Sly5thAve‘s musical inspirations span the worlds of jazz & hip hop, with recognizable icons like John Coltrane, Charlie Parker & Cannonball Adderley influencing his artistic journey. He released several acclaimed projects, including “Akuma” and the “Vein Melter” EP, inspired by Herbie Hancock’s ‘Head Hunters’. He signed to Tru Thoughts, releasing his “Composite” EP, which featured orchestral covers of tracks by Rihanna, Drake, & Frank Ocean, performed with the Clubcasa Chamber Orchestra. Following the release of his orchestral tribute t Dr. Dre, ‘The Invisible Man’, (through this recording Sly5thAve felt he had found a way to help/make people connect with orchestral music) Sly5thAve returned in 2020 with ‘What It Is’, showcasing his abilities as a talented producer & collaborative musician, the LP featured the likes of Denitia, Marlon Craft, Melissa McMillan & Grammy-nominated Thalma de Freitas as well as that celebrated Sly5thAve’s multifaceted musical nature. 2022 saw him working with fellow composer/pianist Roberto Verástegui on ‘Agua de Jamaica’ and with New York MC/lyricist JSWISS on ‘Somebody’s Gotta Do It’. He has attained much respect from his work with a host of highly acclaimed and household favorite musicians including Prince (as a member of the New Power Generation Band), Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, The Dave Brubeck Quartet, Taylor Swift, Janelle Monae, Freddie Gibbs & one of my personal favorites, Quantic. Sly has toured and recorded as a member of Ghost Note, Quantic and with his own side project, IGBO, and he recently supported Alfa Mist on his North American tour. Here we are now in the beGinning 0f 2024, and there’s something special that feels just right. ‘Liberation’ is his 3rd solo LP. Layered with orchestral arrangements, jazz improvisation and Hip-Hop production, ‘Liberation’ is an accomplished record of courage, musical conviction & growth. Trusting his inner voice & personal taste, Sly found himself liberated from fear by the ease with which the original orchestrations of ‘Liberation’ manifested themselves: The LP is his 1st full album of original orchestral arrangements and features the musicianship of Sly5thAve’s collaborators and Ghost-Note bandmates, headed by Snarky Puppy’s multi-Grammy–winning percussion duo Robert “Sput” Searight & Nate Werth, alongside previous collaborator Roberto Verástegui. Sly5thAve’s passion for collaboration is expressed on singles from ‘Liberation’, as he revitalizes the beloved Destiny’s Child classic “No, No, No Pt. 2” with help from Jonathan Mones; through the MonoNeon bassline of “Monoxide” featuring MacKenzie on vocals and guitar from Peter Knudsen; and on closing track “Big Brother feat. Daniel Wytanis”, a track that features/pays tribute to both “Sput” & Nate, alongside Ghost-Note member/mixing engineer Ben Burget.
I finally got a moment to catch up with Sly5thAve – this was the right time. As ‘Liberation’ is an album that combines many sounds that I enjoy finding in an ear blend. We get into the seed to flower of the record and dissect the title track a little bit. We also talk about how he landed in the world of Try Thoughts Records and what it is about that relationship that feels like home. Since Sly is known for his ability to work on and with others, we get into who he’d like to see himself work with in the future, but you can tell how much he appreciates those experiences of the past. Ghost-Note has a new album dropping soon, so we talk about his pieces/parts with that scene and he builds out an amazing setlist that he’d share if invited to host the proGram. This here, right now!
