“In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different.” — Coco Chanel
Being successful in an industry that is oversaturated with young talent is a challenge. The music industry has achieved a different stature with the advent of social media. The universal platform social media has offered artists and creators across the world has opened a gateway of opportunity. With a wide range of audiences from every corner of the globe, all forms of creativity have found a place on social media. The growth has been particularly remarkable in the music industry. Musicians and singers are no longer dependent on labels to find their audience. They create, publish, and find recognition themselves.
This is how musician Jonathan Paul Smith carved a niche for himself in the music industry. He is famous for his cross-genre compositions that smoothly blend hip-hop with undertones of jazz and rock. His music is both energetic and soul-soothing. What separates him from his contemporaries is his signature style of incorporating natural sounds into the background of his compositions. He creates a mesmerizing amalgam of everyday sounds we hear now and then but that never previously appealed to our ears.
His creativity in merging natural sound and instrumental music has a lot to do with his intense passion for sounds. As a child, Jonathan was always drawn to the sounds in his surroundings. Something like the honking of a car horn, dripping water, and the buzzing of bees was music to his ears. He realized his passion for sound at the age of 5 when he heard his teacher walking down an empty corridor. The rhythmic clip-clopping sound of the heels instantly appealed to his artistic mind. Since then, he has developed a remarkable ear for the sounds around him.
Besides listening to these sounds, Jonathan also started imitating them in different ways. After years of practice, he was able to create the sound of a bottle popping open and the buzzing of a bee. He used his tongue, cheek, lips, and hands to perfectly imitate natural sounds. This not only makes his music melodic but unique as well.
He started his career performing at shows, parties, and clubs. His euphonious voice grabbed the audience’s attention, making him a sought-after artist in NYC. His life started going downhill during the pandemic-related lockdown when all live events were canceled. During this time, Jonathan was out of a job for several months. But once his career reached rock bottom, he decided to bounce back on social media. He launched his YouTube channel Soulful Sound with his debut single “Times Will Change” in October 2020.
“Times Will Change” became an instant hit on social media. It marked the beginning of a fresh wave of cross-genre tracks with a brilliant backdrop of natural sound effects. The song received 2 million views within a month and even topped the Spotify charts. “Times Will Change” made Jonathan an overnight star, greater than he ever was in the music industry as a performing artist.
There has been no looking back since then. He went on releasing back-to-back hits, storming the internet with his unique soulful music. He is now gearing up to penetrate the mainstream music industry with his natural talent and love for sound.
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