UK soul artist MT Jones chatted about his single “Why I Cry” and being a part of the digital age.
How did “Why I Cry” come about?
It initially came about with some chords and a conga sample we were jamming over, me and good friend and collaborator on this track Sam Rabette, I mumbled my way through the chorus melodies and we felt like we had something really nice.
When we got the idea for the verse’s melody the song really started taking shape. I wrote some words initially but wasn’t really happy with them. So a week or so later we revisited the song. We sped it up, and played around with the groove a little and the song suddenly felt lot more emotive.
So the feeling of the original lyrics didn’t really have the right feeling. But as we started playing it out again in this and I got the new lyrics for the chorus and the whole message and feeling for the track came together, the rest of the track flew pretty quickly from there.
Once we had the feeling the verse lyrics started falling on the page pretty quick. We basically put the whole arrangement together with all the instruments we had around.
It was one of those tracks where everything we put down felt right. Even though the sonics were not fully there we new we had something really strong musically.
The strings parts in this track I feel are important as the main melody. The second verse I think you can really hear this. So we made that full demo on the day and went to the studio a few months later with the full intention of doing everything for real.
The recording process for the album was a dream come true. The instrumental is completely live with a band playing in a studio, me on guitar, Sam on bass, David on drums and Ollie on congas, keyboards strings, brass and vocals and backing vocals.
I’m quite proud to say there is not a single midi instrument on the entire record, I think that really sets the right tone for the song. It’s people playing together, the track just breaths differently.
We had all the armaments and parts together so everyone is just focused on the groove and the feeling of playing it for real. You can just hear it. Humans.
What inspires your music and songwriting?
I’m massively inspired by the sounds of the Late 60s and early 70’s, diving into all this stuff came later obviously.
As a kid, I listened to what my mum and dad had on the radio and certain records tended to catch my ear more than others. My dad passed me a ripped CD that had every single Beatles tune on it. That kind of started it all really. When you get super into someone, a good place to start is to find out who influenced them.
So, I did some digging and became quickly aware that The Beatles listened to a lot of American music, you can really hear it all in their stuff. Then that obsession started.
Quickly became aware of Motown, Stax and Brill building where all these incredible songs were being made, incredible writers, musicians and just a beautiful sounds. The obsession hasn’t really stopped.
How does it feel to be an artist in the digital age? (now with streaming, technology and social media being so prevalent)
I think it’s an interesting time to be an artist, the accessibility for everyone to have a smart phone and access a million things at once is great, but can also saturate things a little. So I think it’s quite important to not let it dictate your artistic choices.
You should just see it as everyone has excess so make what you can as authentically and real as possible, and if you do that people who see hopefully can kind of relate to it.
What do your plans for the future include?
As many gigs, writing and recording as can do really. I can’t wait to roll this record out and share it with, so will be touring that. And writing on the next lot of stuff in the downtime in-between.
Another thing about a lot of the artists I love and inspired by, is just the sheer output. So it’s always a goal of mine just to keep “doing” stuff
What is your advice for young and emerging artists?
I think just make what you would like to listen to, if you’re fan of what you make and it makes you feel something, it’s quite possible someone will also like it and relate to what you’re doing / saying.
Which artists would you like to do a dream collab with someday?
The list is endless to be honest, but Stevie Wonder would be a dream one.
What does the word success mean to you? (my favorite question)
I think success to me is to be happy doing what I love as a job, being able to share and create, see as many parts of the world as I can.
Learn and feel as inspired as often as I can and just having good friends and family. Oh and a hovercraft.
What would you like to say to your fans about your new music? (What’s the one thing you want them to get out of it)
Firstly, just thanks. For listening, there’s a lot a stuff out there so even finding it and listening to it feels like a blessing.
I would hope for it to make you feel something, I try to make music as honest and open as I can, so I hope people can relate to what I’m talking about in the songs.
“Why I Cry” is available on digital service providers by clicking here.
To learn more about MT Jones and his music, follow him on Instagram.
