After studying Audio Engineering in Northern California, Alternative artist Galexi Jones moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dreams of becoming a musician. She grew up writing songs and learning guitar and percussion, proving to her fans that music has always been in her blood.
Galexi Jones is excited to announce her recent single “Crazy,” which is a lyrical wake-up call for anyone who listens.
“Crazy” opens up with a political statement, immediately letting fans know what they’re in for with the rest of Galexi Jones’ lyrical narrative.
The track kicks off with a recorded compilation of current newsreels regarding issues that have stemmed from the global pandemic and systemic racism within society today. Soon after the eye-opening introduction, Galexi Jones showcases her dramatic vocals alongside a low-key backtrack. The instrumentals include a sultry drumming beat and a unique guitar plucking sequence that ties in flavors of Indie and Alternative genres.
With her explicit songwriting, Galexi Jones illustrates her vulnerability by expressing her perspective on the issues of today’s society. While bringing attention to the mountains of negativity surrounding the media today, Galexi Jones still shares a positive message with her fans.
Through her introspective songwriting, she reminds us that the fate of the world is in our hands. Although some days it may look like we cannot escape how truly ‘crazy’ the world is, Galexi Jones, states “the change starts with you, and it starts with me.”
As if “Crazy” was but a daydream within the unpredictable chaos that is 2020, the song concludes with another reel of overwhelming newscasting.
When writing your songs, which genres inspire your music style? What genres did you draw from when coming up with “Crazy?”
I was raised mostly on Reggae and Soul music. The likes of Bob Marley and the Wailers, Steel Pulse, Aretha Franklin, Norah Jones, Amy Winehouse, Zap Mama, and Erykah Badu seemed to always be on repeat during my mom's Sunday morning cleaning sessions.
As I grew up, my step-father, who is a huge fan of Biggie, introduced me to the 90's and early 2000's hip hop. I was obviously exposed to modern hip hop, but groups like Jurassic 5, The Fugees, Floetry, and female artists like Queen Latifa, Lady of Rage, Mc Lyte, etc. just resonated differently.
All these artists and styles have fused together in my writing and performance styles, for sure. In college, I studied Jazz and fell in love with Stevie Ray Vaughn, who is sampled in "Crazy", so all these genres played a factor in influencing this single.
Can you tell us about the message behind the lyrics of your single “Crazy?”
To simply take responsibility for the society we all come together to create. Especially this summer, we had a national and global conversation about how to bring about change in our communities, but unfortunately, what I saw is so many people looking to outside sources to harbor that change. For instance, we focus on National politics but ignore our local elections where we have a direct say in electing officials that are in alignment with our ideals of equality and justice.
I am from a small community in Northern California where, because of our sense of community we were able to come together to pass laws stating that no major corporations can reside within our city ordinance, letting local businesses thrive and keeping our money in our pockets.
We all come together individually to create the society most of us hate in the first place. Our voice has power, but it's hard to see that when you've been propagandized into believing your voice is swallowed in the millions of voices of the American people. Focus on your local politics, know the names of your District Attorneys, and be involved and informed about local elections. And, if you don't see anyone stepping up, YOU step up. The change we are seeking is our responsibility to bring about, every single one of us.
The use of news clip compilations at the beginning and end of “Crazy” really made the hair on our arms stand straight. Why did you choose to incorporate audio from the media in your song?
I wrote this song over a year ago and recorded it on July 4th of this year. Honestly, I don't know where the idea to include the newscasts came from, it just felt right. What was interesting to me was that this song was supposed to be released months ago but I was moving back to Los Angeles and the timing just wasn't right.
This allowed more time to pass and more developments of the newscasts were then accessible. So as the months went by I was able to build on the newscasts to create a more full story and more globalized view, including events like the fires in the Amazon Rainforest, the Genocide in Armenia (actually using a clip from almost 15 years ago) as well as issues more in the forefront of everyone's minds like Breonna Taylor. The song is powerful, but that element made it heart-wrenching and I believe that's where the strength lies. There is no way you can listen to that first 30 seconds and not feel impacted by it, regardless.
You learned guitar and percussion growing up, then moved on to study audio engineering in college. How have these skills helped improve and inspire you as an artist?
It's made me be able to see music as more of a full production rather than just finding a beat on youtube, buying the rights, recording something to it, and sending it off to get mixed. I have a MASSIVE amount of respect for every artist involved from the origin or the sample, the producers, the tracking engineer, mixing engineer, etc. It's even come through in my recording techniques because I've been in the engineer's chair with some artists that don't take their time, money, or career seriously. I'm not here to mess around and having a better understanding of the time and effort these people are putting into my craft makes me want to work for them ten times harder. What can fans anticipate next from you?
I'll be dropping a music video for "Crazy" before the election and a couple more singles throughout this year. In February of 2021, I'll be releasing my debut EP entitled 'POLARIS' which is the first in a seven-part series related to the chakra system.