TSS Presents Smoking Sessions With Sean Kingston

"Smoking Sessions With..."    By TSSCrew on July 24, 2007 at 10:26 am

I had never been pitched a story harder by publicist than I had for Sean Kingston. I gotta admit, at first, I wasn’t really trying to hear it. I chalked him up as just another dude with a remix for his street single. Every week I’d get the phone call, and every week the stats would go up. Again, nothing I wasn’t used to hearing, but after a while I got the thinking she wasn’t just gassing dude; that maybe he really was “about to blow up” and that I should take notice. Needless to say she was dead on.

From radio to ringtones, Sean Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls” has been inescapeable this summer, and at 17 years old he has gone from a regular dude making demos, to chart topping vocalist in just over a years span. It’s funny to think that what started as a fateful MySpace message to producer J.R. Rotem to simply listen to his music resulted in being the first artist signed to the platinum plus producers Beluga Heights label with his self-titled debut dropping July 31, but that’s exactly what it is. Promising to “bring feel good music back” Kingston has the world in his scope, and with all the right tools, success is eminent. Despite it all, he remains incredibly humble and down to earth, and while he tries to play cool, his excitement isn’t heard to sense. I mean why not, he’s really about to do it. And what can I say, it may not be for everyone, but in a numbers game, I’m putting my money the rookie.

TSS: What’s going on man, where are you at right now?

Sean Kingston: I’m in LA right now, just got back yesterday.

TSS: So are you taking up full residency out in LA then?

Sean Kingston: I’m just on a promo tour, and here in LA for a couple more days.

TSS: How you do like on the road so far?

Sean Kingston: It’s cool. I like it man, gettin’ to see all the states.

TSS: So what’s up, did they lace you with the tour bus with the stretched Sean Kingston graphics on the side yet?

Sean Kingston: Nah, this is just the promo. You get that bus when you go on a big tour. I might go on tour with September with Chris Brown, so if you get on a big tour like that, that’s when you get the big bus.

TSS: Aight, well I want to kick it off and trace things back a little. I understand you were born in Miami, but grew up in Jamaica. When did you make that move, and looking back what did it mean for you personally and musically?

Sean Kingston: I moved to Jamaica when I was 7. My mom wanted all her kids to go to boarding school, like she wanted all her kids to go back there and learn their roots and culture. So I moved there when I was 7 and came back when I was 11. When I was down there I learned a lot just being around my uncle, being in the studio, the culture, how the music was created and what type of instruments to use. I learned a lot, so when I came back it influenced my music a lot.

TSS: Did you learn to play any instruments, or have you always been a vocalist?

Sean Kingston: Always been a vocalist. I can play the drums a little bit, but I’m not…I’m mostly a vocalist.

TSS: So when did you really start to explore music?

Sean Kingston: Around that time, 7 or 8.

TSS: I know your uncle is Buju Banton, and your grandfather was producer Jack Ruby, how instrumental were they in your development?

Sean Kingston: Not really my uncle, he’s just more of a vocalist too, but my grandfather plays a lot. He plays the drums and the trumpet, the saxophone, just a lot of instruments. Just being around him I learned a lot.

TSS: Would you say growing up and seeing them made you go that direction, and follow music as a career?

Sean Kingston: Yeah.

TSS: Ok. Were they open to helping you out, or how did they steer you in this direction?

Sean Kingston: To be honest I picked up music on my own. I used to watch them, but really music came about when I just wanted to do it, which was 8 years old. I used to watch BET and MTV and just wanted to do music, it was never like ‘okay, this person is doing music so I want to do music.’ It came about as something I wanted to do.

TSS: So you were writing your own songs at that time then?

Sean Kingston: Yeah, I wrote my first song at 8 years old. I wasn’t that good but I developed over time and really I laid my first song when I was about 11.

TSS: Do you remember any of that song?

Sean Kingston: I don’t remember it, but it was a girl song.

TSS: So were you using that to your advantage, using the music to serenade the females?

Sean Kingston: Yeah, I don’t remember the song but it was about a girl I had a crush on school or something.

TSS: That’s what it is. So you’re recording at 11, what were your first steps from there?

Sean Kingston: Basically, I wrote songs and was like ‘yo mom I want to get in there and record this song.’ When I finally got in…I took a lot of takes just to see how they do it and all that, but when it was finished it came out pretty dope. After that I started to going to more and more studios.

TSS: Were you just recording demos and all that?

Sean Kingston: Yeah, just demo type stuff. I was doing mixtape tracks over other peoples beats and just doing tracks to get my name heard.

TSS: Were you performing then too?

Sean Kingston: Nah, I just started performing a couple years ago.

TSS: Sound and style-wise, how have you evolved through the years?

Sean Kingston: I just created my own style, like I’m a big fan of rap and a big fan of reggae and R & B, but I wanted to create my own style that had a different unique feeling with my songs to when I’m on somebody else’s remix they can be like ‘OK, that’s Sean Kingston.’ I just wanted a sound that stood out, and how I came about that was cause I know how to rap, and I can harmonize, and then growing up in Jamaica I’m on that music too, so I’m good at all three.

TSS: Obviously your tastes have been that diverse, but musically have you always been that diverse?

Sean Kingston: Yeah, I always felt like that musically. I probably wasn’t mixing the Jamaican influence, but I was always singing with a little rapping. Something like that.

TSS: Most people know you through “Beautiful Girls” and then maybe “Colors” which is really the polar opposite of “Beautiful Girls.” Is your music that all encompassing sound, from pop hits to street type shit?

Sean Kingston: Yeah, you know, I would say that. “Colors” was my first street track but I wanted to show people I could rap too cause I knew what I was gonna come with next. I knew I was gonna come with some pop R & B stuff. I wanted my first introduction to be a street introduction and let people know like ‘yo, I’m from the hood too. I’ve been through a lot too.’ That’s what “Colors” was.

TSS: So what can we expect from the album? Is it just gonna touch on all spectrums or is it more of a pop album?

Sean Kingston: For those who don’t know the album is called Sean Kingston and it’s dropping July 31st, gotta put that in there. The album is gonna be different man, it’s gonna be crazy. It’s reggae, a lot of rap, a lot of pop. It’s a feel good album. Instead of people talking about guns and calling women all different names, that’s all good, but I’m trying to bring feel good music back.

TSS: I read some quote where you were saying that there wasn’t cussing or anything on the record. It’s crazy that a new artist is the one taking that stand.

Sean Kingston: Yeah, well like I said, I’m not trying to be like the next man, I’m trying to be like myself. People who made it big in my eyes were the ones who were just themselves. They didn’t try to be like anyone, they just did them.

TSS: And then another thing to your credit, you write 100% of your material.

Sean Kingston: 100%. I write all my own music. Music is best to me when it comes from the artist. It’s like you want it to have meaning, and want it to have feeling. I want my stuff to come from me, so that everyone knows it’s my sound.

TSS: Reading how you’ve come with JR and everything, can you even begin to describe how that last year of your life has played out.

Sean Kingston: I mean in the past I was just a regular dude, going to school, living my life, trying to get into the industry. That’s what it was, just thinking when will I get my chance, I wrote JR on Myspace, and boom, I got a deal. It’s crazy. I was thinking like ‘yo, just a minute ago I was cutting demos.’

TSS: It’s a trip; I can’t even imagine. Just seems like your life flipped 180 degrees real quick. Is that stressful, or were you prepared to take it on?

Sean Kingston: I was prepared to take it on. This is what I always wanted, I was just patiently waiting.

TSS: Any surprises so far?

Sean Kingston: No, not really. Not yet.

TSS: Ok, let’s talk about working with J.R.

Sean Kingston: Yeah, I’m the first artist on his label. J.R. is a talented dude, like he comes up with beats like 20 minutes. Very very talented, and he’s got an ear for good music. He’s just a little dude from Oakland, but you’d be surprised. He can make reggae, jazz, he’s a classically trained producer…

TSS: Yeah, I read that, that he was playing classical or whatever and someone was like ‘yo, you can make money if you make beats.’

Sean Kingston: EXACTLY! It’s crazy. And then he’s super cool, just real humble. For a dude who’s made so many hits, he’s real humble. He’s like an older brother to me. We laugh and clown, but when it’s business we get it done. Sometimes he’ll have the beats ready, sometimes we go in and come up with it together. Depends on the vibe and mood. We’ve recorded about 30 tracks, and trimmed it down to about 15.

TSS: So at this point, all things are a go?

Sean Kingston: Yeah, it’s ready, I can’t wait. I haven’t heard the final album yet. I’ve heard it, but not in its entirety, mixed down and mastered.

TSS: Damn, that’s kinda crazy. So what’s it like, I mean we hear people saying the music industry is crumbling and all this, granted you don’t have anything to compare it to, whats you’re take on things?

Sean Kingston: I mean it’s cool, you just gotta lay your foot down. You’re a new artist, they might like one track, you might like the other, but they want to hear more of the other. You gotta lay your foot down like ‘yo, I ain’t no one hit wonder, I’m here to stay. ‘

TSS: So you don’t feel like your stuck in this shifting of the industry?

Sean Kingston: Nah, the ringtones and all that, if you connect with your fans and make great music, then you gonna sell some records. If you’re not connecting with the fans, and just being an artist…you gotta keep making great music. That’s why I say I’m making feel good music. I want everyone to vibe to it.

TSS: Last question, what do you want for yourself, for this album or the future?

Sean Kingston: I just want people to vibe to it, and see what type of artist I am and notice the lane I’m trying to drive in. I’m not a one hit wonder, I got big records. Just touch all the bases and make it happen.

Sean Kingston’s self-titled debut will be in stores July 31 on Epic/Beluga Heights. For more info visit, www.seankingston.com and www.myspace.com/seankingston

Listen to “Colors” (Audio) featuring Vybz Kartel.

Sean Kingston – Beautiful Girls (Video)

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