Neon Hitch

Catch up with Neon Hitch to see what she had to say about her new music video for "Sparks" and Eleutheromaniac and join the #WeRNeon movement now.

How did you get started in music?

Neon Hitch: That is a very big question [laughs]. Well, I come from the circus, for those who don't know me, and I've always been a performer and then, I actually honestly had never sang a note before the age of sixteen. When I was sixteen I was singing in the back of a car and my boyfriend was like 'I've never heard your sing before, you should do this' and it just kind of happened, you know, I met the right people and, honestly, I never was like 'oh, I'm going to be a singer when I grow up,' it kind of naturally happened, but I have always been a performer of some kind.

How do these track you're working on and releasing now compare to your previous releases?

I mean, I think it's all still me, I just think, as a whole, over the past year I've done a lot of growing, as a human and as an artist, and I think that really translates in my new work.

Have you had more creative freedom to work on the music you want since leaving Warner Bros.?

I have, yeah. I guess, you know, it comes with being a pop artist, you can't help but think, well, is this radio friendly or is this too raw or is this pop enough? I've kind of just reached this place recently where I just don't give a fuck and I think that's where the best music comes from [laughs]. I'm having fun with it and I'm just being myself and me, personally, when I like an artist, that's what I like seeing, so that's sort of what I hope to do myself.

What was your idea behind the music video for "Sparks"?

The video just came out; I'm so excited about it. The inspiration for this was, it's a love song and what I really wanted to do was I wanted to do something similar to the ink blot test where it's not like a straightforward storyline where it's like, 'oh, this is what it is,' I kind of wanted to get people guessing and questioning and they want to watch it again because they're like, 'wait, who's that guy?'. I kind of want people to make up their own concept for themselves because it could mean many different things depending on the way that it speaks to you, so that was kind of my goal and also just to be my purest form of myself. 

What was it like working with these directors, Ryan Gregory Phillips and Josh Guillaume, from The Paradise Collective?

The video was a three day shoot, which is the longest video shoot I've ever done - the longest one before this was I think one day - but I think it was great. We got to capture so many different scenes and so many different sides of me and we have a lot of fun with it. 

"Sparks" is dramatic and has an anthem sort of feel to it, what was the inspiration for the song itself?

The song came from my love that I have, you know, when you meet someone, whether it's love or not, there's always this spark and it's like, you know, some people call it butterflies or whatever but, for me, I'm a fiery woman, so there's this spark that ignites this fire between two people and I'd just gone into the studio and I was working with this group, Dsign, who I've made like the whole album with and I was just telling them about this feeling that I had and I just start singing this idea and they just start playing these chords around it and they just fit perfect.

Is "Sparks" representative of the style we can expect to hear on the forthcoming album?

Yes, from Eleutheromaniac, yes it all has a similar kind of sound. I mean, there are so many different sides to me but the ones that I've done with Dsign, it does have that similar sound. It's kind of got like a little Kate Bush vibe - which I love - felt kind of like this world feel that's empowering so, yes, a similar vibe but I have so much music coming out this year that is many different styles also.

Any artists, aside from Kate Bush, you've been inspired by?

I really listen to a lot of older music and just recently I've been in New Orleans a lot, so my favorite shit recently has just been like the people on the streets that are performing. I like it to be raw and authentic and just real talent, so I'm loving jazz right now and the old people, I love Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Otis Redding, but I love so many different kinds of music. 

Could you sum up Eleutheromaniac in one sentence?

Magical. 

It's an expression of myself and I think it's really going to be a time when people really get to understand me, if they have not already.

Clearly you've worked hard to get to where you are now, what's the best advice you have?

I think that if it was easy everyone would be doing it and for what I'm going for, I know it's not going to be an easy path. I'm on a heroes journey and, you know, I'm not a puppet, I'm a real artist, and I think you've got to go through some shit to make that who you are, so I would say, don't get beaten down by the hard times, just embrace them and learn from it and grow.

What do you want to say about your music?

I just want to say to my fans thank you for your patience and just watch this phase, I'm going to make everyone very proud of me!

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Joey Contreras

Catch up with Joey Contreras, check out the video for his single "Ohio" and get your copy of Young Kind Of Love, available now.

What got you interested in music?

Joey Contreras: Well, I come from a really musical family. My mom - my mom and my dad are both in a band and they used to perform all over - she kept on singing while she was pregnant with me so I kind of soaked in that music very early and then I actually started as a tap dancer at four years old, so that's sort of when I started really getting into music and did a lot of theatre and just kind of went from there. 

You do have this contemporary, theatrical feel to your music and a background in writing for theatre, so how has musical theatre most influenced your sound?
You know, I sort of feel more like pop music has always influenced my sound when I was writing for theatre. I kind of just always loved infectious melodies and catchy choruses and big choruses and all of those thing so, I mean, a lot of the kind of response for my theatre writing has always been, 'oh, it's very pop influenced,' and now that I'm sort of going back to my pop roots and everything, it's a little bit more storytelling, a little bit more theatre, than just pop music. Kind of an interesting blend. 

Which artists have inspired your sound?

I always think of Britney Spears actually [laughs] but mainly, all of Britney's writers, the big pop writers like Max Martin, Dr. Luke; they've been a huge inspiration. But then, also, Sara Bareilles and Jason Mraz and Maroon 5. 

Are there any tracks you're hooked on right now?

Yeah, I am obsessed with "Nobody Love" by Tori Kelly. It's on constant rotation for me and, goodness, it's awful but I'm totally still listening the Taylor Swift record. Those are the things that I'm listening to a lot.

How would you describe your sound?

I would say it's musical pop. I kind of like straddling those worlds of both giving you something you can dance to, something that you can sing along to, but also have strong storytelling to it so, yeah, musical pop.

Is there anything you try to keep in mind while writing?

It's hard to get out of your head in general, in life, and so when I'm writing I try to stop thinking about what people expect from me or what I think people are going to want to hear and just keep on staying true to what I dig and I'm like, if that feels cool to me, if that feels hot to me, if that feels emotional or effective to me, I just kind of have to trust my gut because, you know, that's gotten me the accomplishments and successes that I've gotten so far and I think the second that you start trying to give in to something or trying to write a certain way to be somebody, I think it doesn't feel genuine.

How would you describe Young Kind Of Love?

I am really proud of this record. It basically is the last four years of my life in New York. Those are stories from relationships and accomplishments and disappointments and I think that because New York is such a crazy, emotional roller coaster of a city, I feel like, and I hope that, I would be able to kind of inject some of that New York life into this record too within the specificity of this story. Then, on top of that, this record has a lot of great collaborations with other vocalists that I was super excited to work with. So, yeah, that's what's kind of interesting about this record; I kind of treat it like almost like a David Guetta or like a Calvin Harris kind of record where the main theme is that I've written all the songs and my voice lends texture to the instruments and I'll do a lot of back-up vocals if I'm not singing lead, but then there's a lot of lead vocalists on it that are featured and everything. And I wanted people to be able to just connect to it and have fun to it and cry to it and all those things. I just think about the overall feel of a record because I like the feeling of like, is this record from top to bottom going to be a journey and that's really important to me when I'm putting together music or when I'm putting together an album.

Have you been working on new music since that release?

I've been writing a couple new songs. Yeah, I've been writing some new stuff, I'm about to shoot a music video for another song off the record so that's what I'm currently on, like we were just doing that this weekend so that's been occupying a lot of my time, but I've been playing around and kind of testing out some new material here and there and seeing how people like it. 

What's the best response you've gotten since releasing the music video for "Ohio"?

Most recently, it was posted on a site and there was a whole bunch of reader comments and everything and one person was like 'I had the worst day today, I had a head cold and all these things and this video just completely snapped me out of it and pepped me right back up' and I was like, that's really cool, that's good, I'm glad to see it can be like a nice dose of Sudafed for your head cold. Cute boys will do that to you. 

What do you want to say about your music?

I mean, honestly, just for the people that haven't heard my music I think I would say, hey, give it a try [laughs]. I honestly just want to offer up a unique point of view and a unique perspective on all the things that we ultimately go through and do that in a fun way, in a quirky way, in an emotional way, a relatable way, and a catchy way. I think music, for me, has been such a therapeutic thing, both writing it and also just being a human and listening to music, and I just feel like, to be able to connect or to help someone else get through something or not feel alone in whatever they're going through, that's what I get excited about when I'm writing music and what I hope I'm saying with my music; that it's okay, we're all going through it, we're all going to figure it out and, yeah, we're going to figure it out. 

Buy my album, tell all your friends, watch the video. 

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No Dry County - Trent Langford

Catch up with No Dry County's Trent Langford and listen to single "Till The Wheels Fall Off" from The Night Before, available now.

What brought the band together?

Trent Langford: I was asked to join NDC in 2009 and strangely enough there are no longer any original members in the band.  The group has kind of evolved over the last six years with a number of Lubbock musicians coming and going. Our current lineup has been together for 2 years and this is our first album together.

Any artists or bands you take inspiration from?

Stylistically bands like U2, The Head and the Heart, Rodney Parker & Fifty Peso Reward, Foo Fighters and Sons of Bill provide plenty of genius we find ourselves drawing from. The list of songwriters could go on for days but I’ll limit it to Robert Earl Keen, Ryan Adams, Jason Isbell and Paul Overstreet.

How would you describe your sound?

It’s difficult for me to describe our own sound but others have called it melodic but gritty at times, guitar driven with an emphasis on harmonies and I wouldn’t argue with those assessments.

Is there a song from The Night Before that stands out for you? A favorite to have written or to perform?

“Till The Wheels Fall Off” is one of my favorites simply because we’ve never done anything with that type of groove before. We were able to get some really sweet tones from the guitars on that record and the lyrics have a vulnerability that helps make the concept of the song credible.

What's the best compliment you've received from a fan since releasing the album?

We’ve had a handful of other musicians and people who are in a somewhat transient stage of life say the album relates well to those of us in uncertain times, periods of transition etc. I have a friend who is a truck driver and his response was that the record “helped me wrap my head around the last ten years of my life.” I thought that was pretty cool.

How would you sum up The Night Before in one sentence?

The album is an honest look at the band both lyrically and musically and is the best depiction of our live show that we’ve been able to capture in studio to this point.

What do you hope to do with your music?

I don’t know that we ever established set goals for our music other than for it to be well written and in tune. We obviously have some milestones that we’d like to reach as a band but that’s purely a business minded approach to art, which is not a reason to make it. We started making music because it’s something inside of us that needs to get out. The first song I wrote as a 15 year old kid was after the death of a friend and I found that attempting to express those emotions through music was the best way for me to cope with or try to comprehend the situation. If there are ancillary benefits to our work that’s an added bonus but as long as we have something to say and there are people with a desire to listen, then that’s what we want to “do” with our music.

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Tru Fam

Catch up with brothers  Shareef  “Sha” and Tyreef “Just I” Nealy of Tru Fam and listen to their latest single "Janet Jean".

What got you interested in music?

Just I: We went to high school for acting so we got used to the stage. It was really intriguing acting on stage, having to learn so many different vocals and lines so, when it came to music, it became a little bit more easy because we were used to being on stage and had done our years in high school. 

Do you plan on doing more acting?

Just I: I mean, we're definitely not against it; we're not planning on doing it, but we wouldn't mind, you know, taking a role here or there. It's actually like part of our background. Sha, he actually writes a cartoon called "Cool Kidz".

Sha: We are working on another episode actually in a couple of months, but we're still in the process of writing right now.

Were there artists that inspired your style?

Sha: I would actually say Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Dev Hynes from New York City, so, all those different artists inspire us to be creative and think outside the box and try to really push the envelope.

How would you describe your sound?

Sha: Our style is just like indie alternative hip hop, I guess. We pretty much just know it's all about emotion and just being attached to the music and the sound and feeling the lyrics and just a dark production. We got a great stage show; you gotta check us out. 

Just I: Yeah, that's really us. It's about emotions and the feeling is real.

What do you guys try to keep in mind while writing?

Just I: Just stay true to who we are and we're doing this for our fans and we just keep creating new stuff, big and real, and just doing it for our fans. I mean, you might not have a million fans, but the fans that you do have, just capture them and bring it to life.

You've just released "Janet Jean" are you working towards an EP?

Sha: Yes, we actually are in the process of an EP called Going To The Ceremony. "Janet Jean" was something that we really, we heard the beat and we just kind of clicked. It was produced by one of our in house producers, King Faro, and the beat just kind of stood out and we just thought 'Janet Jean' and it just took off from there. It's like a real vintage '80s type of vibe throwback and it just captured our hearts and we just fell in love with Janet Jean.

Is the EP going to sound like your older tracks or more like "Janet Jean"?

Sha: It's going to be more type of "Janet Jean" record.

Just I: Yeah, that's the style that we found that we actually really love and we own that sound so that's the sound for us. That's the sound that Tru Fam is bringing out.

What do you want to say about your music?

Sha: We just want people to be able to feel it. People go through things in their lives and just playing Tru Fam, they can feel the passion and feel how bold and different we're trying to be.

Just I: Yeah, we just want people to respect it and it's about love, it's about girls, it's about real issues, and just a lot of energy - and it's definitely well written lyrics - and just give it a chance and open your ears and open your heart.

Just I: The next single hopefully should be at the end of this month called "Wild" produced again by King Faro and we have two shows at the end of the month. Should be setting up, hopefully, joining a tour probably in the summer. Just working hard and shout out to the whole team and PR, shout out to the Ultra Culture fans.

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