So last year, I got the chance to meet Les Coyns on my visit to Ohio. After shooting the shit and exchanging information. He was kind enough to provide me with his latest album: Come Home, which was released in May 2014 and charted #53 on iTunes.
On my first go through of his album, it has the feel of old school Hip-Hop with an R&B vibe and strategically placed samples. You can tell from the tracklist titles to the progression of the album that it's about the beginning and end of a relationship and the lose of this struggle. Now I know your thinking it's going to be slow and sad. Heck no, it goes on different levels of energy from tracks like: "Shout", "Borderline", "Be Me (feat. Demari & Dux)". Each track on this album has a different feel of emotions and sounds that draws the ear to the story. Don't believe me check out the tracks below and hear for yourself or check out Les Coyns website or Soundcloud to hear all his tracks. You can also visit CD Baby to support this artist.
I was also able to ask Les Coyns a few questions about his style. So continue reading on and find out what this artist has to say about his musical style.
TCL: What artist influenced your desire to make music?Les Coyns: Early on I would say that Stevie Wonder was a huge influence in my desire to make music, because his songs were introduced to me by my mother and would always sing “I Just Called” together during station wagon car rides or whenever it came on the radio. As I really grew older and started listening to different genres of music and falling in love with the classic Hip-hop and RnB of the 90’s, I was probably most impacted to actually make music by Andre 3000 from Outkast because of the infectious rhythms and rhyme patterns he used. I was hooked after that.
TCL: Do you make your own beats?
Les Coyns: Yes, I do produce my own beats. I’ve been producing my own music for about 16 yrs. now and it all started from the pure necessity of needed music to make songs too, without spending all the money I didn't have. I started on an akai drum machine and an 8track player and used to just go to the library and rent all kinds of different albums; classical, country, movie soundtracks, symphonies, you name it and I was grabbing it. I’d go home and listen to the albums and find samples that I liked and would track them out and arrange loop patterns. This really helped me understand the importance of song structure and different arrangement possibilities. I eventually moved to digital recording and sequencing programs and haven’t looked back since. Making my own music allows me the opportunity to truly tailor my songwriting and sounds to portray my vision more accurately.
TCL: What does this album mean to you?
Les Coyns: This album means a lot to me as it is a very intimate look into my experiences going through a tough relationship. This album was patience for me; it was a learning process that took time to understand. For those that have gone through a tough relationship or had to make a decision to leave a tough relationship, you can relate to the roller coaster of emotions that can be experienced. So this was a journey of reflection and healing, while finding myself again as a person.
TCL: Who are some of your favorite artist now?
Les Coyns: Right now, I would say I have been into some different artist such as Bastille, Lorde, The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar, Yelawolf, but still always find myself going back to the classic Rock of the 60’s and 70’s with Elton, Clearwater, Jimi, The Doors, The Beatles, The Stones etc.
TCL: Who would you really like to collaborate with on a song if you could?
Les Coyns: I would really like to work on a record with Pharrell. My creative approach began in high school band like him and has always been kind of, off the wall with my sounds and he’s always been one of my favorite producers and artists. I feel like our styles are somewhat similar. He seems like a pretty cool guy and chemistry in the studio in my opinion is a very important piece of the process. It would be interesting to see what we would come up with.
If you enjoyed this artist and are looking for more music by him don't you worry. In the summer of 2015 Les Coyns will be releasing a new album: "Insert Coyns". So keep up with him or mark your calendar.
.jpg)
