ADRIAN LYLES INTERVIEW: Inspired by everyone from Childish Gambino to Ray Charles, Adrian seeks to capture the stories and emotions of those around him, revealing pieces of himself in the process as he blends hip-hop, R&B, indie, alt, and pop to form a unique sound. Get familiar…
What five words define your sound?
Free, human, raw, exposed, chaotic.
Tell me something unique about your creative process
I never know what my songs are about until a while after they’re finished. My writing style is very stream-of-consciousness based so I have to discover what I was writing about after the song is written. That writing style helps me stay uninhibited and push myself out of the box instead of feeling like I have to write about a specific topic.
Which song of yours would you like people to hear first?
I personally always show people ‘Than I Am’ or ‘Don’t Expect Much’ first. Those two songs feel really in tune with who I am. ‘Don’t Expect Much’ is the most vulnerable I’ve ever felt in a song. It feels like a very real introduction of who I am. ‘Than I am’ is my favourite song so I love showing it to people.
What inspired you to make those songs?
I take so much from what’s happening in my life. I truly believe that songwriting is just documenting moments and feelings from your everyday life. Both ‘Than I Am’ and ‘Don’t Expect Much’ were just songs that happened because of what was happening in my life in those moments and all the feelings surrounding those moments.
What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music?
I try to let go every single time I make songs. I think if I’m ever trying to be too cool or force something that isn’t me into a song it never ends up working out for me. It’s kind of like a journal where I can admit to every feeling I have except I give it to everyone to read.
What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage?
I think my best experience on stage would have to be the LA show at the Echoplex. I played with Almost Monday on tour. The show from start to finish felt so free and real, and I felt like I was one with everyone on stage. Worst experience was definitely when I introduced my drummer as my guitarist and my guitarist as my drummer. Everyone probably forgot about it right after, but I remembered it for weeks.
What is your favourite song to perform?
Every song I perform live feels special to me in some sort of way, but I would have to say either ‘Than I Am’ or ‘Concrete Boy’. ‘Than I Am’ is just one of my favourite songs and ‘Concrete Boy’ really helps me let go.
Which artist/song/album made you want to make music?
Twenty One Pilots’s ‘Vessel’ album was the first time I heard music that really intrigued me. Once I heard it, I fell so deeply into all kinds of music. I would say right now my biggest musical inspiration is Dominic Fike. Everything about his art is so fresh and that’s a feeling that I always want to be felt in my music.
What’s the meaning behind your name?
Adrian means a couple of different things. I was named after the Adriatic Sea and the origin of the name means Sea or water. I looked it up, and one Greek meaning says it means rich and I like that a lot more.
If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing instead?
I would be in Law School. My parents are both big academic people so I was always raised with college in mind. They were super supportive of the whole music thing which means so much to me, but if not for that I’d be getting that degree.
What’s success to you?
Success has a ton of different meanings to me. I think being able to play any venue I want whenever I want and seeing how my songs have touched people would be the “I made it” moment for me. Having your songs sung back to you is such an ultimate dream of mine. I’ve dreamt it more times than I can count.
What moment in your life/career forced you to change direction?
I never had any plan of doing music at the beginning of my life. I was always in piano, but I didn’t ever see a career in it. I heard a Twenty One Pilots song playing from my best friend’s sister’s room when I was 11, and it changed how my brain was wired. Everything one eightied, and It painted the path of where I wanted to go so clearly. I haven’t been the same ever since.
Where can people keep in touch with you?
EVERYWHERE!! Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, TikTok, Discord and COME TO SHOWSSSSS.
Photo by Cole Ferguson
