Live on Music Row, Ep. 7: Houston Kendrick performs 2 tracks from his album "Yung Rudy" and a new single "Look at Us" off of his upcoming album, “Small Infinity”
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Set List:
00:00 "INTRO"
00:22 ""BAD DECISION""
02:58 "CONVERSATION ABOUT BEING AN ARTIST"
03:56 ""RUDY""
07:30 ""LOOK AT US""
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2 New Songs on "Small Infinity"
"Look at Us" : https://open.spotify.com/track/4guQk58tHU2MzoykQ9OO03?si=UBswvlf8TkqP5tbHPidkkQ
"Ugly Vibes": https://open.spotify.com/track/5RawRlrfkO11H1LyD8eo3d?si=siwtQbCJROKQcs2fcOZMeQ
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Pisces Energy: Houston’s Take on Romance, Realization, and Self-Reflection
Joining us in the studio for Episode 7 of Live on Music Row is Houston Kendrick, a new wave artist whose tendency to constantly introspect and ability to craft compelling prose make him one of music’s most sacred types of songster. Being a Birmingham native makes Houston a country boy at heart, but as you’ll hear in this set, his interpretation of contemporary R&B and hip hop makes him a powerful black sheep in Music City.
Accompanied by Connor Ehman, Houston’s set includes performances of three tracks from his upcoming project Small Infinity. Donning a blue and white, cloud-like number, he opens the set with “Bad Decision.” Seductive in its instrumentals, lyrics, and vocals, this track is all about temptation. He croons about the universal confusion with commitment in the modern era, even using it as an excuse to fall victim to desire, considering the undefined nature of the relationship.
After discussing his artistic journey, Houston flows into “R U D Y,” one of his most acclaimed tracks. Although the song discourses the history of Rudy Ruettiger, an undersized walk-on from Notre Dame, it has an allegorical meaning that speaks to the familiar instance of feeling like an underdog in life as a whole, turning one person’s personal story into a shared experience through song.
Even though acoustic sets don’t lend themselves to the vocal layering heard in the original, in its absence are ingenious runs and complementary instrumentals that elevate the song exponentially. Houston ends his set with “Look At Us,” a song that represents a celebration of self and ownership over his contestation with society’s expectations. He gives the track robust dynamism, executing key changes and flair that differ from the studio version, yet further substantiate his penchant for performance.
Since moving to Nashville, Houston has experienced tremendous growth, honing in on his style and striving for musical and artistic synchronization. His upcoming album explores the topic of growth in isolation and the necessity for forgiveness and compassion towards ourselves during times of challenge. For music that helps us clean the wounds of pandemic living, be sure to listen to Small Infinity when it reaches streaming platforms on April 23rd, and keep the love alive by supporting Nashville’s independent artists.
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#houstonkendrick #nashville #independentartist
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Credits:
Producers: Chase Hentges, Haynes Young; Audio Engineer: Nic Vernali; Videographers: Chase Hentges, Haynes Young; Production Assistant: Adam Young, Wes Richardson.
Houston Kendrick stands tall among the finest singers working in Music City at the moment, and he’s a hell of a songwriter, too. He’s got a finely tuned, perfectly natural stage presence — 100 percent the total package.
A couple of weeks back, he released a fantastically immersive music video for “Ugly Vybes,” a song from his forthcoming album Small Infinity, in which we got to see him go all-out with sets and costume changes. Earlier this week, folks got a chance to see him work in an intimate environment, courtesy of promotions and production enterprise Built in Nashville and its ongoing YouTube series Live on Music Row.
The short sets, filmed at the studio Jay’s Place, generally feature an artist playing solo or with one accompanist (when you’re done watching this, check out an outstanding session with Chuck Indigo from February). In Kendrick’s case, the results speak for themselves: “Everybody OK?” he asks with a laugh after wrapping his first song. “It got a little quiet in the room!”
Above, see Kendrick and guitarist Connor Ehman deliver stripped-down renditions of “Bad Decision” and “Rudy” from Kendrick’s recent EP Yung Rudy’s Speech, Vol. 1, as well as “Look at Us” from Small Infinity. The tunes are no less rich for being performed right in the control room without a band. But don’t miss Kendrick’s discussion between songs, during which he goes in-depth on his evolution as an artist.
In some ways, he echoes thoughts from R.LUM.R and other artists in the pop sphere about how important it is to have a space where there’s not a set style you have to channel yourself into in order to succeed. “This artistic journey that I’ve been on,” Kendrick says, “from the time I came to Nashville and started working on my first mixtape to now, it’s just sort of like learning a communicative vocabulary. Just learning what my style is of communicating my emotions and communicating a story. And that’s been a really, really beautiful journey to go on here in Nashville specifically.”
Check out the session above. And watch Kendrick’s Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok for more on Small Infinity, which is set to be released April 23.
