His latest offering, “Like That,” is a 2-track release with the lead single being a collaborative triumph which features lush falsetto vocals from London act COMANVAGO.
LOOP talks to Flourish about the collaboration, the challenges of being an independent artist, dream collaborations and more.
â— How did you first get into music?
I was lucky to grow up in a pretty musical family and was encouraged to start learning from a young age. I picked up both piano and saxophone before I was ten, which always interested me more than sports or even my homework. So I just stuck at it until I started writing and producing my own tunes.
â— How would you describe your music to a new listener?
That’s a tough one! I think what I’m trying to do with the project is still changing and evolving, so it’s hard to think of a catch-all way to describe it. Currently, the stuff I’m putting out is funky, colourful and upbeat electronic music. In future, I reckon I might take it in some different directions. I don’t really want to limit what I can and can’t make.
â— Your latest release includes a collaboration with Comanavago, how did you guys link up?
We met through our management teams and got a few sessions in. Straight away I just loved working with them and I felt really inspired by the energy they’d bring to the studio every time. Their approach to making music is super exciting and freeing because they just like to throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks. We end up spontaneously recording really wild synth patches and sampling the squeaking of a chair. Never a dull moment!
â— If you could collaborate with any 3 artists, who would they be?
Porter Robinson, Anderson .Paak and Phoebe Bridgers.
â— What artists inspire you at the moment?
At the moment, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (TEED) and Baths are massive inspirations for me. The three new singles from TEED for his upcoming album are incredible and just have me really inspired to write music half as beautiful as that. Baths has such an amazing catalogue of music, and I don’t hear nearly enough people talking about him because I’m actually convinced he’s a real life wizard. Both of them have dominated my playlists recently.
â— Where were you when you found out your song “Time Stops” song was getting played by Jack Saunders on Radio 1 for the first time?
I think I was just at home relaxing and I remember getting a DM on Instagram from a random account saying they loved my tune and had heard it on Radio 1”… So I actually didn’t find out until after it was played! I might not have known about it until later if it wasn’t for that one kind message. Funnily enough, something similar happened when my song ‘Let Me Sleep’ was played by Jack Saunders, except this time it was my aunt who just happened to have the radio on in the car and recognised it!
â— You recently performed your first live show alongside Comanavago, how did it go?
It was amazing! I was as nervous as anything beforehand but once I was up on stage performing, I just didn’t want to leave after the handful of unreleased tunes we played. There was such an electric but also warm and friendly vibe to that gig and everyone there was so supportive. It got me really excited to finish up my live set and perform it in the near future.
â— What part of the live performance went well, and what do you think could have gone better?
I think just being able to relax and enjoy myself was something that went well, and it was something that I wasn’t so sure of because of how nervous I was before. I think on a purely technical level I could have played my parts more tightly and had more of a stage presence but honestly Gabe and Ben of COMANAVAGO are so great on stage that I could kind of get away with any imperfections.
â— Any more live dates planned this year?
None are planned just yet, we’re still figuring the last pieces of the live puzzle out, but once it’s ready to go, I’m sure it won’t be too long before I’m on the stage again. I might be making another guest appearance in another show to play an upcoming collaboration, though”…
â— What has been the biggest challenge in being an independent artist?
I think something that’s still a challenge is getting your music heard in a market so saturated and competitive. I think it’s important not to put too much weight on the numbers you get (or don’t get) on social media and streaming services at an early stage though. I’m just trying to be persistent and keep putting out music that I enjoy myself and the more I do that, the more chance it has of reaching people. What’s nice is being able to work and release things more-or-less at my own pace and not have to write a particular type of music or compromise the project too much.
â— What advice would you give to any artist who is just about to start releasing their own music independently?
Just do it. There are so many tools available to you and so many success stories from people who had little to no backing behind them that you should just not put too much thought into it at an early stage and just get used to the feeling of putting your work out into the world. The worst thing you can do is compare yourself to other people, so just focus on yourself and take opportunities as they come.
â— If you had the choice of any UK label to sign to, which label would it be and why?
To be completely honest, I have no idea. I’m a big fan of the roster of Dirty Hit although they tend to focus more on an Indie/Pop based sound. I’m not the most well versed in labels but I’m hoping to sign with one that just allows me to do me and encourages me to experiment and try something new.
â— If I was to ask you to create a vision board for the next 12 months, what would you put on it?
A live music stage, a DJ deck, a video camera and a relaxing holiday. Oh, and a lot of pretty flower imagery.
â— When can we expect new music from you?
I have a handful of collaborations and vocal features in the pipeline and I’m hoping to have at least one of them out by the end of the summer!
Be sure to listen to “Like That” as well as his prior releases and follow Flourish on his socials to keep up with him on his journey. We can’t wait to see what he does next.