Mingus Murray wants to reinject funk back into black music
theGRIO Q&A - To mix funk, soul and rock together is a task that many have tried but only few do well and Mingus is the latter...
Mingus Murray is a throwback. He’s a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and has a dress style that’s better suited for the 70s. He stands out — a quality he embraces and something that has become a part of his identity. To mix funk, soul and rock together isn’t an easy task but Mingus does it well.
His sound will remind you of modern-day Sly and The Family Stone, Prince, and Lenny Kravitz all wrapped into one. And that’s OK with the young guitarist. Â We got wind of Mingus about a month or two ago and we’ve been impressed by him ever since. Check out our full-length interview with Mingus Murray below:
MINGUS MURRAY’S JU$T THE ONE FOR ME
[youtubevid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IB58cE7Fwg&w=853&h=480]
How did your journey into music begin?
My mom is a famous photographer whose work has been featured in the MoMa and other high end art galleries. I get a lot of the visual component from her in my work. She’s a big influence when it comes to my music. I translate that into what I’m doing visually and also in my music. And my father, David Murray, he’s a living legend, he’s done everything. I’ve learned from him that there’s always another level that you can go with your music. Whether its improv or doing a solo, there’s always another level to strive for. I’m very influenced by them and even becoming more influenced by them as I get older.
Is there anyone right now in music you’d like to sit down and pick their brain?
I really like Kanye West and the Neptunes, both Chad Hugo and Pharrell. I’d love to sit with them and see the type of knowledge they had. I think they have a concept when it comes their music and they know how to execute it. They’re like performance artists.
What are your thoughts of the music industry today? Are you happy? Disappointed?
I’m very excited. I think there’s a lot of potential in the music industry today. Maybe five or six years ago it wasn’t as interesting as it now. You have black kids listening to punk rock and you have black kids skating. I think the social climate is changing and it’s allowing more interesting things to be accepted.
What do you attribute to the changing of the climate in your opinion?
I think a lot of it came from Obama being elected. That changed a lot. And Andre 3000 and people like that are really carrying the torch for black experimentation.
Have your musical tastes changed as you’ve grown up?
I grew up basically listening to everything I could get my hands on. I really didn’t listen to my father’s work. It wasn’t something that I really took hold of, but it was something that was always there. Now I’m getting older I see how important his music was in my development. I don’t think it was the material he was doing but more so the concepts and the improv around it. I think I was more in tuned with people like Andre 3000 musically. Prince, Sly and the Family Stone. I try to bring the musicianship that comes from jazz to my music as well.
