We caught up with Brooklyn-based multi-hyphenate Brandon Markell Holmes whose work spans music, visual art, education and performance art. Brandon, who seamlessly and intentionally blends creativity with purpose, is a phenomenal vocalist whose been featured on the GRAMMY-nominated Gorillaz album Humanz, and has earned acclaim from prominent tastemakers Billboard, BBC and NTS.
Brandon has also been described as a “slow-burning vocal-house juggernaut” by Rolling Stone, while his remarkable storytelling ability and genre-defying style has made him a formidable presence in the entertainment industry.
Aside from his powerful career in music, Brandon holds a Master’s of Science Degree in Education, and is a 7th–12th grade special education teacher in Humanities. In our interview with this artistic visionary, we discuss the themes behind his latest singles ‘FTW’ and ‘Es Pa Ti’, his forthcoming album Try, as well as his personal motto and life philosophy.
‘Es Pa Ti’ has such a joyful, luminous energy. What inspired the mood of this track, and how did it come together with Sinego and Robert PM in the studio?
I was in the studio with Sinego one late night in Brooklyn. He was still working on the production, and I was experimenting with the melody and lyrics.
My initial thought was juxtaposition. How do I go against the rhythm and write a ballad versus trying to make a dance record? My goal was to achieve a melancholy and tenderness. I wanted to have these tender vocals—a desperate soul crying over this dance beat. Electronic-emo. Afterwards, we walked home and chatted about music and traveling. It was a very beautiful summer night.
After the record was done, Robert came along and found the direction by adding some very cool synths, drums, and piano. The original song had been more earthy and laid-back, but Robert’s additions made it grandiose and danceable. It went from a good song to a “big” song.
Stream ‘Es Pa Ti’ below:
You’ve described ‘Es Pa Ti’ as a meditation on language, memory, and reclamation. How does that theme show up in the lyrics or production choices on the track?
Well, initially, I wanted to honor Sinego’s heritage. He is Colombian. I said, “There’s no way I’m working with a Colombian producer and not speaking Spanish on this track. That’s just disrespectful.” I wrote the lyrics in English and asked Sinego to rewrite them in Spanish. He wanted to make sure it sounded cool, so some of the words had to be modified to create the romance.
Later, I took a linguistics class with a professor from Princeton University and learned all about the deviations of language and Big L languages versus little L languages—how some languages are becoming obsolete due to colonization and erasure. I also learned that Spanglish is more than a mixture of English and Spanish. I learned that Spanish has been reshaped by English and has taken on some of the grammatical behaviors and rules of Western English. The more educated I became about the subject, the more sensitive I was to honoring it in the song.
‘FTW’ introduced a darker, more introspective—yet hopeful—tone compared to ‘Es Pa Ti.’ How do the two singles speak to one another emotionally or thematically?
‘FTW’ is about overcoming dark times. Last year I lost my mom to cancer, and I was simultaneously in graduate school and working as a full-time teacher. I was going through a lot, but I was determined not to quit and finish strong. It was difficult. In a way, work became my friend. It became my weapon against grief and defeat. When I wasn’t working, I was partying. It’s how I overcame the sadness of losing my mom at such an inconvenient time.
Stream ‘FTW’ below:
The video for ‘FTW’ was shot in London. What was the concept behind it, and how did that setting shape the visual narrative you wanted to create?
The concept was “Singing in the Rain.” The director Taylor Decosta Goodridge and Johnny Labey, a known British actor, showed up to the lobby of the Mama Shelter Hotel where I was staying with an entire concept. We shot all over Shoreditch and Hackney. The most magical part was that it actually started raining. The clouds and natural mood in the sky fit the song perfectly.
Taylor is a professional dancer and model in addition to a filmmaker and director, and brought so much life and freshness to the record. My favorite part is the crazy lights in the phone booth—panic room vibes. Oh, I shot a small part of the video. The part where Taylor is dancing with the umbrella through the fence. We thought it would be cool to shoot through that tiny peephole in the fence to create a vintage aesthetic. It turned out quite well.
Watch the music video below:
Genre fluidity is a strong thread in your music. What draws you to blending house, R&B, and soul, and how do you stay grounded in your identity while crossing genres?
My identity is my voice. So whatever I apply my voice to takes the shape and form of my voice. My voice is the genre, and the music takes shape. On my new album, the first two songs are rock songs with a hint of hip-hop and blues. I’m into what feels good. My motto is that everything is a pop song. Everything should have a formulaic approach—no matter how outlandish it is, it has to land and be palatable in some way. I would say my formulaic approach to music is what allows me to seamlessly genre-hop.
Your upcoming album Try feels like it’s building toward something both deeply personal and spiritually expansive. What story are you trying to tell with this project as a whole?
Try is about exactly that—”trying.” Try real hard. Try till it fucking hurts. Try and fail. Try and fucking break the ground into pieces. Get back up and try again. Try until you’re so numb that trying doesn’t hurt anymore. Try until you can separate your mind from your body and arrive at success. Try is simply about believing in yourself and your ability to do anything.
Moving to NYC for me was very tough. I was unemployed for four months fresh off of a pandemic with two months’ rent to my name. I hustled and tried and worked and grinded. I fought against discipline and routines and eventually arrived at the decision that discipline and routines are the only way to be successful. NYC taught me that structure is king/queen of freedom. Hard work is hot. Trying is sexy. Being smart is amazing. I knew all of these things before. However, the challenge is reinventing yourself after you’ve plateaued.
You recently finished a Master of Science in Education while teaching full-time. How has your experience in the classroom influenced the way you think about music and creative expression?
It makes me be more mindful of what I’m creating because some of my students listen to my music. Sometimes I’m not so proud of it, and I often ponder removing it from my online profile. However, nothing is that crazy. I just try to be somewhat conscious. I think about finding more dimensions to present conversations and information—doing research and approaching subjects from surprising angles. Instead of saying, “This song is about love,” how about talking about texture and cultural references? Duh, we know the song is about love, but why is this song about love different? What new vocabulary are you bringing to the table as an artist? What are you learning?
You’ve worked with a wide range of collaborators, from underground house producers to Gorillaz. What do you look for in a creative partnership, and how have those collaborations shaped your evolution as an artist?
I look for curiosity, discovery, experimentation, and vulnerability. I truly love off-kilter things and concepts. I love inverting and transversing ideas, concepts, and points of view. How can we really fuck up the perspective and flip it inside out? The more unpredictable and sideways, the better.
If someone hears ‘Es Pa Ti’ or ‘FTW’ for the first time on the dance floor, what do you hope they walk away feeling—or understanding—about who you are?
If they heard ‘FTW,’ I’d hope they’d start two-stepping and violently bobbing their heads. I hope they walk away feeling happy and singing along.
‘Es Pa Ti,’ mmmm. I hope they’re on a dance floor sweating and really feeling the groove of it all. ‘Es Pa Ti’ is such a summertime beach banger. It has that beach vibe—like you should be on a beach at night dancing. It’s one of those songs that just makes you feel. It’s romantic, rhythmic, and intense—it’s a dance.
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