Meet the guy who is bringing back soul. Royce Lovett is an up-and-coming multitalented singer and songwriter who recently signed with the legendary Motown/Capitol Records. The Florida native’s melodic sound has brought him to the forefront of the independent artist circuit. Lovett is currently spreading feel-good vibes on a 20-city promotional tour performing his two debut singles “Write It On the Wall” and “Show Me Love” from his anticipated EP, Write It On the Wall, which is set for a nationwide release on Friday, Oct. 23, 2015.
Lovett spoke with rolling out recently to discuss the idea behind his new project and his musical background.
At what age did you realize you wanted to pursue a singing career?
My mom always had music playing in the house growing up and she was also a singer at church. Music was always a part of what I was doing, but I didn’t start getting serious about it until 2003. At the time, I believed that God wanted me to have a rap career, which then turned into singing.
Aside from growing up around gospel music, what other genres did you grow up listening to that have impacted your sound?
My mom would always listen to contemporary Christian music and my dad would listen to traditional gospel around the house, but they would also listen to Michael Jackson and Marvin Gaye. My brother was sort of a hip-hop head who would listen to Dr. Dre and NWA and my sister would listen to Boys II Men, so I grew up with a diverse mixture of music. Those are the things that influence me when I write today.
Were your parents opposed to you singing music other than gospel?
My parents were really strict on me and my siblings when we were younger. They always taught us to lead and not follow others. A lot of the music that I liked I had to sneak around the house listening to it. The first album that I actually purchased was Snoop Dogg and I hid the album under my bed. As I got older, I found Christ on my own. My parents have a trust about me, because of the way they raised me. I knew who I was at a young age and I knew my purpose.
In addition to singing, you also play the guitar and several other instruments. How did you learn to play?
I have been playing the guitar for about 10 years. I started off doing hard-core rap. I feel like I found my voice when I discovered Lauryn Hill’s Unplugged album. I thought it was so cool to see someone rapping and playing the guitar. Her performance affirmed everything that I wanted to do. I borrowed my friend’s guitar often and would watch YouTube videos to teach myself. I was always the guy that all the Black kids were calling White, because I listened to other music outside of hip-hop and R&B. People should have the freedom to listen to whatever type of music they want to.
With you playing an array of instruments, your live performances must be exciting to attend. What can people expect to see at your concerts?
If I am acoustic, then they can see me and my instruments with an intimate setting surrounded by fun, singing and community. I love to people moving, singing and dancing during my shows. When I see them having a good time their energy transpires back to me. I try to do away with theatrics to make things more personable when performing. I want people to walk away from the concerts feeling like they know me a bit more.
What do you think your biggest break has been thus far?
I would like to say Motown calling and signing me. I was actually preparing to move to Europe at the time when they reached out, because I was touring overseas way more than I was touring in the States. The team I work with is amazing and hopefully this will help get my music out there more.
What kind of music will fans hear from you new EP?
The whole umbrella for my EP is love. There are so many different types of love including romantic love, brotherly love, love for change and love for the generation etc. I think that is exactly what the EP is talking about from top to bottom. Each song focuses on the different realms of love. The world has so much foolishness and hatred going on, so I want to spread God’s love and let people know his love is real. If I could write something on the wall for everyone to see it would say God is real and that is where the theme came from.
