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    Charlie stands with two feet firmly planted on top of a mountain named Soul Clap and yet points further into the sky with a look of mischievous excitement.  Somewhere, deep into the horizon, the mystery of his musical journey will unfold. With over 20 years under his belt he’s still learning, still digging, and discovering the best way he knows how;  through music.  Born in Boston, transplanted to Brooklyn, and now based in Miami, his adventures inside the rave’s powerful cultural exchange have taken him to most corners of the globe where he has left his heartfelt mark.

    As part of the Marcy Hotel generation, he rode the North American dance music wave of the late 2000’s and now arriving in the chaos of 2020 he proudly boasts a career track record that once he could barely fathom.   He is devoted to following in the footsteps of those whole paved the way before him and continues to churn out thematic dance music that is routed in tradition but eclectic and unexpected.

    As a principle songwriter for Soul Clap he has worked with artists like George Clinton, Nona Hendryx, Louie Vega, Laid Back, Amp Fiddler, Robert Owens, Sa’D “The Hourchild” Ali, XL Middleton, Midnight Magic, Lee Curtiss, Martin Buttrich, Wolf + Lamb, Nick Monaco, No Regular Play, PillowTalk, Navid Izadi and on and on.  As Lonely C he wrote underground anthems like the celebrated and haunting  “Lonely C”, created content for the collectors alongside Tom Trago on “Compass Joint” and collaborated with GRAMMY award-winner Kendra Foster on selections from his 2018 solo debut “Charles & Tribulations”. Now as Charlie Soul Clap he continues to evolve and with the guiding light of his experiences fueling him, he’s more dialed into his original inspiration than ever before.

     

    Q&A with S&S
    S&S: What’s your style of music? How do you describe it? I’m House music thru and thru, but that’s mainly because I’ve been schooled to understand that house is a FEELING.  Today I may sound like this and tomorrow I may sound like that but its always our house and our house MUSIC!

     

    S&S: Who or what was most instrumental to you when it came to music? My parents love music and definitely imparted their tastes on to me, I still have a lot of their old records, my mother’s Soul, R&B and Rock (Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Fleetwood Mac, The Rolling Stones) and my father’s Jazz collection (Miles, Monk, Coltrane).  I grew up a child of the late 80’s and early 90’s soaking up almost everything I heard, grunge, classic rock, Iggy Pop, the b52s and talking heads, reggae, and hip hop.  Then around 12 or 13 my musical tastes got blown right open when I joined a summer camp youth band that did covers of P-Funk, The Meters, Rebirth Brass Band, and more.  Those years solidified my tastes, I had influences all around me that turned me out!  Those years made me a life long funk fan but also put me on to Isley Brothers, Barry White, Gap Band, James Brown, The Beastie Boys, Jamiroquai…. Then I had a whole other set who turned me on to the world of electronic music, Goldie, LTJ Bukem, Aphex Twin, The Orb…. It just went on and on, but that chunk of time from 1990-92 til I discovered the rave in about 96/97 and then was hearing all the samples of the music I knew and loved in House, Techno, Jungle… that was it for me!!! And here I am today, still that wide-eyed kid!

     

    S&S: What drives you creatively? Overall I tend to look to the past for inspiration with a goal of contextualizing for the present/future.  But what used to drive me as a songwriter has completely changed.  These days my life is MUCH more stable than my real rock n’ roll years…. I have a healthy steady relationship and my mindset is much more balanced, so what seems to drive me now feels much more tapped into some universal vibrations than before being more focused on my personal journey.

     

    S&S: How much does your audience influence you and your music selection? I would say that I am a very selfish musician.   I’m much more focused on what I’m feeling at a particular moment than what an audience is into.  Fortunately, with Soul Clap we’ve cultivated an audience that is down to take a ride with us, expect the unexpected and explore new music.    I’m not too down with fads and in the moment trends because from my perspective I’m in the lineage of house music which has been around and continues to BE around!  I’m not saying that my goal is to clear the dance floor, I’m just saying when most of this industry is going to the right I tend to go left!

     

    S&S: What artists or genres do you listen to when you’re not working? I live in Miami and we have a huge Caribbean community here so we have an amazing 24/7 Caribbean radio station 96.1FM that is on all day in my kitchen and in my car.  Then I dig jazz, world music, funk, soul….  Again this is Miami so you know we gotta consume some Freestyle/Miami Bass/Disco etc….

     

    S&S: Do you have any favorite memories of growing up with your family? I have wonderful memories of my childhood.  I am very fortunate to have had a lot of love and support from my parents.  I come from a small family, I’m an only child and we didn’t have a lot of aunts/uncles/cousins around, but we were a tight unit for most of my youth.  How bout this, I remember my parents taking me to Greatwoods (I grew up in Boston) to see Paul Simon and Ladysmith Black Mambazo on the Graceland tour!

     

    S&S: Is there anything you would like people to know about you? This is a new chapter for me under the name Charlie Soul Clap.  Soul Clap is still alive and kicking, we’ve got our 3rd studio album a forthcoming on Fools Gold due in Spring 2021.  I also have released a fair amount of music, including an album, under the name Lonely C.  But I’m no longer LONELY!  Haha so time to move on baby!

     

    S&S: Are there any charities you are working with or excited to tell us about?  We do a lot with DJS4CLIMATEACTION and Give A Beat.  Check out the work being done by these groups, really incredible and very tied into the dance music community.

     

    S&S: Are there any questions that you wish people would ask you? I’m stumped!

     

    S&S: And on the flip side of that, are there any questions or references you wish people would stop asking or using? Stumped again:). Ask me anything, I can handle it

     

    S&S: What artist(s) have you been the most excited to work with?  Over the years we’ve got had a number of incredible collaborations, but just a few to name here:  Nona Hendryx, George Clinton, Billy “Bass” Nelson, Sa’D “The Hourchild” Ali, Sly Stone, Louie Vega, Laid Back, Robert Owens, Kendra Foster, Roy Davis Jr, Midnight Magic, Tom Trago, Wolf + Lamb, Life On Planets, No Regular Play, Nick Monaco….  How’s that to start?

     

    S&S: Are there any artists that you dream of working with on a collaboration? Hey, man I’m a big fan of STEVE SILK HURLEY & DJ SKIP!  What’s up with the COLLAB fellas!!!

     

    S&S What advice would you give to an aspiring artist? I really feel for up and coming artists at this time.  It just must be SOOOO difficult to separate yourself from all the noise.  I also respect social media but I dislike how centralized its become… I prefer giving credit to a musician’s talent, catalog, and artistry not giving a value based on their followers and some algorithm… Anyways, besides this little rant, yeah I would say the MOST IMPORTANT thing for an aspiring artist is to find their own unique voice/sound.  To do that you gotta be true to yourself and not try to follow someone else but to trust your instincts and believe in you!

     

    S&S: What can we look forward to next from you? As Charlie Soul Clap I’ve just had a remix of Life On Planets song “Brother” out now on Soul Clap Records, I’ve got a forthcoming EP for Roy Davis Jr on Undaground Therapy Muzik and plenty busy in the studio cooking it up.  As Soul Clap like I mentioned before we’ve got our 3rd studio album coming out on Fools Gold in Spring 2021, we’ve just recently released a remix for TOKiMONSTA of a track called “Get Me Some” on her label Young Arts and yes of course there is SO MUCH MORE in the works!

     

    Charlie Soul Clap [Instagram][Facebook][Soundcloud][Instagram]
    S&S Records, Inc. (and S&S Chicago, Inc.) was established in 2005 by 4-time GRAMMY® nominated producer Steve “Silk” Hurley and global DJ/Producer Shannon “DJ Skip” Syas. Merging Hurley’s worldwide commercial success and Syas’ strong global following, the dance label has become home to numerous musical greats and one of the most respected blogs on the internet.

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