LVRBOY
I discovered LVRBOY’s music in March and it is the third time I am featuring him on my blog - for different reasons. First of all, he’s not just a good artist, he’s also a good person. I often say that being talented in the music industry is one thing, but if you are genuinely a good person, it will make all the difference. At least, that’s what I think. As this music industry is really ego-centered, it feels good to have artists like LVRBOY who are here to just make music. Second of all, his music is honest, real, simple but yet catchy and efficient - it’s basically everything I love in artists. And third, I just want to support him as much as I can, so if this article can help a little, I’m happy I did my part :)
“CRYING ON THE PHONE” has every quality I mentioned above. He’s staying true to who he is and I love that. The production is brilliant, so as the melodies (shout out to STRUAN for co-writing this one). I know he has so much more to share with us, and I can’t wait to hear more songs and stories from LVRBOY.
“CRYING ON THE PHONE” is out now. Check it out :)
Photo credit: Jacqueline Day
Hi, how are you? What have you been up to since the release of your mini album ghost in my room?
I’m doing great! Quarantine has been great for my creativity. The plan was to tour in support of “ghost in my room” in May, but once everything was cancelled I redirected my focus and begin writing and recording the next project, hence, “CRYING ON THE PHONE.” You can expect a lot more music sooner rather than later :)
How did people respond to ghost in my room?
I’ll be honest, with everything that’s going on in the world, I was a little concerned with releasing the project, fearing that it would get lost in everything that has been going on. However, I felt like people needed music while they were stuck inside, and I was right. The response has been amazing.
What did you learn about yourself after the release of this first project?
I think it was more of a confirmation than it was a learning experience. I really believe in myself as an artist and a creator, so me releasing that project while simultaneously writing my next project and teaching myself to record was just a really great time. This project just brought me to the realization that I was really doing it. I am an artist.
CRYING ON THE PHONE is your new single - what's the story behind this song? Who helped you create this song?
CRYING ON THE PHONE is about a relationship/fling I had at the beginning of quarantine, so the song isn’t that old. Basically, it’s about that back and forth that goes on between two people that are unsure of what they want. For me, I began seeing this girl that would pull away whenever things got somewhat serious, then would call me two days later saying how much she missed me. “You give me time to let you go, and then you’re crying on the phone.” I wrote it with STRUAN and co-produced it with Garrett Miller.
What made you want to release CRYING ON THE PHONE (reprise) as well?
The reprise was originally an outro for the song, but I thought CRYING ON THE PHONE was more of a traditional single without it. I did, however, think it wrapped up the song nicely. The reprise sole lyrics, “now you wanna come back, you don’t even mean that,” brought the meaning full circle, like she was trying to come back again even though she maybe didn’t even want to.
What did you feel when writing CRYING ON THE PHONE?
Very rarely do I write vengeful songs, but this is a vengeful song. I remembering feeling a sense of satisfaction writing it. “Savage,” if you will.
What can you tell us about the artwork?
I wanted something a little more eccentric than me holding an iphone, and when my photographer sent me a photo of the yellow phone at a vintage shop, I knew that was it. The entire shoot was based around that rotary phone.
What are your thoughts on today's current situation around the world and on the Black Lives Matter movement?
I’ve had this conversation with so many people, and I think the movement is so important. I talked to white friends, black friends, listened and learned, and I am still learning. I’ve had friends call out musicians for posting about music and other self-serving things two weeks after the movement began and have voiced my opinion to my white and black friends that I feel it’s something that needs to be worked into your life. An extremely large majority agree with my stance, which is this: If you go on diet, you’re going to be eating garbage again in a few weeks. It’s about making a lifestyle change. Eating healthy needs to become part of your life. Accepting that racism is real and doing your part to abolish it needs to become part of your life. It’s not going to change over night and people can’t put off their lives forever, but they need to work abolishing racism into their everyday lives, if it wasn’t already. I am an ally, and I want to make that very clear.
What major lesson have you learned from all these challenging times?
Redirect and refocus your efforts. I know a lot of people, including myself, had major plans for this spring-fall, but life doesn’t always go according to plan. It’s how you react to adversity. I was supposed to go on tour in the spring and fall, and go to London in July to write, but instead I wrote and recorded a bunch of songs with my friends, and learned how to engineer. Also, I learned that I can do anything I put my mind to. I’ve always been super hands on with my artist projects, but if I needed a video done or anything along those lines, I had someone who does that for a living do it. I began thinking, “I can do that,” and started doing a lot of things myself. I think I’ve just been challenging myself more than ever, and I’ve surprised myself.
What message do you want to give to the world?
LV each other. Life is hard enough without spreading hate. Be there for one another.
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