HHV Exclusive: Bren Joy talks “Twenties” project, cultural impact, upcoming work, and more
Photo Credit: Ryan Kanaly
Hip hop and R&B have always had a unique bond, as many people from the same community made the music. There was always a natural bond, which is why rappers and singers always collaborate. Now, the genres have fused.
This fusion has led to rappers singing and singers rapping, Drake becoming the face of that. Now, every rapper does it, and Ja Rule may be to blame, but Bren Joy is restoring order. He is a singer who respects rap, but sings.
Bren Joy is a rising vocalist and he’s confident in being the next guy to be the face of R&B. The rising singer recently took time out of his schedule to speak to Hip-HopVibe.com. He spoke on his Twenties project, his cultural impact, his future work, and much more.
Read the entire interview below:
Can you correct if wrong, you last released a project called Twenties, do you think you inspired the show? I don’t know (laughs), we’re on the same wave, I guess
While you may or may not have inspired a show, how do you feel your sound is changing the game? I feel like I come from a background that is very [diverse] I grew up with a lot of gospel and R&B. When I got to college, I was introduced to other kinds of music, like Rock, and discovering white artists changed my perspective on music. My sound is a little jarring to people, at times, but I love taking the batons from all who inspired me, and throwing crazy 808s and bass on things, so it sets my sound apart from what’s going on, right now. If you notice all my songs in Twenties, none of my songs are looped, and all of this creates this more live and lavish type of feeling, which I feel is my bag and my sound.
What do you think has kept you inspired to come this far? What’s kept me inspired is how new I am to all of this and it’s set me apart, really motivated me, as all of this just started for me, just two years ago, so I’m constantly learning every day. I’m like a kid in a candy shop, it’s so surreal, even from releasing that project, until now, I have grown so much.
Genres continue to blend and rappers take on more singing, but in terms of actual singers, especially in black music, there haven’t been any true stars in some time, do you believe you will break that mold? For sure! Oh, dude! Of course, that’s my goal. 2007 was my favorite year, as you had Alicia Keys, Mario, T-Pain, Chris Brown, Lil Wayne, Ne-Yo. There was so much richness in R&B and since then, it’s changed. Since then, nobody has taken that baton, but I’m trying to do that. I’m from the mindframe of that getting in the studio and singing my butt off. My goal is to be the next male to come in and do just that.
In these two years, you’ve seen a lot, what has been your favorite celebrity moment? My favorite celebrity moment, man, honestly, I was here for Grammy week, and that whole entire week was so surreal. In Nashville, we don’t really have those things, like the cars, and the diamonds. I’m not materialistic, but seeing that for the first time breaks that thing in your ear that this is a one in a million kind of thing. I’m in the room with Kehlani, Wiz, Ty Dolla $ign, all these people with no security guards. It’s like wow, they were just getting signed, at one point, too. That really got me fired up.
Do you think you’ll get the chance to collaborate with any of those people in the future? For sure. I think with everything, and especially with Twenties, and the new visuals, I think I’ve been pushed, vocally, and sweat and tears, and I’m like how am I going to sing this live. Even with this, and the resources on my team, there are some crazy moments, so I say to expect the unexpected.
So, you’ve spoken a lot about Twenties, but can you tell us more about your upcoming project? Right now, the new things I have coming up are visuals, so I’m putting a face to Twenties. I want to really tell the full story of Twenties, show people where my head is at with music and visuals, so that’s at the forefront for me, right now, with the writing, but establishing visuals, doing shows, and festivals, some new music, but can’t provide any details, there. These visuals coming up for Twenties are really great, and some incredible moments are coming.
Where can the people link up with you on social media? @brenjoy on Instagram, @brennenjoy for everything else. Stream Twenties and stay on the lookout!
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