LA based polymath Stephen is blessed with extraordinary natural talent.
Moving from left field R&B through hip-hop production, his songwriting has a soulful touch, a universal quality that runs through his work like a thin thread.
Sadly, he's also had to work his way through personal issues. Diagnosed with an immune system illness, bad health kept sidelined him for more than a year.
During that time he yearned to create, yearned to pursue his music, making plans while undergoing treatment.
Now he's ready to step back into the game. New project 'It's Too Much Love To Know My Dear' is online now, ending an extended period on the sidelines.
"I became overwhelmed by expectation," he explains. "I’ve always heard people say the second album is the hardest, and now I felt it. I was trying so hard to create music that everyone would like – constantly judging my ideas through the imaginary ears of others. It had to be bigger and better…"
"I must have made a hundred songs. It got to the point where my managers wanted me to finish some of them, but I didn’t want to. They were catchy and relatable, but I didn’t feel that purge of emotions I usually get. It wasn’t honest enough. It wasn’t ready."
Parting company with his management company, he reached back towards what first inspired him to create, inspired him to write.
"And I went straight to the studio and embraced just that," he recalls. "The realest music began pouring out of me. I stopped comparing myself to others – liberating myself from expectation and rediscovering my power. The creative process became effortless, playful, incredibly profound and emotional. Lots of tears, lots of screaming, lots of laughing. I created the realest music I’ve ever made, and it felt like I didn’t even have to try…"
'It's Too Much Love To Know My Dear' airs through Clash, a dynamic, eclectic, highly creative document from someone working on his own terms.
Tune in now.
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