Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for you to read all about yet another track on the blog as we swoop in for a refreshing change of pace away from the Christmas-themed coverage, not forgetting that it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A self-described “walking question mark”, the 26-year-old Nashville-based rapper-songwriter Terry Presume is an artist who simply refuses to box his music into any one genre and he’s been open as such with this mission statement in several interviews. Raised in the neighborhood of Golden Gate by a single Haitian mother, he first made waves as part of the South Florida Hip-Hop scene, which he’s even published his own guide about for Acclaim. Praised by MTV News, New York Times and Fader – Terry has a wide range of influences including Andre 3000 and Robert Johnson and he began writing poetry at the age of 8, eventually doubling down on his talents as a solo artist and creating bodies of work that were led by his personal emotions and lived experiences – instead of genres. His latest release is ‘What Box?’, a 6-track EP that follows his tumultous escape to Los Angeles with only high risk ambitions and less than $200 in his wallet. Released on July 29th via September Recordings – the short-form release was co-produced and also mixed by his longtime friends Alessandro Buccelati and Giancula Buccellati and, once again, he draws from a wide array of inspiration and he refuses to restrict himself to conventional genre molds. Lyrically, Terry explores deeply universal emotions and pushes up against social norms with an impact that forges new spaces for people who don’t quite fit into pre-existing labels. Three weeks ago, a new music video for the lead single – ‘Act Up’ – which was created by Overcast. This animated visualizer perfectly matches the Funk-oriented single with a narrative that follows the vibrant journey of a woman unable to get Terry out of her mind. Give it a watch below.
Talking to Amplify about the recent release, Terry Presume says, “Never allow yourself to be repressed by any societal borders, whether that be emotions, thought patterns, way of life or anything that intrigues you that may be deemed abnormal for your ‘standard’. Escaping the limiting stereotypes this world has provided is what ‘What Box?’ embodies”, in his press notes. Terry taught himself to write and produce his music when he was just 11 years of age, and he always used music – as the medium – to navigate the world and the different cultures he encountered as he straddled it. ‘Act Up’ feels like another pretty solid encapsulation of his ideas as an artist, matching poetic lyrics like “Love the lesson though I hate the pain/My hearts investment surely left a strain” and “You choose your weapon, nearly hit a vain/But I can see sadness in you” to match a voice of strength found by his admission of vulnerability over the top of a zany, psychedelic and soulful backdrop. Later lyrics like “I won’t be the reason why your heart broke/Even though my love is icy that’s cold” tackle heartbreak and vengeance as topics, while the proud declaration of “I’m gonna make you act up today/I’m going to make you wish you never left” during the chorus is a more hook-based affair, introducing some catchy Pop flair into the fray. The emotions that he writes this track about are all very human and relatable ones, and the production is bolstered by a light white noise hum that crafts up an illusion that the music is being heard through a crackling Vinyl, which also brings a retro style to the fold. The guitar melodies are full of late 80’s Funk licks, and the light distortion of the riffs during the bridges have a distinctly Post-Punk feel to them. There is a lot of different influences and varied styles going into this, but it’s held together by Presume’s charisma as a performer and the easily accessible material that he writes his lyrics about. The vocals feel energetic and the drums are met with a two-step garage beat feel which give them a Punchy rhythm underneath the stretching samples and the sparse R&B delivery. Overall, the likes of sorrow and spite through heartbreak aren’t topics that anyone finds very cheerful, but they are feelings worth honoring and anticipating for Terry Presume, an exciting artist who likes to keep his music as a diverse listening experience for his audiences. His music isn’t perfect by typical Top 40 radio genre standards, but his concept is that life isn’t always fair and comes lunging at you with problems fairly fast, which is still something that we can all relate to. I like this artistic side to him and his music appeals across a broad spectrum.
That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest post on the blog, and I’ll be back tomorrow to continue our ‘Countdown To Christmas’ for the year as the big day draws near with a late-90’s Brit-Pop number that appeals more to the novelty side of music. They weren’t really a group per-say, but more of a media project including a trained musician, a visual artist and a comedic actor who are all pretty famous. They were probably best known for recording an unofficial theme tune for the 1998 FIFA World Cup that reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart due to its memorable music video.
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