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. 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.
Music like yours tends to take a backseat to what’s considered to be the popular norm. Do you feel Hip Hop and R&B have a monopoly on what the world thinks black music is?
I do. I travel a lot and when you go to different places what I get is hip hop or some rapper they listen to. In Paris, they listen to Akon because he’s Senegalese and there’s a huge Senegalese population out there. People really adopt hip-hop as black music, because it really does represent black music to the fullest in my opinion. But there are also people who are into searching for good music too. But hip-hop does hold the torch throughout the world.
Do you think your style of music is overlooked?
No I think it’s partly due to artists not connecting to the audience. Micheal Jackson had no problem, and he was an R&B singer pop act. I think with rap, it’s so straight-forward and to the point that people identify with that.
How would you describe your sound in 5 words?
Electro, Erotic, Funk, Rock & Roll.
What are you trying to accomplish as an artist?
I want people to identify with my music. I want people to get back on the train of thought of the funk blues days. Back to it being funkadelic. I think that’s what Kanye does really well. He’s about his progression. […] I have the utmost respect for Kanye and Andre 3000. They’re like my modern day heroes.
For more info on Mingus checkout his website at www.mingusmurray.com
You can check out Kyle’s musical coverage on theGrio music page, and follow Kyle on Twitter at @HarveyWins.