FEATURE: Spotlight: BAYLI — Music Musings & Such

FEATURE:

Spotlight

BAYLI

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THIS year is already shaping up…

to be pretty fantastic in terms of new music. One artist I have recently discovered is the amazing BAYLI. Hailing from Brooklyn, she has been in the industry for a few years now, but I think the last year or so have seen her music reach a wider audience. Her newest tracks are her strongest to date. Before coming to a couple of interviews from last year, here is some brief background of the sensational BAYLI:

“BAYLI is an artist and songwriter from Brooklyn, NY. Her anthemic production and infectious melodies were cultivated under the mentorship of music guru, Rick Rubin. Following the 2017 debut of her band “The Skins” and their massive tour with DNCE, BAYLI has stepped into the beginning of her solo career with an exciting jumpstart.

Since then, BAYLI has moved on to become one of Warner Chappell’s most promising new songwriters, she has written with a number of artists across the spectrum of genres including Jesse McCartney, Giveon, Josh Dean, Take a DayTrip, DLMT, Whipped Cream, Baby Goth, Mulatto, Blu DeTiger, Duckwrth, Alex Mali, Bynon, Stefan Benz, Bea Miller, Luh Kel. In addition, BAYLI has found many opportunities working with commercial film/TV sync and creative collaborations (Bose, HBO, ABC, Nickelodeon, AT&T, Entourage: The Movie, Grown-ish, Barbie, The Bold Type, and The Brooklyn Nets, amongst many others).

BAYLI has also grown into a powerful force as a solo and independent artist in 2020. With the release of her debut singles, sushi for breakfast, and boys lie, BAYLI has positioned herself as a talent that everyone should watch out for. As she moves into 2021, BAYLI is set to release her debut ep “stories from new york”.

I think this year is going to be the most extraordinary when it comes to new music. So many websites and publications are making their pitches for the artists that are going to strike hard and linger in the mind. Whilst there are some great bands tipped for success, it does seem that solo artists are at the forefront once more. SLUG MAG spoke with BAYLI back in October. Her remarkable six-Tyack E.P., stories 2, was released that month. It is an astonishing and confident release from one of the most eclectic artists I have heard in a long while. Here is someone that definitely deserves a tonne of support and appreciation. Maybe not as known in the U.K. and is in her native U.S., BAYLI needs to be on everybody’s radar this year:

“Studying at a fine arts school 10 years ago, BAYLI’s discography began to take shape when she signed with Rick Rubin’s label, Universal Music Group, as the lead vocalist for pop-punk band The Skins, giving her a heaping dose of industry awareness at a young age. “I went my own route,” she says. “I thought it was important as a solo artist to maintain my autonomy and creative freedom as much as possible. I’m not anti-label, but I do love being independent. I’m discovering who I am as a solo artist.”

“You can’t co-opt or adopt someone else’s creative process; you have to find what works for you. It’s really a sacred thing, the creation process.”

The discovery period that began with the launch of her solo career at the brink of the pandemic, which she calls her “sonic journey,” refined BAYLI’s eclectic approach to sound, (not hyperpop, not R&B—but a secret third thing) drawing inspiration from powerhouse female artists such as Amy Winehouse, Rihanna, Gladys Knight and Fiona Apple as well as her New York roots. While cultivating her latest body of work, BAYLI ensured that each recording session, whether in LA, NYC or over Zoom, was a sanctuary for release and fluidity. “You can’t co-opt or adopt someone else’s creative process; you have to find what works for you,” she says. “It’s really a sacred thing, the creation process.”

Drawing strength from solitude, BAYLI wrote lyrics facilitating conversations she couldn’t have face to face, with some songs on the EP serving as remedies for others. Her latest composition illustrates the dichotomy within young people adjusting to life after the social standstill, navigating online relationships and self-worth while wanting to enjoy themselves. “In Stories II, there’s high highs and super lows. There’s been a transformative period, for everyone,” she says. “I think it’s easier to tap into the darkness and be stuck there, so I wanted to make sure there was some fun on this record.”

The pot of gold at the end of the Stories II rainbow is “TELLY BAG,” a bright, pixie-esque beat sharing fleeting sentiments with introspective undertones such as, “Lost track of your full name / Quicker than cocaine / Kiss in the stairway / Get rid of the damn pain” and, “But you’re so straight / And I’m so gay.” Deep cuts such as “Think of Drugs” dissect the lack of connection we often have with our families and our own bodies, seeking solace in substances and teleporting away from our minds at a time when we couldn’t physically go anywhere. “It is a catharsis to write about things like that … It’s a product of our generation,” she says. “There are a lot of songs where I’m calling to people from a distance. The isolation isn’t bad, but it’s just what happened, and I like to reflect on what’s happening in my life. It’s like therapy for me, but there is an ultimate goal of it reaching other people for them to feel seen and heard; sharing things that need to be addressed.”

Declaring herself a “songwriter first,” BAYLI uses her skill as a storyteller to ground her sense of direction and sovereignty as an independent artist. “I write for other people. I obviously make my own music; it’s really important that I have control over that myself and don’t give that to a corporation just yet,” she says. “Even working in more of the underground, indie spaces, there’s always five to 10 people in my ear telling me to, ‘Try this,’ ‘Work with this person,’ ‘Try this sound,’” she says. “As an artist, we’re very open people, but you have to stay grounded so you can make the right choices for yourself and not do it for anyone else”.

I will end with an interview from DORK. Going back to September, it is clear there is building anticipation here in addition to America. It seems that she is very much a future icon that is going to inspire so many other artists. I am interested to see if BAYLI is touring this year, as I would love to see her perform live. After a remarkable E.P. release last year, it will be intriguing to see what steps she takes next:

“Climbing the ranks of the new pop revolution leaderboard is Bayli – a New York-born and bred pop icon in waiting. Boasting co-signs from Shygirl, Mura Masa and the late great Sophie, her first EP ‘Stories From New York’ gave us an insight into her pre-pandemic life in the big city. We catch Bayli for a chat between her first UK tour and the release of follow-up EP ‘Stories 2’, the second act that celebrates her beloved city opening back up.

“I try to make bangers all the time, but I think a lot of my lyrics and what I like to put out comes out very intimate and very, like chill vibes that are deep introspective songs,” says Bayli. She’s in New York (obviously), a place she’s recently moved back to after dabbling in the LA lifestyle for a few months.

But it’s neither of those cities that have inspired her latest single, ‘TELLYBAG’. Nope, it’s London. It’s Bayli’s most unapologetic banger, pulling together a drum and bass beat and the bouncy energy of Beyoncé’s comeback ‘BREAK MY SOUL’, adding in a fake British accent and a chorus line that simply goes “you’re so straight, and I’m so gay”, it’s a pride anthem that perfectly summarises Bayli’s ethos.

“I feel like everyone’s coming back outside, so we needed something that the girls can really turn up to together in the club, at a party or whatever. So it’s really cool now to be a few months later with ‘TELLYBAG’ playing at Pride, seeing everyone outside safely as a community, you know? I feel very good about how I’m flowing.”

Ditching the conceptual idea behind ‘Stories From New York’, going with the flow has been her approach to making a second EP. That showed when she dropped follow-up ‘Think of Drugs’, a melancholy track that details her upbringing in a household surrounded by drugs.

Bayli grew up in the Brooklyn neighbourhood Bed Stuy, raised by her parents, who she refers to as ‘city hippies’ – they met in a club, her dad an ‘encyclopaedia of music’, her mum moving from the UK, and a part of the punk scene – and thanks her community for giving her all her best assets.

“My parents were very artsy, cool, 80s party people. They were very free; they gave us a lot of freedom to see things for ourselves, express ourselves, try different things, which a lot of our friends around us in our community didn’t have. So I’ll always have gratitude for my parents for being that open, and letting us discover ourselves without feeling too judged”.

“I am an artist who tries to reflect the times and my community, and those voices that maybe we don’t hear so much in the mainstream pop worlds. I’m just literally trying to keep pace with where the world is, going with the flow. It’s definitely a roller coaster ride. It’s not as slow and steady as ‘Stories from New York’; it’s really fun.”

Bayli describes her biggest influences as ‘aliens’; those who are pressing to change the status quo, are strong women, and empowered in themselves. She notes everyone from her mum, to Lauryn Hill and Amy Winehouse, to Georgia O’Keefe as heroes. “I think that’s the type of artist that I’ve evolved into, at least right now where it’s like, I do want every single song to have a conversation that maybe is hard and uncomfortable to have, but we have to have it”.

If you are looking for an amazing artist who will stay in the heart and will be in the industry making wonderful music for years to come, then back and follow BAYLI. She has such a beguiling and addictive sound. Showing her love for some legendary artists of the past, I think that the New York-born icon-in-waiting is going to reach the same heights as such of her heroines. If you have not heard the music of BAYLI, then make sure that you add her into your playlist…