Avant is not a stranger to the music industry; he released his debut album, My Thoughts, in 2000 and has been rocking since. Known for his smash hit, "Separated," Avant made it clear to music lovers that he was not another one hit wonder. Throughout the years, the R&B crooner has collaborated with several hip-hop and R&B artists, recorded seven studio albums, and released a plethora of hit singles.
With maturity and an appreciation for "REAL" music, Avant understands that these key ingredients elevated his career. He understood this concept when he released his new album, Face the Music, in February 2013. He took the time to chit chat with Singersroom about never forgetting the true meaning of rhythm and blues music. It was vital for Avant to include a mixture of new and old school content on his new album because if he doesn't appreciate and learn from R&B legends, the music will lose its' creativity and zest. Avant also expressed his definition of R&B, performing on stage, and fans knowing more about Avant, "the person."
Performing LIVE at B.B Kings… Its' a beautiful thing man, every time I come here so much energy and people know real music. And that's what I'm all about! I'm about promoting real music. I came up listening to the greats so I feel like we have to do them justice when we put this music out.
Songs That Avant Loves Recording… I have to say it has to be some of the album cuts, the songs I performed today, and also the song "Get Away"; because it's heartfelt and there's people going through some things in their everyday life. It's cool being in the club, having a good time, but when you go there, you try to cope with whatever you're dealing with and you get back in the car, and you dealing with the same s***. So sometimes you need something therapeutic to make it happen. So that's what I try to do.
The New Album, Face the Music… Honestly, I wanted to talk about the greats of the past, like Marvin Gaye because they gave us something; they passed it on to us so we have to do something with it and have to face this music. And we can't put out nothing that is not representing them, and that's what it's all about. One time, I was about to go out on stage and one of my homeboys was like, " Yo, AV, it's time to face the music. I said, perfect and it's snapped just like that. So it's a beautiful title.
Main Message From His Music… I am a real cat. When it comes to Avant, he's not going to shoot you the bull. He's going to be real with you and he's going to give you real material. And I love my fans, a lot of people ask me what do you think of the industry? The industry is cool, but my fans is everything. They understand the movement that I'm trying to make here. So it's a beautiful thing.
Interpretation on R&B… I think it's in a good space because I believe that what they're doing, helps what I do, you know what I mean. Everybody is trying to go back and do some more techno type sound music. And to me, it's more about…. When I bring a record out like "You & I", they have to respect it because it's what we love. It also gives you a vibe of what you heard back in the day, but it has a 2013 vibe to it. I love what they're doing, let them keep doing what they do and I'll just keep putting out real music.
Watch the music video for "You & I" featuring Keke Wyatt
Fans Finding Out More about Avant Outside of Singing and Recording… I'm passionate about a lot of different things. I'm passionate about the people and how we're being perceived, not just people in the hood, but people in general. I feel like in a lot of spaces, we're in trouble because we don't understand the power of music. Music makes everything happen in this world. I mean, if you listen to records like "Superstar" from Luther Vandross, you see that and it puts you in a certain mood to make you feel like 'I want to listen to this story, I wanna feel like I'm in love,' but if you put out a record like Shake Your A**, Yeah Yeah, Shake Your A**, that's a whole different energy. But that's the power of music, so we gotta watch what we put out to the people and how it's going to be perceived. So that's what I'm all about. I'm about giving people what they NEED, not what they WANT.
