In ‘Contact’ with Tessellated

Tessellated’s rise and success has been a swift one. The producer, songwriter and recording artiste can lend his creativity and flavour to any sound or concept and not just his own music. The single Pine and Ginger was ample proof of this. It was the breakout project he needed to cause a stir on the local scene, and six months after its production and release, it also had international record labels knocking at his door.

The song has racked up close to 20 million streams on Spotify. He’s loyal to traditional reggae and dancehall basslines, but contrasts his sound perfectly by mixing in hints of pop, jazz, and afrobeats. All of this comes with a confidence that few stars have so early on in their career.

Speaking of traditional, the entertainer spoke about the untraditional ways in which social media, particularly TikTok, is changing music, and why for him, somethings must remain the same.

“Right now, TikTok is a major platform, and it’s great, in the sense that it helps persons create unique content. I personally have discovered a lot from it, musically and otherwise, and I have gotten my fair share of laughter from content persons have made and shared. On the flip side, where I would say TikTok is a tool, in addition to all the other forms of creating content to showcase more of one’s personality, there are a lot of industry professionals and labels that look at it as the only means. It causes tension when persons say you have to be making TikTok content every day to go viral when it is supposed to be free expression and viral moments that happen naturally instead of people trying to force these moments,” Tessellated said in his interview with The Gleaner.

He shared that he is a supporter of the platform and people that utilise the space, but it can be added stress as an artiste.

Tessellated acknowledges that social media have helped his own music to reach distance audiences and have contributed to some of the exposure he is receiving, but feels as though “there is a perception that you can’t just be a musician that makes good music, but you have to now consider being a full-time TikTok-er or comedian as well, and it is rough when persons pressuring artistes to do so.

‘Won’t compromise my music’

“Social media is the town square of our time, and it’s seeing constant evolution, different things come, and different goes, and we have had to reshape our perspectives on how we come in contact with others, but it shouldn’t be that it compromises the music. I certainly won’t compromise my music to focus on that side of entertainment,” he said. “I don’t take a break from the digital space often, but when I’m in writing mode, I try not to do anything conflicting. Whatever works for another artiste is what works for them. When in [the] studio, sometimes up to 12 hours at a time, trying to create music and come up with new ideas every day, I don’t have the mental capacity to make promotional content or think when is the best time for engagement or for a post. In my downtime, I’m still active, ready to support others and their posts, but for me, the most important creation I make is my music.”

In 2019, the artiste landed a huge endorsement from Apple Music for his single I Learnt Some Jazz Today, which went number one on the Jazz Billboard Chart, a first for a Jamaican artiste, and it went on to earn Tessellated an Emmy Nomination in the category of Outstanding Commercial. As a producer, alongside self-producing his music, he has been featured on projects with Protoje, Jada Kingdom, Major Lazer’s Walshy Fire, Shenseea and Spice’s 10 album, executive produced by Shaggy, which secured a Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album. He was one of several acts featured on the 2021 virtual staging of the annual music festival SXSW (South by Southwest) and also Cali Vibes Fest.

Continuing the trend of breaking boundaries musically, Tessellated teaming up with frequent collaborators, up-and-coming production duo Circa Eleven – Phillip and Mark Myers – to co-produce his latest single titled Contact, which was released last Thursday, June 9, with a colourful self-directed visualiser to accompany. Shot as one continuous take, the video shows the artiste interacting with an intriguing cast of characters while walking along a picturesque path in the hills of Jamaica. This comes after the duo contributed to several songs on Tessellated’s debut EP Tropics Vol. 1. The artiste said that the track itself was originally written in 2019, and a draft was produced, but there has been a lot of maturation over the past two years that has helped him deliver a better version of the song.

Tessellated has high expectations for Contact. Brim-full of palpable jazz and blues synth melodies on the baseline under vintage reggae breakbeats, the song sounds like a calling card for a moment in time that sees him reminiscing on a memorable first encounter with a woman he finds to be special and unforgettable. The rhythm channelled the sounds of old-school ska records and the mellow vocals of earlier reggae productions.

“It’s the first song I am doing that is more reggae than dancehall and afrobeats, and it was at first slower, but we decided it needed to be something to get listeners into a mood,” Tessellated shared.

“While in studio with Circa Eleven, I asked Phillip if he wanted to try playing new guitars on the track because I wasn’t feeling the ones I had. I stepped outside for about 30 minutes to get some food, and when I came back, he had fully reworked the guitars and bass. As soon as I heard it, I was like, yes, this is it. Sometimes other people bring a different perspective that’s needed. It’s about art and creating a story, and I am excited for persons to hear more of what I have coming,” he continued.

stephanie.lyew@gleanerjm.com