East London is home to singer-songwriter Jordan O. Growing up around genres such as Gospel, Pop, R&B, and Hip-Hop, he developed his smooth and soothing vocals with his school and church choirs.
From an early age, Jordan O took influence from artists such as John Legend, Ed Sheeran, Lauryn Hill, and Sean C Johnson. With his moral intentions, Jordan O began writing songs to share a message; one that continues to make people feel loved and cherished.
Deep in the essence of his buoyantly compelling new single, “Fade Away,” Jordan O approaches the instrumentation with a determined state of mind that translates into a heartfelt performance. Casting his striking timbres into the cosmos before us with a delectable amount of soul, the atmospheric realm that we enter touches on a narrative of treasuring the memories and experiences you share with the people you hold dear.
Exposing such a prominent subject to the pressure felt by the hustle and bustle of the world around us, this R&B ballad exudes a nostalgic essence in both the memories it surfaces, as well as the musicality that welcomes in unalloyed passion. Jordan O weaves in between his pacifying croons that pull us deep into a state of hypnotic concentration as his rapping techniques have us bouncing back to reality with the bold appeal he embodies through conveying a cherished message.
Utilizing his ability to dramatically paint imagery on the canvas that is your mind is uncanny. You’re immediately transported to the euphoric universe that Jordan O intends for you to visit. “Fade Away” showcases the compassion of Jordan O during a dark state of the world where the Covid-19 pandemic infiltrates the mental and physical well-being of our loved ones. Bearing it all, Jordan O wraps both grief and joy into one package.
The ambiance that you create in “Fade Away,” is truly remarkable. What was the experience of creating this single like for you?
I wrote this song at the start of 2020 with a friend of mine from uni, just a couple of days after the passing of Kobe Bryant. Both of us were feeling quite heavy emotionally while we were trying to process his death and still write music at the same time, so we decided to pour some of that emotional weight we were carrying into the song. We wanted the ambiance and sound to match the topic/theme we were delving into, so I made sure when producing the song to make the ambiance a centralized feature of the music. Overall, it was fun writing and producing the song too as it allowed me to feel free.
You dip into various vocal techniques in “Fade Away.” Do you have a preference when it comes to singing verses rapping? Does the creative process change for you when writing lyrics to each part?
It’s interesting cause overall I prefer rapping to singing because it allows me to be rawer and more honest which comes through in my writing process. I focus more on what I’m trying to say in a way that is honest and true to myself while being artistic with the flow and rhyme scheme. But with singing, I enjoy being able to just experiment with different melodies even with the way I sing words or phrases. I place more focus on how this sounds melodically and sonically when I listen back.
Throughout your artistic career, what has been the highlight for you this far?
So far, the highlight for me has been putting on my own show/performance in my final year of uni because it was the catalyst for me wanting to put all my energy and investment into writing and performing as a full-time career. It also showed me that I can connect with a crowd who have never heard of my songs and have them invested from start to finish.
Do you find that the music you create directly reflects your morals as an individual? What are you hoping to achieve long-term with the message you send out?
Overall, the music I write comes from a very honest place, I don’t believe in writing something that doesn’t reflect my character or morals. I want to create a space for people to feel heard and to have conversations, whether it be serious or fun I hope my music can help spark conversation.
What is your mission statement as an artist?
My mission statement: “Make music with meaning.”
