Crispin Brooks, Shara Vallee & Willo Blend Caribbean Soul on "Run Away"

Some songs begin with a melody. Others begin with a story. For Crispin Brooks, "Run Away" started as a vivid cinematic scene. That visual-first mindset gives the collaboration with Shara Vallee and Willo a personality that extends well beyond its infectious dance beat.

Blending EDM, soul, and Caribbean pop influences, "Run Away" is built for summer playlists while offering enough heart to keep listeners invested from beginning to end. Willo's polished production provides an uplifting four-on-the-floor groove, while Shara Vallee delivers a warm, expressive vocal performance that effortlessly carries the song's romantic energy. Together, they create a track that feels equally at home on the dance floor and during a sunset drive along the coast.

Brooks' songwriting is deeply rooted in storytelling, and that strength shines throughout the accompanying music video. Rather than following the predictable wedding-crasher formula, the visual flips expectations with a playful twist that keeps viewers engaged until the final scene. Filmed across picturesque locations in Anguilla, sweeping drone shots and vibrant outdoor settings reinforce the themes of freedom, love, and choosing your own path.

What makes "Run Away" stand out is its seamless fusion of influences. Brooks draws from reggae, soca, dancehall, zouk, house, pop, and R&B without allowing any single genre to dominate. Instead, the collaboration finds its own identity by embracing the rhythm and warmth of Caribbean music while maintaining the accessibility of modern dance-pop.

As the first release under Brooks' new media venture, The Dream Jungle, "Run Away" feels like more than a standalone single. It serves as an exciting introduction to an artist whose passion for music, visuals, and storytelling continues to shape every project he brings to life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fps8zZlhWM0

“Run Away” began as a visual before it became a song. How did that storytelling approach influence both the music and the final video?

I tend to write visually first. A lot of times when I hear a beat, I start seeing scenes in my head before I even know exactly what the song is going to be about. When Willo sent me the beat for “Runaway,” I kept listening to it over and over, and I could see something outdoors, something romantic, and eventually this whole wedding scenario started forming in my head. Shara’s character in the song and music video had to be dominant, I thought to myself. Then the hook came, “Run, run away, run, run away, have no fear, I’ll be there.”

Once I had that visual, it really helped me write the rest of the song because I was essentially writing a story. When it came time to do the video, we were able to take that original idea and expand it into something much more cinematic. I love film and television, so I never wanted the video to simply be people performing the song to camera. I wanted characters, drama, and emotion. In a way, the video is probably the closest representation of what was in my head when I first started writing the record.

Your backgrounds span everything from journalism and filmmaking to artist development. How have those experiences shaped the way you create music today?

I think all of those things have somehow found their way into how I approach music. Journalism taught me to pay attention to people, stories, and details. Film taught me to think visually and to understand that sometimes what you see can be just as important as what you hear. Artist development taught me that a great song is important, but there is an entire world that has to exist around the artist and the music.

I also spent years working with other artists and helping to develop their ideas, so I think I learned a lot from being behind the scenes. Now that I am releasing music under my own name, I am able to bring all of those experiences together. I don't necessarily see myself as just a songwriter or producer. I look at the song, the video, the artwork, the story, and the way everything is presented as pieces of the same creative project.

Shara, your performance brings so much emotion to the track while also stepping into a character in the video. What was that experience like for you?

Answer from Shara Vallée:“Playing the role of the “other bride” was one of my favorite parts of the entire project. I really enjoyed stepping into that character because it felt like I was acting in a movie rather than simply filming a music video. It allowed me to express emotions and to tell the story in a way that felt authentic and cinematic.

Most of my music is about love, partying, and living life, so this time it was actually fun getting to play the bad guy! It was a nice change to step into a completely different role and explore a side of storytelling I don’t usually get to show. As an artist, I love creating moments that make people feel something, and bringing that character to life made the song and video even more meaningful.”

The song blends Caribbean influences with EDM and soul in a very natural way. How did you strike the balance between honoring your roots and creating something globally accessible?

I don't think we consciously sat down and said that we needed a certain percentage of Caribbean music, EDM or soul. It happened pretty naturally. Willo and I are both from the Caribbean, and Shara is a Caribbean artist, so that influence is going to be there whether we intentionally put it there or not. At the same time, I grew up listening to music from everywhere. Pop, dance music, R&B, reggae, soca, rock, house music, all of that has influenced me.

I also don't believe Caribbean artists or producers have to make music that fits neatly into one particular box. We can bring our culture and our perspective into records that can live anywhere in the world. That is really a huge part of what I want to do with The Dream Jungle. I want to make music that still feels like it came from us, but doesn't have geographical boundaries placed around it.

With The Dream Jungle entering a new chapter, what kind of stories and creative projects can listeners expect from you next?

The Dream Jungle is really about giving me a home for all of the different things I love creatively. Music is a major part of it, but it is not the only part. I have spent years writing songs, developing film and television ideas, writing scripts, and working on different creative projects, and now I am at a point where I actually want to put more of those things into the world.

Musically, I have a pretty large catalog of songs I have written over the years, and I'm constantly creating new material. You can expect more collaborations, different vocalists, and records that move between dance, pop, Caribbean music, and other genres in the dance music/ EDM space. I don't want every release to sound like “Runaway.” I want people to eventually hear a song and understand that the common thread is the storytelling and the feeling behind it.

Beyond music, there are film and television projects that I have been developing as well as my podcast Planet Thirty. Ultimately, I want The Dream Jungle to be a place where all of those worlds can coexist. That is really where the name comes from. I have a lot of ideas running around in my head, sometimes probably too many (LOL), and The Dream Jungle gives me a place to let them run wild.