Ben Young

Ben Young lives a life of polarity. He has split his life between the coasts: half his life on the West (California) and half on the East (Georgia and Virginia). He has pursued careers in the art world (film school graduate) and the corporate world (executive with Fortune 500 companies). And he is Biracial, the personification of being two things at once. Ben’s musical influences were formed by music loving parents, raised in a world of John Coltrane and John Lennon, James Taylor and James Ingram, Huey Lewis and the News and Prince and the Revolution. Saxophones, electric guitars, synthesizers, and breakbeats filled the air Ben breathed from birth. And being born one year after the birth of Hip Hop, Ben has been joined at the hip with the genre his entire life.

Leave It All Behind – Sleeping With Sirens

14 August 2019

If you Google “Sleeping with Sirens”, the excellent decade-old band behind this week’s Track of the…Week, you’ll see the first question in the “People Also Ask” section: Is the lead singer a girl? In today’s muddled sonic landscape, you need a voice like Kellin Quinn to front a band that quite simply, rocks…

Change – NF

7 August 2019

I like to rap but I ain’t gonna do it forever.”

Here’s a riddle: What is the thing all us claim we want, but deep inside, if we’re being honest, terrifies us?

Here’s a hint: it’s the only constant in life.

You guessed it. Change…

Stuck – OSHUN

23 July 2019

“Neo soul” is a common, if not overused term in the music world these days. Everything with a smooth, jazzy beat and soft vocals can be labeled as neo soul, providing the contrast from “old soul” like Marvin Gaye and Otis Redding…

What If – Tensei feat. Liv Warfield

16 July 2019

Tensei is a Japanese word that translates to reincarnation in English. Reincarnation is what this playlist is all about, and the group named Tensei is the author of this week’s addition to the playlist, an R&B infused track, “What If”…

Beside Myself – WILLS

9 July 2019

WILLS is not a household name. In fact, a simple google search will leave you right where you started. I’m happy to make introductions: everyone, meet Will Johnson. Best known for his “Woes vs. Whoas” track, which was made in 2016 but gained popularity for being featured in a TV commercial for the 2019 Acura ILX. That should tell you all you need to know about WILLS’ struggle with commercial (no pun intended) success…

Spaceship – Kanye West ft. GLC and Consequence

3 July 2019

While we wait for Kanye to release his next album, Yandhi (“I’ll announced the release date once it’s done”), now is as good a time as any to remember the old Kanye. Whatever you think of him as a person, there’s no doubt that he has been through some trauma, most notably with the unexpected passing of his mother. He admits to having a mental illness, which is more common on the “genius” level of artists than we realize…

Changing – ARLO ft. Mick Jenkins

25 June 2019

Change is the only constant of life. And yet it always seems to come as a surprise when it hits. All living beings have an instinctual desire to be safe, and safety usually equates to all the things change is not. At the same time, life without change is boring. Stale…

I Don’t Want To – Mal Blum

19 June 2019

Anti-establishment music is my favorite genre. The best songs, artists, and movements are almost always born from a need to crack the status quo and stand up to whatever is currently holding people back (socially, creatively, economically, etc.)…

More ft. Anderson .Paak – Flying Lotus

5 June 2019

Quitting is about wanting something MORE. For yourself, from others, for others and from yourself. This latest banger from Flying Lotus and Anderson .Paak takes us on a musical ride like only they can. In particular, Flying Lotus (born Steven Ellison) is uncategorized as a producer extraordinaire…

Quit – SonReal

5 June 2019

What better song for a playlist called “Music To Quit Your Job” than a song called “Quit”? This laid back, funky R&B track from Canadian artist SonReal seems to have borrowed some swag from his fellow countryman, Robin Thicke. Where Mr. Blurred Lines is still trying to get past his ex-wife, SonReal (Aaron Hoffman is his government name) shows no roadblock in sight…