Meet The Artist: Interview with Lewis Daniel
Photography by @morganlorelle
Lewis Daniel is a Saxophonist, Arranger & Composer from South London. He has worked as a session musician over the last few years collaborating with artists such as The House Gospel Choir, Boadi, The Last Dinosaur, Rachel Kerr and Tom Grennan. His career has seen him perform at incredible venues including the Westhoults Stage at Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds Festivals, Ronnie Scott’s, opening for Take 6, and The 02 Arena and he is certainly one to watch out for in the future!
We had the honor of interviewing the talented Jazz musician to talk about his latest EP, musical roots, future plans, and how and why he got into Jazz music.
Could you introduce yourself to those that don’t know?
LD: Hi, my name is Lewis Daniel, and I’m a saxophonist and composer from South London. Up until now I've been a session musician playing and writing for other musicans but I’m now exploring my own style as a solo artist and player.
Greg: Nice to chat to you man! Really looking forward to this one!
How would you describe the music you make?
LD: My music comes under the bracket of ‘UK Jazz' music’. Basically, my style is one that fuses UK ‘music of black origin’ from across the spectrum. If you check my stuff you can expect to hear Jazz fused with hip hop, garage, trap, breakbeats with a strong alternative vibe. My style is a by-product of all of my experiences playing in different bands, collaborating with various artists, and through studying jazz, classical and popular music. So, no influences were barred for me when making my recent EP as I wanted to make something that was unique to me and something that represents who I am as a person. The project is basically a total representation of me.
So, how and when did you start making music?
LD: I started playing when I was 8 years old. My music teacher said that I should learn a brass instrument as I liked singing in the school choir and she could grasp that music was something I really enjoyed. They gave me a euphonium and I hated it. But then moved onto the clarinet and that opened up the doors for me to play the saxophone as a teenager. Since secondary school, I’ve been drawn to composing music and I have been exploring my sound throughout the years. I started to work on this debut ep in August 2019 before the pandemic hit and i’m really proud of this body of work.
Greg: I love that man, so it all started from a music teachers recommendation… Thats cool, I bet so many musical careers start from those music lessons at school!
How and why did you make the transition from a sessions musician to a solo artist?
LB: The simple answer is that; I finally feel confident enough to do it now! This whole process is really an exercise of self confidence and motivation. When I left Guildhall, I felt like Jazz wasn’t for me and that I wasn’t good enough to do it because I didn’t fit Guildhall’s idea of what jazz music was. I was interested in so much more than just a course title.
On the scene at that time (about 8 years ago) there weren't many people who looked like me or came from a similar background as me, and I wasn’t sure how the music I wanted to make would be receieved at that time. Thankfully, the scene has changed and I’m so happy to see more diversity in the UK jazz space. I think there's no better time to be a Jazz musician from the UK than now!
Greg: Yeah there are tons of incredible BAME Jazz musicians coming up in the scene right now, its a great time to be part of this movement for sure!
What’s your biggest inspiration behind your new EP - ‘States of being’?
I would say the bands and artists I have worked with up to this point. It's been amazing to absorb knowledge from different styles and different artists’ view points. I would say notably ‘The House Gospel Choir’; they taught me that music is about energy, and most importantly, making music with the intention to leave the listener with a positive universal message. Also writing with the alt-rock band ‘The Last Dinosaur’ was mind-blowing. It’s amazing how they use innovative production techniques and field recordings. Not my usual genre but such great music.
LD: ‘States Of Being’ is a concept EP where each track is a feeling, emotion, or “state of being”. I've chosen to focus on these emotions in my music as they are my story and are part of the trials and tribulations that I have gone through in my 20s; which sadly started with the passing of my father. Looking back, that was a huge moment in my life.
Describe your music-making process?
LD: Typically, I start by using Logic to come up with a mini sketch; maybe some nice chords, a bass line, or a melodic idea. The beauty of working on Logic (and other DAWs) is that you can try things, even if they don’t musically make sense at first, and just really play around with your ideas. The first idea might even come to me whilst I'm traveling, and in that case, I would make a voice note on my phone by singing/humming - I must look weird on the street sometimes haha!
Greg: F**k it, it’s all about the process man! If it works, it works!
LD: I would then develop a demo with my core production ideas and structure, score it, send the demo to the band, and they would work their magic! Lastly, I go to the studio, and work with my producer to really bring the music to life, and experiment with things until it’s right! For ‘States of Being’ I had the concept in my head. It was all about finding out how to bring the music to life. It's all about merging live elements with more complex electronic sounds.
If you could learn one instrumental that you don’t play, what would it be?
LD: Definitely keys or guitar, if I was sick at the keys I would just love that. I do play keys a little bit but not to any kind of performance-based standard, I use it more for composition purposes. Other than that, actually… Steel drums would be cool!
What do you do aside from music?
LD: Aside from music, I love playing video games, cooking (people go crazy for my macaroni cheese or apple crumble!). I always like having a project on the go, so I DJ and curate/book music events at The Matchstick Piehouse in Deptford, which my friends run. My proudest moment with that was convincing Steamdown to do their nights at the Piehouse. In lockdown i've started learning French as i've always wanted to learn another language.
Greg: Thats good man, love how active you keep yourself man! I’m the same in the sense that I always like to have a project on the go… Life gets stale if you don’t.
Top 5 jazz musicians of all time?
Wayne Shorter - For his legendary compositions.
Kenny Garett - For his tone and technique, love his compositions as well.
Miles Davis - For daring to be different and evolving with the times, and just his contribution to the genre and just the teams of musicians he got together.
Dexter Gordon - My all-time favorite saxophonist, his sound is really big and wide. He plays bebop in a melodic way and plays with a lot of emotion.
Robert Glasper - I respect his blending of genres, his collaborations his commitment to making jazz more relevant.
Who would you like to collaborate with from the UK?
LD: For me, it would be someone like Blue Lab Beats, or Joe Armon Jones! Or… on a completely different vibe, like Lady Leshurr or Ms Banks!
Some advice for someone looking to get into music?
LD: Firstly, I would say, make sure you enjoy what you do. Without this, there is no point to any of it as music is a hard road to go down, and you need the resilience to keep going. Secondly, Surround yourself with people who understand your talents and can see your vision as a musician. As an artist, you want to make sure you can do much more than just your core talent. You need to be in a group of people who really support you and push you to try things out of your comfort zone; without judgment. Community and collaboration is key. Lastly, everyone's path is different and everyone's timeline is different so keep going and be wary of the cliche, “one-size-fits-all” advice.
Some general/life advice for your fans and listeners?
LD: Be true to yourself and surround yourself with people who are genuinely on your side and team. I think that people you spend your time with and invest in can really make or break you. if your core people don’t understand you, allow you to be yourself and don’t clap for you when you're doing well; you may suffer. You need people who will challenge you in a supportive way because it takes a lot of guts to put yourself out there and to be vulnerable. Sensitivity and being vulnerable are not weaknesses, they are strengths.
LD: Also, if you want to go for something, just do it. Don’t worry about failure. Often what you learn is invaluable and you will inevitably pick up skills along the way, that you can use in the future. You will never know how something will go until you try it.
LD: Lastly, to reiterate my point, everyone’s on their own timeline and their own path - don’t allow people to dictate when you should make certain moves in your life, whether you should take longer to do things or a shorter time. Only you are equipped to know what's truly right for you and so what if it doesn’t look quite right to society or anyone else.
What’s next for you as an artist?
LD: I want to cultivate some live work/online performances as soon as I can really... I want to keep myself busy by writing new stuff, and perhaps by releasing some remixes from States Of Being further down the line.
Where can people find you (socials, website etc…)?
LD:
Instagram - www.instagram.com/lewisjdan/
Twitter - www.twitter.com/lewisjdaniel/
Facebook - www.facebook.com/lewisdanielmusic/
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