Ben Kessler
Ben Kessler reveals his second single of 2020 titled “Just Wanna Be Your Friend”.
The self-written/produced new record is about wanting to spend time with someone else and fighting with the feeling of having to change yourself to do so.
The new single follows “Right Here Right Now” released in February which garnered over 146k streams on Spotify. The Philadelphia-native recently collaborated with London-based artist/producer Pastel on the song “Daylight” released last week.
Kessler’s records have been placed on official playlists such as New Music Friday on Spotify and New Music Daily on Apple Music.
“Just Wanna Be Your Friend” is now available worldwide.
Photo courtesy of Ben Kessler
Hi Ben, happy to have you back on my blog. How are you?
Doing well, thanks :) Hope you’re staying safe & healthy!
"Just Wanna Be Your Friend" is your new single. Production wise, what was the inspiration? When did you start working on it?
The production is untouched from its original demo form – it’s the same as the day I wrote it in early February. I spent weeks pushing the song in different directions––changing the main guitar part to a James Blake-y synth, adding glitchy Flume-esque things in the post chorus, doubling the first chorus, etc. I realized the heart of the song lives in the simplicity of the production––I think it stays out of the way of my vocal nicely. Inspiration-wise: a little Cautious Clay, a little Jeremy Zucker, a little Bon Iver, a little Michl.
What do you like the most about this song?
I think the bridge is the dopest part of any song. The energy of the song already exists by the time you get there––I love the freedom of being able to shape that energy in weird ways. I feel most comfortable pushing myself & experimenting in the bridge––lyrically and production-wise. I think the bridge on this tune turned out pretty cool.
What made you want to release "Just Wanna Be Your Friend" as a single?
I’m not ready for a project quite yet – still trying to build this world :)
What is your goal for this single?
Share more of myself with more people… and learn more about other people by sharing this bit of myself. And sell 10 million units then headline virtual Coachella then get Kendall Jenner to respond to my DMs.
You recently released a song called "Daylight" with Pastel - how did this collaboration come about? How did you guys meet?
I studied in London for the first half of 2019. One of my close friends in Nashville (Camden – who is a supa dope artist) had written some songs with Yann (Pastel) on a writing trip a couple years earlier. Camden connected us. Yann was on tour for like ever and we didn’t get a session together until my last week in London. We wrote “Daylight” in a few hours and then drank some big boy pints.
You've released a couple of songs after "Good Enough", what major lessons have you learned since that single?
I’ve learned that the music industry is reactive – people only give a shit about what is already hot. And I’ve learned that what is hot is only hot because it is not trying to be hot. So I’ve stopped caring about trying to make stuff that I think people will like – I’m working on trusting myself & taking risks.
You write, record, produce and mix your own records. What do you like the most about doing it all by yourself?
FREEEEEDOM. I hate being dependent. It is such a powerful feeling to be able to bring something fully into existence without having to lean on anyone else. Also – It’s hard as shit to be original. The margin for error on authenticity is a lot lower when my hands are on everything. Logistically, it’s nice to open up any session whenever & wherever. Aaaaand I get bored easily. It’s nice to be able to pivot between writing & producing when I’m tired of one or the other.
How long does it take you to mix a song? What's your favorite thing about mixing? Do you have any tips for people who’d like to start mixing their own records?
It depends. “Right Here Right Now” is a monster project without any traditional instruments––the bulk of the song is built around heavily processed vocals and synths that I exported, re-imported and re-processed. I had no reference for how those sounds were supposed to sit in the mix. That tune took a couple weeks. I also had to do some serious revisions between each mix (there were like 15 in total) – I learned how much mixing can really impact the energy & feeling of a track. I like mixing because it makes me feel smart. I have a very tentative grasp of the technical bits of mixing – I know enough to make songs that sound good. But not enough to make them sound great… which leads into my advice: it is very possible to make a good mix based on feeling rather than technical know how.
For those who don't know, why is it so important to mix records?
An unmixed song is like pizza. Without cheese. And it’s fine. And then you have pizza with cheese and you’re like why did I ever eat pizza without cheese. Kind of...
What do you feel when creating music?
I feel this weird mixture of anxiety and frustration and melancholy and nostalgia and excitement. But the real magic happens in that flow state thing where you feel everything and nothing at the same time.
What are your thoughts on today's global situation? How are you holding up?
I made an instagram post last month where I shared my thoughts much more eloquently than I can right now (https://www.instagram.com/p/B929A7Ch0dw/)… But I am doing well :) I am confused, I guess – like everyone. It seems that every emotion I feel is right and wrong at the same time: it seems wrong to be happy/productive when so many aren’t/can’t be… I also feel ungrateful to be unhappy/unproductive when I have all this time on my hands. It’s like some weird limbo state –– I’m just kind of existing. But I’m making lots of music, which I’m excited about.
What message do you want to give to the world?
Be nice to people and drink water.
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