If it’s one thing we can admire about this newcomer from Alberta is that his consistency is almost unmatched! Who are we referring to? JR. Rhodes, an artist, and producer who emerged in the scene with his hit single “Shoot!” which has been released in May of this year. “Shoot!” impressed us with its banging bass that struck you like an intense punch. The hook became highly catchy and showcased Jr. Rhodes’s ability to deliver us quick-witted lyricism. The melodies in this record were infectious and highly contagious, sticking to its listener like glue.
After listening to this single, It was easy to conclude that Jr. Rhodes is a promising artist who has a lot in store for him in the future. He knows how to get the crowd moving and his music can easily resonate with a vast audience due to how digestible it is. Since “Shoot!”, Jr Rhodes has released several singles in anticipation for his debut project releasing December 6th, entitled “Innermission”. You do not want to miss the blow up before it occurs because This Canadian artist is slowly growing his way into the already blooming Canadian music scene and is most definitely someone to keep an eye on if you’re a huge hip-hop fan.
Listen to Jr. Rhodes music here!
Who would you consider some of your influences for your trendy style?
I’d say J.I.D, Logic, Kendrick Lamar. These people showed me how fun and diverse you can be as an artist – J. Cole too. The ability to create a story with lyrics or create moods with cadence and pronunciation is so cool, it gives you complete freedom of expression, which as an artist is important because you want to be yourself in your songs. Another artist good at this is Drake of course. He can express the same lyrics in multiple ways, which is powerful because you can be so versatile that way. I think my style is a blend of these artists, but in a way that I’m not biting anyone’s sound, just paying tribute to it in the way I write and express myself.
Let’s talk about your first release, “Shoot!”. The amount of professionalism in this song for it to be your first was amazing! Did you stumble upon any challenges during the creative process of it?
There were a bunch of challenges for sure. I took a step back from releasing music publicly for over a year and a half, just so I could learn about the industry and the business side of it. So, prior to Shoot! dropping, we probably made 40 to 50 songs which may not even ever get released. It was important that everything was planned out. I like being 3 steps ahead, even if the world doesn’t know it yet. So, with that, the preparation for Shoot!’s release came off the realization that I had done what I told myself I needed to do a year ago. I had to make sure all the mixing and deliveries were properly done before we could release, especially because I had been keeping my fans waiting for so long. Although it wasn’t a traditional “Jr. Rhodes song”, I think it was a good bounce-back song because it could appeal to the widest audience, which was, in fact, truly based on Spotify’s decision to playlist the song for a few months.
What was the entire theme behind the song “Shoot!” that you were hoping to translate to the listeners?
Shoot! was meant to have an underdog vibe to it. “Ya we gon’ shoot!” is like saying, I’m going to take every shot I can because this is all I got. Notably, the second verse explains the theme behind it well.
“The way that we living I’m feeling that nothing will ever be new
Got something to say to the people that never believed it was true
Now I be running the crew
Taking it back to the booth
Back to the room
Where we always dreamed about money and talked about things we would do.”
This bar hits home to me because it’s like, yo - this is really the start of what we’ve been working towards for so long. It’s relieving and motivating, and I felt that the whole verse was what was exactly what was going on in our lives at the time.
I knew I would have to make it something people could bump to, being as I haven’t dropped music in so long. I had to pair meaningful lyrics with something that seems ignorant. Even in the chorus, when I say “All in Chanel, doing so well, how could I lose?”, that’s not me literally boasting about myself… That’s me boasting about where I’m going to be. No one will get in the way of what we have planned, it's – beyond music.
Let’s talk about this upcoming debut project you’re planning on releasing! Can you hint to us what we can expect from “Innermission”?
Innermission – yea it’s something I’m extremely proud of. I had the opportunity to make 4 songs completely specific to this project, which was what I always wanted, I always wanted to make a concept project, although this isn’t a big album or anything, it still ties in the message I wanted to promote with the concept of space travel and space vibes. Everything down to the cover art had to be perfect. I think made 3 separate cover arts for this project, which were all so dope, but it came down to choosing what fits the project best. This past summer actually, I was in Toronto at this studio and prior to me even going, we finished the song “Innermission” which at the time we thought would just be a single, and when I got there I face timed DG right away and was like “yo - this is exactly what I’ve been looking for”. The entire vibe I was on for the past few months have been geared around outer space, and when I saw this old James Bond poster at the studio, I knew I had to incorporate it into the project.
What are you looking forward to in the new year Jr. Rhodes? I’m looking forward to celebrating and having fun with my team, continuing to make music and just grow. This is just the start of the journey I’ve been planning for 4 years now, so I’m excited, it’s going to be a big year for me. My brothers are putting out some serious projects as well next year, so it’s only the start. Every empire needs a proper foundation, and that’s what we’re doing. It’s about consistency and quality. I have the next 2 projects already finished, which is crazy because like I said, I need to stay 3 steps ahead. You’ll get a lot of content this year, a lot of growth for sure.