Johnny Rain - Avant Electro

Talking about music genres these days can easily become a complicated matter. Ask up-and-coming recording artist Johnny Rain. The talented singer-songwriter has been on the rise with his recently released free album Lullaby of Machine which offered a myriad of sounds and styles that prove to be adept to modern-day trends in music. Just don’t make the mistake and connect him to a single genre, such as R&B singer for instance. A categorization that he equals with the limitation of his creative freedom. After talking to the California native about his musical beginnings, his artistic presence and future endeavors, it becomes clear that Johnny Rain possesses a motivation that will soon catapult him to new heights.

How did your interest for music spark and when/what made you decide pursuing a career in the music industry?
My interest for music has kind of always been there. I wouldn’t say I was forced into it, but I was surrounded by it, so the outcome was inevitable. It was all I knew. when I was just an infant, my mom would always catch me beating on pots and pans in the kitchen, but it wasn’t just noise. According to her everything had rhythm. So for that reason, my parents bought me a full drum set at the age of 3, and that’s when i taught myself how to play the drums. At five they bought me a guitar, at seven my aunt got me my first piano, at 10 I learned how to play the trumpet, at 13 I played the xylophone (and other percussion), and at 14, at the same time of being on the football team and basketball team, I was on the drum line in my high school marching band. I taught myself how to play all of these instruments. So again, I wasn’t forced into music, but I was surrounded with everything I needed to succeed as a musician.
I think I decided music was it for me, at a young age. I was four when I first remember hearing Prince. My dad popped in the “Purple Rain” cassette, and the first song I heard play was “When Doves Cry.” As I was listening, I thought to myself “I Want to Do That!” But I didn’t really take music seriously as a career choice until I was 14, that’s when I decided it was crunch time and i was going to make something happen.

What is your view on the current status of the R&B scene? Any artist you feeling in particular?
The current status of R&B…. I honestly don’t care for it these days. ’90s R&B was better. In the same respect, I don’t consider myself to be an R&B artist. I don’t have a genre. I don’t believe in genres. They create artistic boundary, which I don’t agree with. My sound has no genre. It only has feeling. Avant-electro is just the most veracious title I could think of to describe how my music feels.

You released Lullaby Of Machine as a free album back in February. What was the concept behind it and how does it hint at your future music?
Lullaby Of Machine was the story of me being (in a way) synonymous with a machine, no longer being able to feel. The story of myself and a certain someone over the course of six months. From “Pisces,” when we met. To her “Paranoia” of me being the same as the males in her past. To “Jericho,” when her walls began to fall and she really opened up and made herself vulnerable to me. To “Cold Water,” our first night making love. “Porn in My Rearview,” being the morning after “Cold Water” happened. I went to a party soon after that on new years eve, with my managers, CL and YG, thrown by Ricky Hil who’s a good friend of ours. A lot of influential people were there, hence the lines, “It’s just me, CL, and YG/ Rich is right behind me with some bitches down for anything to be around the posse/ A$AP’s here with Bari/ Irv’s next to the weed…”. For a lack of better words we got fucked up. (laughs)
The voicemail at the end of that song is real. I received it the night of the party, which is why it’s at the end of the record. that “certain someone” had been wanting me to open myself up emotionally and tell her how i felt and what happened in past relationships that made me the way i am today. which goes into the next song black yayo. black yayo was my response to her. i opened myself completely. and the call at the end of that song was the recording of me calling her back and telling her everything she wanted to know. what wasn’t noticed by the public, was that we never hung up the phone.. ‘superstition’, the title track ‘lullaby of machine’, and ‘llwh’, were all representations of the recent relationships before her, that i was telling her about on the phone. and that’s where we reached naked, which was showing our complete vulnerability toward each other. after that we hung up.

What other projects have you in the works? Any chance of an official full-length release?
Lullaby Of Machine will have a re-release date for purchase very soon. I’m also currently working on my next project, Villain.

You are a singer, songwriter, producer and engineer. How do you approach each one of your activities?
I approach each one with the same goal in mind… perfection. singing comes natural because I’ve been doing it all my life, but when I’m writing… I don’t know, I just go into a space. It’s like I leave myself and enter a place of complete comfort and vulnerability, if that makes sense. Anytime I sit and write, I try to figure out what I can say or how I can put things in order to make the listener think and really use there mind. I want the listener to have to rewind three or four times to figure out what I said or what I meant when I said it. As a producer and engineer, I consider each instrument and vocal. Each layer plays its part and should all flow as one at the end of the production.

Who have you written music for?
That, I’d love to answer but I cannot. The world will know soon enough.

What other ineterests do you have outside of music and are you involved in any (non-music) projects?
I’m actually really into art. I go to galleries as much as I can. and I’m also an artist in my spare time. I enjoy painting and drawing here and there. As for non-musical projects, I’ve been really into fashion for the past year or so, which my mangers played a major role in. So I’m working on my own clothing and also a line with them called “Sky Acdmy.”

Given the huge amount of new music everyday, what does it take for an up-and-coming artist take to be heard nowadays?
Well for one, it starts with the music. If your music isn’t up to par, you may rise fast, but you’ll fade out just as quickly. I’ve seen it happen plenty. This industry is really fickle. Also, building good relationships and rapport with the right people is crucial. Relationships are everything in this business.

Choose one. Business or Artistry?
I’m going to have to say both. the artist side of me wants to say artistry and the businessman in me wants to say business, but it’d be impossible to choose one. Both play a very monumental role in success.

Who’s on your current playlist?
I listen to a lot of James Blake and Adele these days. other than them, just the usuals… Prince, Sade, The xx, Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul, ScHoolBoy Q, Florence + The Machine, Drake is dope, i really like Paramore’s new album, Coldplay, Kanye is always in rotation, Bon Iver, Beach House, my homie A.Chal, Future, Little Dragon, Jodeci, Tyler The Creator, 30 Seconds to Mars, and that’s it for the most part. I know it’s a weird line up of artists but I have weird musical taste and that’s literally a playlist I have set in my iTunes right now.

Any last words?
All the attention that’s come my way recently is extremely humbling and unbelievable. I appreciate every bit of it. You all at HYPETRAK and HYPEBEAST played a significant role in all of it, so for that I thank you as well. And I hope that myself, my team, and my fans only continue to excel from here.