
Phoenix: SOBs was so cool. Just seeing the list of legendary artists that had been on that same stage, and talking to the engineer about who his favorite performers were. The crowd was a little rude though, a bunch of NYU kids talking through all of the performances, but it’s all good haha. I’m big on concert etiquette.
Roundhouse Music: Would you consider yourself a spiritual person? I think your music has a spiritual feel. If so, how does it contribute to your creativity and artistry?
Phoenix: I definitely am spiritual, I think every musician is whether they think it or not. A spiritual feel? I don’t think anyone’s ever told me that haha, that’s cool, thank you. I think for me, it’s all about digging as deep as possible to connect to myself. Getting into the flow state and just word/melody vomitting everything out. I try to make sure everything comes from a place of presence and intention.
Roundhouse Music: Do you have a favorite experience collaborating with another artist?
Phoenix: I don’t think I’m allowed to talk about my favorite collaboration just yet, but I love working with artists that are free in the way they express themselves, and are down to try anything. Another favorite would definitely be working with Frank Sativa though, he’s a genuine person and super talented. We had fun in the studio.
Roundhouse Music: Do you have a favorite song that you’ve created and what makes it hold a special place for you?
Phoenix: I have an unreleased song that was just an insane experience to make. I took a substance with my friends in LA and we stayed up until the sun rose working on the song. The song is unlike anything we’ve ever made. When I play it for people they are kinda just like “woah” which I love haha.
Roundhouse Music: What’s on the horizon for you in music?
Phoenix: An ALBUM is on the horizon, I’m not gonna say too much right now, but I am sharpening my sword. Definitely excited for what’s to come.
Chicago-born, Minneapolis-based artist GR3G has shared a new single called “LET THAT SHIT GO !”. A poetic lyricist with a penchant for heartfelt, soulful sounds- GR3G has been highly prolific of late with poignant projects like FOOD 4 THOUGHT and HEAL FOR ME. His latest single, “LET THAT SHIT GO !”, continues his run of cathartic, introspective songs which examines feelings of acceptance and freedom. Atop elegant strings, rich bass, and organic-sounding percussion, GR3G waxes poetic with engaging, poignant lines chock full of vivid emotion. Give GR3G’s latest “LET THAT SHIT GO !” a listen here now.
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