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Spree Wilson’s Eclectic Guitar
Spree
Wilson doesn’t really like to match. Whether he’s mixing classic rock
sounds with hip-hop or pop production with soulful singing, the
Nashville, Tenn.-reared artist has thrived on defying the odds. With
his latest EP, Evil Angel, the guitar-playing rapper carries
his musical scope even further, producing a project that breaks
boundaries and musical stereotypes, before you’ve even realized what
he’s done. And with his debut album, Beautiful Chaos (due out
in January), the singer-rapper-producer, who has been co-signed by
everyone from URB, to Dallas Austin, plans to take his musicality a
step further. Led by the single, “Word” produced by NO I.D., Spree is
definitely everything but what you’d expect. –j.h.
What is an evil angel?
It’s meant to be a play on words, putting two opposites together. The album is the Beauty of Chaos.
I try to put two things that don’t match, and that’s what I try to do
with my music. It can go together if it’s done well, and that’s the
essence of me as a musician. A lot of different genres can be put
together kind of seamlessly without it being forced or fraudulent.
How’d you start producing?
… I started producing because I was roommates [while living in Atlanta]
with Don Cannon. I’d be like, ‘Don can I get a beat?’ and he’d be like,
‘I got you,’ but he never gave me one. As time went on, I decided that
maybe I needed to do it for myself instead of always asking someone.
Eventually I met [singer-rapper-songwriter] Novel, and he was the first
one to teach me how to work the MP3 and showed me the tricks of the
trade.
You’ve been courted by a lot of labels, but never signed.
I felt like as an artist, I deserved more, not monetarily, but more in
terms of getting my project out there. … Music to me is sacred, and it
matters how it’s presented to people. I didn’t think they were
musically educated in what I was trying to do.
So who are you marketing your music to?
All music lovers period. There’s no group of people, it’s just people
who like music. I don’t like division music. Music is a form of
bringing people together.
