Bgbgb Drops A New EP that Breaks A Few Boundaries
- BuzzSlayers
- 14 minutes ago
- 9 min read
Bgbgb returns with a new EP that definitely branches out and takes some new direction, blending all kinds of different elements taken from R&B, hip hop, afrobeat, and even hints of electronic, to create something that stands out, driven by a series of unique and interesting perspectives.
One of my favorite aspects about this artist in general is the simple fact that every time you get a new release, it evolves a little bit. There's always a change in approach while still holding on to his roots. I feel like having an artist who can evolve and take chances when it comes to creating music is a bit of a rarity.
When you come across it, you recognize it. This is a record where that recognition is unbelievably evident.
One of the more unique aspects of this release is the fact that it is written and performed from the perspectives of several different characters.
Each of these tracks is built from characters the artist has played on stage or on screen.
He has taken the characters themselves and written songs around them, performed them as the characters, and given them each a particular and personal perspective.
When you listen to the performances on each track, you can hear the different voices. When he's performing them, he falls into those characters, and that's one of my favorite things about the whole release.
The record is called Character Studies, and kicks off with the track called "Kyle", which has a heavy-handed afrobeat undertone and rhythm to it, along with a wild and almost rambunctious style of energy that comes off quite infectious.
This has such an intense approach and these brilliant ways of layering vocals, creating callback segments, and having all of these different tracks bounce back and forth between each other.
At times, it almost seems like it's a character that's having a conversation with himself.
Now, it is very danceable, because of that beat. The beat is addictive, the rhythm is in your face, and it definitely doesn't have a lot of filter on it in terms of coming through with a robust and sort of edgy feel.
"Mr Follow The Script" is the song that follows, and this one has a bit of a different approach, bringing in a breakbeat sort of feel with dubstep synths and tones coming through. I feel like, in terms of the vocals, this may be one of the more theatrical-feeling songs in general.
It doesn't just have wrapping, but also has some great vocals on it that sort of flow over the fast-paced breakbeat underbelly.
This one was also a bit wild, anyway.
I definitely dig that he put these high-powered, very energetic songs at the front of the record.
"Rob" takes a different turn again and leans more into an R&B style set of vocals, with a sort of dance pop beat.
All of these songs have something to chew on. They give you something different, and the entire record is just full of surprises.
It's been quite some time since I've heard a full record like this that keeps you on your toes this much.
"Mystaah Armstrong" is probably the most outside-the-box and experimental track, also providing really animated and heavily theatrical vocals.
This whole thing is insanely entertaining. You never really know what's going to come next, and if you think you do, you're wrong.
This was an exercise and experimentation. It's a record that is built with no boundaries or at least not the kind of boundaries you may be used to.
This was a passion project that you can tell was an absolute blast when you listen to it.
After listening to this record and really digging through it, I knew I wanted to chat with Bgbgb once more, just because I needed to know more about where he pulled these characters from, whether or not the songs were taken from the context of the projects they were originally in, or what, in general, made him want to do this.
So, check this record out, and check out the interview with the artist below.
Don't forget where you heard this one first.
This is an EP built from characters you have played before correct?
- Yes. Outside of music I'm also an actor who has been doing this just as long as I've been doing music which is about a decade. As an actor I've done plays, musicals, immersive theatre, short films, music videos and have been a recurring character in a web series amongst other things. Some of the projects I've been in have gone on to win awards mainly for Best Production. Also, as a musician I've created alter egos for myself and one can say me being Bgbgb is an alter ego to distance myself from my regular day to day life. So in building this EP, I had to carefully choose characters from all the roles I've played that would fit the coming of age narrative of a boy becoming a fully realized adult male which is the intention of the project and is beautifully summarised through the song, Man's Journey.
Are the songs actual portrayals of the characters within their realm or universe, or are you taking those characters and writing something new for them? - For the most part I wrote something new with references to their original stories. Kyle is an exception to this as it's a song definitely written within the world that the writer, Desrene Dennis created in her play Fatherless Son, where the character comes from. In the song I present him as how the audience is introduced to him in the play which is a young man that wants more than what his reality can offer him. For Mr. Follow The Script, the character is based on one of the drama students I play in the music video for the song Follow The Script by gospel artist Aaron P'Reach. In the video, myself and my co-star are not focused on instructions being given by Aaron who is presented as our acting coach.
When coming up with Mr. Follow The Script, I wanted to look at the message from the drama students in the music video on a deeper level which was my character basically saying that I have all the time in the world to follow God so let me live and enjoy the world. For Rob, his character is from the faith based play, Life Begins @ 40 by Silvano Griffith-Francis. Rob is a 40 something divorcee that realises after living the single life within his church environment that he wants his ex wife back. When writing his song, I definitely took creative liberties in focusing more on the human aspect of his story than the Christian one just so that it is more relatable to a wider audience. Mystaah Armstrong has been in my world before through the song I Am Very Angry from my last project, It Should All Work Out In The End. In this current song, I portray him as the voice of wisdom and experience to all the 'Kyles' coming up in the world.
What made you come up with such an idea?
- This idea was brewing for about six years or so. It just took time, space, other music projects and choosing the right roles for the project to come to fruition. I was inspired by the soundtrack album, I'm Breathless by Madonna. In that project, she reimaged herself as the character she played in the film Dick Tracy called Breathless Mahoney through the songs. In my case, I wanted to reimagine different characters I've played as an actor in order to tell a singular story.
Was this difficult to put together?
- Not at all. Because the idea had time to be fully fermented in my head. When I was ready to begin, all I had do was reach out to the writers/directors of the productions to ask permission to use their work. After that, I contacted music producers who I already had a great rapport with and then I wrote the songs and recorded them with an engineer. The extra stuff such as the photography and visuals were not a problem too. The only slight difficulty was having to come up with another artwork after the original was rejected by the distributor for having a white background!
You really do fall into these characters with each track! How did you prepare to record before each track?
- For Kyle up until Rob, I revisited the productions in order to have a clear idea of what to write. It meant re-reading old scripts, watching music videos (Mr. Follow The Script) and depending on good old memories. For Mystaah Armstrong, like the song I Am Very Angry I (re)watched Netflix's The Crown to try and emulate the Received Pronunciation (RP) accent that the British Royal Family and people of their class are known for (I've always imagined him as having such an accent). It was slightly the same with Kyle as I had to redo the Multicultural London English (MLE) accent which I did in the play he comes from. As for the music, that was the fun part. I chose a UK Grime sound for Kyle to reflect his proximity to a council estate (the Projects in America). For Mr. Follow The Script, the original song by Aaron P'Reach is a grime track too so I had to pivot and devise a Drum and Bass sound for the track as a sonic tie to Kyle. Rob was devised as a Jersey Beat turned Gospel House track to reflect his ties to the church. The sound for Mystaah Armstrong is a R&B track with Gospel and Funk accents to act as a sonic tie to both Rob and the lead single, Man's Journey.
Did you write all the lyrics?
- Yes I did. In writing the songs, I credited the writers whom I got permission from to do this project. So even though I wrote all the tracks, they were based on the work of these creatives. The only exceptions to these are Mystaah Armstrong and Man's Journey which aren't influenced by any creatives.
Did you record this at a home studio setup?
- No. Unfortunately, I'm not gifted in that side of things to do a home setup. I recorded Character Studios at a studio in London called Jukebox Studios with an engineer by the name of Row Black whom I've worked with for almost 8 years. During these sessions, we would record and work with each other in mixing the tracks. In my capacity as an artist, I'd advise on how the harmonies should be mixed against the main vocals. This is the first project of mine that Row has engineered, mixed and mastered entirely.
What are you performing on the tracks? Did you have an outside producer with you for this?
- In the tracks apart from doing the main vocals, I'm rapping (Kyle) as well as doing adlibs, backing vocals, harmonies and spoken word (Mystaah Armstrong and the intro for Rob). For Rob especially, I wanted a gospel choir vibe so I layered the harmonies extensively for a wall of sound which is very apparent by the end of the track. As for production, I worked with three producers and out of those three, a producer by the name of K-Wolf (Producer of Kyle and Mr. Follow The Script) was new to working with me closely. I had worked with him before as part of a collaboration with another artist who's a friend but I'd never worked with him on a one to one until this project. His sound brought a new flavour to my music and I thank him for his input. The other producers, KC Sounds (Rob and Mystaah Armstrong) and #IAmPele (My brother and producer of Man's Journey) brought a steadfastness to the Bgbgb sound on this project and I'm glad I retained them from past works.
Where did you play these characters originally?
- I had played the character of Kyle on the 2 night second run of the original play Fatherless Son in October 2018. Before my time on the cast it had been performed the year before. Due to the success of the first run, a second run was on the cards and I auditioned and got the role of Kyle. I was one of two actors doing that role in the production and I got to perform on the final night. I played one of two drama students (Mr. Follow The Script) in the music video, Follow The Script by Aaron P'Reach. The video was shot in February 2022 at Brunel University in London. As I had worked with Aaron (whose is also an actor) before, he had phoned me to be a part of the shoot so there was no need for an audition. The final product was released in April 2022. Life Begins @ 40, where Rob comes from was performed as part of a 3 show run in February 2019. Like Fatherless Son, the show had been performed previously and when I applied for the role, it felt like I had big shoes to fill. I didn't do an actual audition but I do remember speaking to the writer Silvano on the phone (I think it was a video call?) and being sent a contract not long after. After the February show, I reprised the role of Rob for a one night only performance in June of that year. The character of Mystaah Armstrong was inspired by The Headmaster from the play The History Boys by Alan Bennet. I had performed a monologue of a key scene from that play at my drama school at the time, wearing an afro wig sprayed with white makeup paint and a tweed jacket. That look would go on to be a key staple for Mystaah when he appeared on my song I Am Very Angry.
This is great work! Anything coming next?
- Well, I hope to release the next single from Character Studies soon. I don't want to say which track but it will have a special twist let's just say. Outside of that, I'm currently working with a production collective called The Levels LMG on a track that has an early to mid 2000s R&B vibe. We finalized the mix and master the other day and in a couple of days time we will be shooting the music video so by the time this interview comes out, the video will be done. The song should hopefully be released next month.
Comments