With his latest offering, Here Now, David Myles has surely solidified himself as the Pop Prince of the East Coast.
Produced by Halifax rapper Classified, the album demonstrates why the collaboration between Myles’ and Classified has been so successful. The two are able to take their very different musical styles and create something new, melding Myles’ soulful melodies with Classified’s hip-hop beats.
The result is the kind of music that made ‘Inner Ninja’ the most successful hip hop record in Canadian music history: infectious upbeat tracks that worm their way into your head and just won’t let go.
Here Now opens with a bang with the high energy, ‘It Don’t Matter’, a song that benefits greatly from Classified’s beat-building skills. It’s probably the best song on the album and will likely be the most successful.
Myles’ switches it up for the next track, ‘Where Do I Belong’, which he says is a tribute to his R&B heroes, like D’Angelo and Sade, with a little trumpet mixed in for good measure.
The album picks up again with ‘Quiet After Violence’, where Myles’ channels Michael Jackson and celebrates the apocalypse with a wicked dance party.
Then the album slows it right back down with the power ballad, ‘Don’t Leave It Up To Me’. Myles’ really stretches himself vocally on this one. The track also features Classified; the only song on the album where the two perform together.
‘Doctor, Doctor’, the first single released from the album, is a feel-good soul track influenced by Smokey Robinson, who Myles’ says he binged on just prior to penning. Fun fact: the receptionist on the track is played by Classified’s wife, Kim Boyd.
The album closes with the chilled-out jam, ‘Learning To Love’, featuring and co-written by Breagh Mackinnon of Port Cities.
Myles’ and his team found a unique way to release the album, too. Coined ‘The Big Share’, fans were invited to sign up for the chance to be one of five chosen to receive an early release of the album. These five were encouraged to share the album as much as they wished, right up until its official launch date.
The marketing plan was a huge success, quickly spreading across Canada, Europe and eventually worldwide, bringing the power of the Pop Prince of the East Coast to the masses.
For more information visit www.davidmyles.com/herenow/