Last night - I dreamt of Tom Holland.
Okay. Technically it was this morning. But… I know what you are thinking…
Why is a handsome 39 year old black man dreaming of a fugly 28 year old actor? 🤔
I don’t have the answer to that. But if it makes you feel better.. I was also dreaming of Bruce Willis.
Alright… let me explain.
It was a scene from a movie. 🎥
Bruce Willis was the old grizzled dad from the midwest. Buffalo plaid flannel shirt. 5 O’clock shadow. Budweiser in hand. Grumpily, and silently watching over a party at his house. A party that was going on too late. And, too loud.
There is tension in the room. Voices are loud and biting. Everyone is on edge.
But this song comes on. And the mood in the room shifts.
People who were silent start talking. Couples that were fighting start hugging. 🤗
And… Tom starts dancing.
Now imagine. Tom Holland. Carhart T-shirt and, like his dad Bruce, wearing a similar styled flannel shirt wrapped around his waist. Tom is in the kitchen… dancing. He starts slow at first, but begins to lose himself in the memory that the music brings. Lit by the blue neon light of the sign that hangs over his father’s mechanic shop. His younger cousin’s start laughing. His mom start’s clapping. It’s starting to spread, the energy, the joy, the hope.
My Tom Holland AI fever dream looks like Matt Rife 🤣🤣🤣
Family starts gathering round. Tom is in his bag now. Arms spread wide to each side. His right leg pumping up and down to the rhythm as he spins around.
And slowly… ever so slowly it starts to spread… A smile. Creeping warm through the glacier of Bruce Willis’ face. Joy melt’s his cold heart and like the first trickles of a spring stream melting from his icy facade, a tear forms in his eye.
I wake up. Like..
That was weird.
I grab a drink of water. And I try to go back to sleep. But I can’t. I can’t remember the song, but i can still feel it’s pulse. And the words keep repeating in my head
“I don’t care, as long as we dancing together. And we dance like it’s forever”
Over and over again. Energizing my mind, my limbs. “💩!” I think to myself. “Not this again”
See … Sometimes I dream of music. More often than not, the songs fade away not to be remembered. But sometimes, they stick, and start growing as I try to cling to the night, but inevitably like the sun rising. They grow, filling my mind with melody and the most infectious of feelings… Hope.
The potential of what this song could be drives me. I reach for my phone, open a voice note and groggily mumble rap the melody. Trying to get it out of my head to be visited again later.
I try to sleep. The melody fades at first. But then starts to crescendo again. “💩! 💩! 💩!”
The battle is over. I’ve lost this one too many times. Next thing I know.
I’m in the studio.
Headphones on.
First - I tap out the tempo. 118 bpm
Next I lay down a simple four on the floor bass drum punctuated by snares, and hihats.
Then the melody
“As long as we dancing together. And we dance like it’s forever”
I’m sketching. Grabbing the sonic colors near me as quickly as a thought comes up in my head. Happy accidents occur as little rhythms start to layer together.
There is something here. And then…
An idea.
You see it’s July 23rd, 2024. And if you’ve been paying attention. Something monumental just happened. Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race, elevating Kamala Harris to the top of the ticket. I’ve become my father. And, too often dive into the new cycle. But this is history. You can’t blame me for paying attention. But perhaps. What you can blame me for is diving too deep into the undercurrents.
Perhaps this all started with a tweet (or maybe an ‘X’?). Gov. Jared Polis posted three emojis. A coconut. A palm tree. And an american flag.
🥥 🌴 🇺🇸
— Jared Polis (@jaredpolis) July 21, 2024
Then this happened
I don’t love it. But hey - I’m sketching here.
Then the NY times and, and them start reporting on lime green, sans serif font memes about this being a ‘brat’ summer. And now I’m listening diving deep into TikTok and Charli XCX.
Okay.. if you’ve made it this far. You’re invested. We’re besties. I trust you. So…
Welcome to #demotape
This is where I debut way to early versions of songs that could be “Vibes”
Vibes - a short musical message designed to get you from where you are at to where you want to be.
I said I trust you. So this is where the audience participation comes in.
You see.. after one night of caffeine fueled click spiraling. And 4 hours of not enough sleep capped by Tom Holland fever dreams. I made this.
It is messy. It is unmixed. And a jumble of ideas.
Part youth anthem.
Part Ode to Immigrant mothers. You know the type.
Hi mom! 👋🏿
But I am at a fork in the road.
Should I go left?
→ Young People Vibes
(Start-1:13)
Or should I go right
→ I Love my Mama Vibes
(1:13- End)
So help a brutha out and cast your vote.
And yes… I could go all Justin Timberlake/Timbaland circa FutureSex/LoveSounds and “mash it up” (best read in a patois) but I’ve been told I should focus more and I’m trying to listen more to the amazing women in my life.