Samuel Seo

Cy's Top 10 2019

Cy’s Top 10 Hip-Hop & R&B Albums of 2019

Another year. Another crop of extraordinary hip-hop and R&B albums from South Korea. To keep things simple (and as a challenge to myself), I decided to consolidate these lists into one ultimate list of Top 10 albums from the country. So without any more preamble, I give you my list!

Honorable Mentions

Obviously there were going to be some honorable mentions. These are just a few of the albums that I couldn’t go without mentioning this year!

Junoflo – Statues

The title track alone was enough to land him on my list somewhere. Every time I think Juno can’t get any better, he roundhouse kicks me in the jaw. He continues to get better with every release. Showcasing just how dexterous an MC he is.

Nuz – Island Songs

This was a surprising album for me. While Nuz has made a name for himself sitting in the neo-soul pocket, he released this piece of moody fare and threw me completely off guard. It’s dark. Boding. Heavy. Something thick and intense I wasn’t expecting.

SOMA – SEIREN

She’s teased us with EPs for the past couple years. Finally SOMA gifted fans of her smoky voice a full-length album. It’s what we expect from the sultry songstress. Sensual. Playful. Gorgeous music!

Now really. Here’s my Top 10 list!

10. SHIROSKY – The Seed

SHIROSKY is the type of producer that intends to make you feel things you weren’t expecting to in the middle of the day. She brings warmth, sensuality, immense pleasure to her sound. “The Seed” is lush. A sort of decadent feast for the lover of music. Her blend of R&B and jazz conventions is like pouring a finger of brandy on a cloth of silk lying on your belly. It tickles and excites. Really a gorgeous piece of music that had to be in my Top 10.

9. EPISODE – EPISODE 1

First of all, who allowed all this soul to come out of South Korea like this?! At this point in my journey with music from the peninsula, you’d think I’d have expected something like this. But, of course, your girl is a fool sometimes. Horim is an absolute gem. Vocally he recalls all the neo-soul of my childhood without any of the gimmicks of some of his peers. It’s just pure, natural, beautiful R&B without frills. He’s able to tell a story with just his vocal work! Gorgeous and unexpected discovery for me. Also thank you, Mother Earth, for the beauty of “Badu”! (Shout out to Mrs. Ann One for the rec.)

8. Yeo Journey – Paradise

Yeo Journey is an enigma. His music is shrouded in this overbearing darkness. He separates himself form most R&B artists who use the genre to wallow in love (or love-lost) feelings. Yeo Journey instead uses the heavy undertones of the genre to bring out the parts in us cloaked in mystery. Paradise is a thick, warbly creature that creeps into your psyche and latches on tight. It both intrigued me and left me unsettled.

7. BewhY – The Movie Star

GOTTASADAE!” ‘Nuff said. If you want to know any more than that, you’ll have to listen to this masterpiece yourself. Believe me, it is a work of art. Constructed within an inch of its life. BewhY is truly a master of the long-form aural metaphor.

6. MFBTY – Dreamcatcher

There’s no way you can have an MFBTY release in the year and not include it on your Top 10 list. These are the veterans of the game, and every time they release something, it demands your attention. The album’s title track is exactly what you’d expect from the trio. Reckless music. Heavy beats. Utterly nasty lyricism and flow. You can’t go wrong with the legends Bizzy, Tiger, Yoonmirae.

5. Jimmy Brown – Re:

I don’t know what I was thinking sleeping on this man for so long. Yes, I’d heard his work here and there the last couple years. It wasn’t until this year’s “Re:,” however, that I realized what an absolute gift this man’s voice is. Sensual, melodious. Jimmy Brown‘s EP is quintessential R&B. Straight from the root of the genre. His voice absolutely melts me every time I listen to it. Shame on me for waiting so long to be spoiled like this!

4. Golden – Hate Everything

All I can say is thank everything holy that G.Soul is back. Yes, he’s rebranded himself as Golden. Quite frankly, the name is apropos. Everyone and their grandmother knows this man has a voice like the richest honey, the smoothest silk. I’ve missed this. The vocal dexterity. The utter and absolute heartbreak. More than anything, I’ve missed hearing an artist put their entire gut into a song, no matter the subject matter or the musical composition. Golden he may very well be. But his voice is absolutely priceless.

3. Lim Kim – GENERASIAN

This. Chick. Right. HERE! I don’t believe I’ve been so soundly smacked in the face! Snatched within an inch of my life. This woman came through like a hurricane with one job. Seek and destroy. Lim Kim is the hero we didn’t know we needed. She’s fearless. Loud. Powerful. I’ve said it a million times: I love me a woman with a big mouth. Ms. Kim puts it to devastating use, proclaiming with her entire chest just who she is. If “Yellow” didn’t leave you speechless, “Digital Khan” swooped in with a mace and knocked all your teeth out. If you want an example of female power: GENERASIAN!

2. Samuel Seo – The Misfit

Anyone who knows me saw this coming. At this point, I’ve talked about these albums enough that any more words would do them injustice.

I’ve said it a million times, and I’m determined to say it a million more. Samuel Seo does not make bad albums. He’s just incapable of it! The Misfit is an absolute feast for fans of music. Every corner of this album is constructed with care and precision.

1. Crush – From Midnight to Sunrise

But at the end of the day, Crush takes the crown. From Midnight to Sunrise is… If you couldn’t tell from my review of the album, I’ve never been this moved by an album from the country. Samuel Seo comes pretty damn close every time he releases something. DEAN has a tendency to punch me in the gut from time to time. But this album…? This was an absolute and utter work of unfettered art. Talk about a gut punch. This thing wrapped its warm fingers around my heart and squeezed from first note to last.


Damn, was 2019 a year full of music! As always, this isn’t an exhaustive list. I also always moan about how painful it is to make these! There were so many albums that just missed my Top 10. In the end, however, this is how everything fell. What were some of your favorite albums this year?

Samuel Seo - The Misfit (album cover)

Samuel Seo’s “The Misfit” is a Work of Art

This man just doesn’t know how to make a bad album. It’s like he’s physically incapable of doing so. It makes sense. Samuel Seo doesn’t release work every three months. He takes his time to develop, learn, nurture his sound. It’s obvious in the way he’s crafted The Misfit.

Inspiration vs. Imitation

I will say this. Samuel Seo knows his music. He thrives in the nuance of ’90s R&B and it shows. The risk for artists who derive much of their influence from others is their own voice gets lost. What we get is music that, while good in and of itself, is little more than imitation. Good music that’s good because, well, we’ve heard it before. For a few moments Seo runs into that exact issue. D’angelo is heavy in his sound for The Misfit. In fact, the first two tracks on the album (“Breathe,” “Misfit’s Anthem”) are very similar in style, tone, and delivery to the opening notes of D’angelo’s Black Messiah (“Ain’t That Easy”) and Voodoo’s “Devil’s Pie,” respectively. Dangerously similar.

Tracks “Yeonhui-Dong” and “Olive Session” reach a little further back and take influence from D’s Brown Sugar. I applaud Samuel for his dedication to a genre that he obviously has a great deal of love and respect for. However, I’d caution any artist to be very careful when excavating the discography of legends.

Something Borrowed, Something New

All that in mind, I can’t begrudge the talented musician his affections for the genre. Warnings and even hesitancy aside, from third track “Notting Hill” on, Seo showcases just how versatile his voice is. Not so much the tone or technicality in his singing. Rather, he has a mind for melody. Harmonies that are tightly packed but still have an unimaginable amount of air in the notes.

Even in tracks that have noticeable familiarity, he carries his own groove. A natural bounce and sway to the music that manages to distinguish itself from its influences enough to identify as something uniquely Samuel Seo. “Notting Hill” in and of itself grabs from samba, bits of bossa nova, and undeniable nods to West Coast jazz. (He throws in a few seconds of psychedelic soul at the end for good measure.) An amalgamation of sounds that results in one of the album’s most mystical and technically intricate tracks.

We get songs like “Ice Cube” and “Coastal Wave” that showcase Seo’s relaxed interpretation of neo-soul. Again, while his influences are overt, he manages to inject every ounce of his personality and maintain the aural aesthetic of the jazz-infused R&B subgenre.

From the Soul

What’s most interesting about the way he delivers his music is just how close to its soul roots it is. This is what makes him one of the most consistently good artists to come out of South Korea. His delivery, execution, the way he interprets the music is so genuine. There are moments when he can’t really shake the spectre of his influences. However, even then an observant listener will recognize a man using his voice to pay homage, not imitate.

This results in some honest-to-goodness soul music, separate from nods to his influences. Track “Really That” is a legitimate addition to the genre’s very specific canon. While track “8 8 3” takes the genre and adds a layer. Nods to, of course, D’angelo, but even Tom Browne with the bassline and US3 with the jazz-heavy aesthetic. Not just a nod to R&B. An addition to the conversation. He takes the historical significance of Soul music and adds relevance. Not an imitation. A sound that’s nuanced and personal.

The World According to Samuel Seo

Beginning with the lamenting “Something & Nothing,” the latter half of the album explodes into something more openly emotion driven. This is Samuel Seo in relation to the world around him. While reminiscing about his own evolution as a man, he questions the environment that molded his past. “Something & Nothing,” “Really That,” and “Good Morning” see him reaching inside for inspiration. The overall aesthetic even takes a subtle change. “Good Morning” borrows some of the beat-heavy R&B of Anderson .Paak a la Malibu. Using a combination of West Coast old soul and storytelling that goes further to define Seo’s artistry.

We then come to track “Playaplayaplaya.” The song that most epitomizes the Samuel Seo sound. It’s the jazz-forward R&B/Soul that has defined his aesthetic since Frameworks. Bits of Raphael Saadiq. Heavy on the Soulquarians in musical composition. But there’s just something unique to Samuel Seo in the delivery. He’s never hurried. Never insistent upon himself as a vocalist. The focal point is the feeling. The groove. How the music gets into you and causes you to bob your head, sway to his smooth cadence. All the while integrating very poignant lyricism.

His desire to peel back some of the harsher realities of South Korea’s society is as effortless as the way he incorporates genuine soul into his brand of Soul music. “Ordinary Kids” is his commentary on the strict (many would say overbearing) educational expectations that define much of the country’s backbone. It’s also the most English we hear him use. There’s an almost biting desperation for every listener to sympathize with him. He makes liberal use of repetition. Not redundancy, but reiteration to force the listener to really pay attention. He ends the song a cappella on the same resounding sentiment: “Dreams are born in the streets, no school.”

Emotional Core

Undercutting the entire album is this emotional core. Something that resonates without the listener actually realizing it. It sneaks in through tracks with more of a focus on the overall groove. With the final tracks, specifically “Yi Yu” and “The Misfit,” there’s an urgency to the tone. Something that drastically deters from the overall mellow mood of the rest of the album. You can sense Seo reaching deep into himself to pull out his truth.

In “Yi Yu,” he proclaims, “We all have a reason to live” on an elongated note that resonates even as the song spirals back into lilting instrumentation. “The Misfit” shows him reflective. A man looking back on his journey to this point and acknowledging the need to float away from the expectations of society and even himself. His voice stretches a bit further. He soars on the higher parts of his tenor, voice breaking in an emotional crack at the highest note’s crest. For the first time he deliberately makes use of vibrato. He’s quite literally taken flight, giving his voice the wings to “sail away.”

Conclusion

There’s so much brilliance to glean from The Misfit. Indeed, Seo has certainly proclaimed himself as something of an outsider in a market saturated with R&B crooners. For what it’s worth, that’s not exactly a bad thing. His music sets itself apart because it’s so very meticulous. The Misfit is a work of art. Plain and simple. A relevant piece of R&B-Soul that gets more interesting with every listen.


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Samuel Seo

“I’m a Simple Guy”: An Interview with Samuel Seo

To be honest, when I started writing this interview, I wasn’t sure what direction I wanted to take it. How much should I really reveal here? Believe me, I went back and forth about this. Samuel Seo has everything I love in an artist: fearlessness, passion, and a big mouth. But how do I show that honestly without potentially getting him in some hot water? I found my answer in something he said to me during our conversation: “I’m just being honest, sis.”

That’s all I needed.

“Just a local musician…”

Our opening exchange is a bit awkward. I’ll take full blame for that one. Phone calls and first introductions are, by their nature, weird interactions. The typical bit of salutation:

“Hello to all the readers. I go by the name of Samuel Seo. I’m a singer, songwriter, rapper in South Korea. Yeah, just a local musician.”

I had the immense pleasure of seeing this man perform for the first time at MU:CON at SMTown Theater. While he did get to SXSW in 2016, unforeseen issues with his visa meant he wasn’t able to actually perform. However, he admits MU:CON blessed him with another opportunity.

“It turned out great,” he says enthusiastically. “Sending me to Tokyo, Japan, to perform, and that was one of my dreams.”

All of this is really just a means to ease into the thick of the interview. So let’s get to what you’re all really here for.

Throughout his career, Seo has made various musical transitions. It all seemed so very calculated. Every new avenue explored with intention. It was interesting to find out in an earlier interview around the release of “Ego Expand (100%)” that he never really focused on his musical evolution. That being said, as his music has matured, so has he. That goes along with how he approaches the creative process.

“It kind of evolved into something different,” he says. “Back then all I cared about was just the sound and what I should write throughout the song. But now it’s like I should change the culture, you know what I mean by that?”

This is when things take a very different turn than I could’ve ever expected.

Ignorance Is Bliss

His fascination with bringing more of Korea’s real culture into a sound not native to the country stems from something many fans of Korean music see, but very few artists (and their fans) will admit. “Most of the R&B, hip-hop players in Korea are…” He begins boldly, then pauses. When he has these moments of contemplation, it’s never because he’s trying to figure out how to cushion the blow. No. Samuel Seo is very determined to be honest by any means necessary. As a result, he often searches for the right words to say exactly, exactly what he means. When he finds those words, though, it’s like a punch in the teeth.

He begins again after a few seconds. Then he hits me with one of my favorite phrases in an interview: “It’s just my point of view.”

“All most [Korean R&B and hip-hop artists] do is just copy what the States are doing.”

samuel_seo-billboardkorea

“Damn!” It just slips out of me. I’m not exactly accustomed to any Korean artist saying that so plainly. No mincing words. No beating around the bush. 

“It’s true,” he continues. “And they have no intention of studying deep inside what the root is and what the culture is, where the culture came from. So my focus right now is how to reform the culture into Korean from, no offense”–the only time during our entire conversation where he strives for delicacy–“the black culture. And on the side of cultural appropriation stuff? I care most about that.

“Yeah, it’s the basic stuff that they’re missing.”

Anyone who’s read anything I’ve written on the subject knows this is a point of contention for me. How do I, a black woman in the States, reconcile my love of some of the music with the reality that many Korean R&B and hip-hop artists wear my culture like a costume? I’ve always wondered if it’s by choice or if artists genuinely don’t know and revel in their ignorance.

“I think it’s the latter,” Seo says. “They don’t really care about where it’s from. They just do it because they think it’s cool, I think. But I think we need to have more respect for that culture.”

Welcome to My Zone

There’s a fiery sternness to Seo’s voice. I realize this is a subject that’s preoccupied his thoughts for some time as well. His feelings about his unofficial first album, 2013’s “Welcome to My Zone,” is testament to this. While in my mind it was an intriguing first step, Seo has a wholly different perspective. It shows in the hearty laugh he barks when I mention how different “…Zone” is to anything he’s released since.

“It’s a complete mix of what I thought back then was cool and that was all. Without even thinking about what the culture should aim for.” He says unabashedly, “I consider that album the most lame album I’ve ever put out in my entire life. That was the lamest album. But with that album I learned something. As I put out new albums since then I started learning new stuff step by step, so it changed me a lot.”

My intention is to assure him that “…Zone” really wasn’t terrible by any means. I can’t even get past the front door with the sentiment. “Lame! Thoughtless!” he says, laughter and small bit of ire coloring his words. “Lame, thoughtless, stupid… Thinking of the culture side, that’s such a dumb album I put out.”

Regardless of how he feels about it, “…Zone” was really just a young mind trying to find his voice. One can’t fault him for that. “Yeah, it was like 10 years ago, so…”

“It’s gonna happen…”

However, even this moment of self-flagellation means nothing without an actual solution. How does Seo think artists should bridge the gap between the music and the culture it comes from?

samuel_seo-misfit

“The first way to reform it properly is to only study the way of how they do music. Don’t try to copy the culture is the first step, I guess,” he says. “Just the music, how they do. But not the stuff they write about because it doesn’t really happen in Korea. Especially the stuff about money and stuff. Yeah, that doesn’t really happen in Korea. So maybe I thought that I should start focusing on the stuff that us Koreans can only write about.”

It’s a simple enough outlook. Write what you know. Hip hop and R&B have been in South Korea for over 20 years at this point. I’m curious to know if he sees this mindset of “ignorance is bliss and a paycheck” changing as we head into another decade of the genres in the country.

“Well the thing is I’m the one that’s starting it right now, so it’s gonna happen,” he says brazenly. “It’s gonna happen throughout the next ten years.”

Another thing about Samuel Seo? He’s cocky as all hell. No, not arrogant. There’s no sense of self-congratulation here. Cocky in that way where he makes you believe 100 percent in what he’s saying.

There and Back Again

It’s certainly an interesting juxtaposition to the young man who at one point thought about giving up on music. After leaving the military, he found himself in various part-time jobs. A sort of man adrift in the world, searching for his right fit. What exactly made him lose his love of music?

“Well that’s ’cause I found cooking a lot more interesting back then than music.” Yes, it’s funny, but this man’s deathly serious. “I was working at a restaurant, a Japanese restaurant called Hongdae Donburi, that’s a local one here. The main chef there was like, ‘Yo, if you don’t like music that much, then why don’t you just join us in the kitchen and start grabbing a knife? That’s gonna be a lot more fun.’ So I was like, why not? Maybe I should try it. And, I don’t know, it was kind of fun.”

Obviously, it was a temporary solution to what really just seems like a case of post-military malaise with a healthy dose of ennui thrown in. It’s not an easy rut to get out of. So, then, what pushed him to give music another try?

“Probably the album ‘Frameworks,’” he says. “It got me to win the award in 2016, The Best R&B Album in Korea. I guess that’s why.”

“So you thought, ‘I’m pretty good at this. Lemme hop back into it.’”

“That’s exactly what happened!” There’s that laugh again. Open. Guileless. Loud! “I’m not a complicated person,” he says, his volume matching his effervescence. “I’m a simple one. Just a straight guy!”

I have to come out and say it. Y’all, this guy is so damn funny! I spare a thought for his surroundings. I hear the midday bustle of Seoul in the background. The rush of cars, the murmur of people on the sidewalk. Seo’s laughter is full-bodied and not at all subtle. One can only hope those who walk past him aren’t judging him too hard.

With the Culture

This does bring up an interesting point, however. Though he’s loath to label himself, Seo is an R&B and Soul artist. His music draws a great deal of influence from the likes of Raphael Saadiq and D’Angelo. With the “Elbow” EP, you hear New Jack Swing. With “UNITY,” obvious jazz conventions. How does he take influence without copying?

“That’s a hard question,” he admits. “Before I got to work on the ‘Misfit,’ album I absolutely had no idea on where or how to do music properly. I didn’t even think of the culture side of stuff. But as soon as I started working on this latest album I started to focus more on the culture of Korea, that’s all.”

Whatever the influences, Seo focuses on how to mix them with his own culture and experiences.

“’Cause it’s fun!”

The truth? Samuel Seo has an almost exacting desire for honesty and authenticity. Unquestionably, it shows in the way he creates his music. No matter what, he’s determined to make each moment count. Each second spent creating is done with purpose. He’s admitted to not spending much time thinking about his musical evolution. But something in the back of his mind must spare a thought for elevating his craft. Yes, yes. I actually say this. Yes, he gets at me for the phrasing with that crazy laugh of his. 

“I always think about elevating ‘my craft,’” he says, a taunt and chuckle in the words. “All the time.” More laughing. The moment passes, and he does sober up quickly. “I’m more interested in doing better music than just walking around the street, getting recognized, or hitting the clubs, hitting on the girls and stuff. I don’t have any interest in that kind of culture,” he says with passion. “All I care about [is] how to do music better than I did yesterday, that’s all I care about.”

So, then, how does he stop from becoming stagnant? What keeps him motivated to actually be better?

“’Cause it’s fun!” he says.

samuel_seo-5

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, that’s all. Why would I do it if it’s not fun?” 

That’s all well and good, but most find it easier to just stay solidly in one lane. (The old adage: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.) Is that his philosophy as well, or does he find more ease in switching it up?

“Well, it’s both,” he says. Then, “I don’t really care about change or staying. I don’t care about the way I go. All I care about is whether it’s fun or not. That’s all. We don’t even know if we’re gonna die tomorrow.” Again his voice rises. There’s a ghost of laugh, but he’s completely serious. “All we have to do is focus on today by doing something that’s fun. That’s so important to me.”

It’s All About Now

However, whether he realizes it or not, that’s not an easy feat in our modern social constructs. We’ve been rapidly conditioned to always need approval. To always need people to “like and share.” To “subscribe.” To pay attention to us. In truth, this is what breeds the culture in music of releasing singles. For the most part, the effort, and more pertinently the time it takes to make a full album is too much of a risk in a world where staying relevant is superior to cultivating a legacy.

Not to Samuel Seo. Not by a long shot.

“It’s all about making… how do I put it? I don’t really like using the word ‘art,’” he admits. “Nowadays everyone’s using it. But I think making a certain form of really great art is way more important than to commercialize songs, you know what I mean?”

Given the nature of social media and “now now now” culture, that mindset is quickly dwindling. However, with those we consider the modern greats–your Frank Oceans, D’Angelos, Lauryn Hills–so much time goes between their releases. How does Seo avoid feeling pressure to always stay relevant?

samuel_seo-2

“To be honest I don’t even think about it. As long as I do music I’m pretty sure on what I’m doing, no one’s going to do better than what I do for a while.”

“Bold, bro.”

“Look, I don’t care,” he says emphatically.

“Why shouldn’t I?”

He does emphasize the point he only feels this way about making music in Korea. But all this comes from a man who participated in one in an ever-growing list of “reality” competition shows: “Breakers.”

“It was fun!” he says, honest exuberance coming through the phone. “That’s all. The staff of the show called me one day, and they were like they were trying to make this one show called ‘Breakers.’ ‘Are you down here? You wanna join?’ I was like, why not? I got nothing to do anyway. So let’s do it!”

I’m mostly curious about his thoughts because he participated on “Breakers.” Anyone who’s been even a casual follower of MNET’s elimination talent programs understands the definition of “reality” is very loose. The channel has a somewhat unhealthy obsession with, shall we say, “creative” editing.

This snatches another laugh out of him. “There’s this one thing that happened before the show was aired,” he begins. “The staff were like, ‘No matter how you were presented to the audience, don’t be scared, it’s gonna pass.’ That’s all they were saying to me,” he revealed. “I didn’t even get to see how it was edited until the day it was aired. So as soon as I saw how I was being presented through the show I was like, ‘What have they done to me? Oh my god!’”

samuel_seo-dazedkorea

As with most things, however, Seo takes it with a grain of salt. “Still, it was fun. So it doesn’t matter.”

“You don’t mind the whole competition part of it?”

“It’s happening. There’s nothing I can do about it, right?” I have to contend his point.

With how wantonly the channel portrays participants, I wonder what Seo thinks of shows like “Show Me The Money.” His answer, unsurprisingly, is as honest and downright bold as everything else he’s said so far.

“Lame!” Again with that laugh of his. “You agree, though, right?

“Well… Let’s just say I’ve only ever gotten past the first couple episodes before giving up.”

“I’m only going through the short clips,” he says. Then after a beat, “To see how stupidly they’re doing!”

At this point, we get a bit lost in conversation about the nature of the beast. The sudden change of heart of many artists who were adamantly against being on those shows, then ended up on them anyway. “I know!” he says incredulously. “I’m still wondering why that happened. And maybe that’s the reason why I’m not famous yet.” We share another laugh. “ I think I’m the one who’s doing things right, so I don’t care.” Cocky as hell. I have to say, I honestly love it.

At the end of the day, however, for Seo, it boils down to one thing: “Why shouldn’t I go on the TV and do something?”

Vision & Ambition

Exactly. Why shouldn’t he? The fact is, all he really cares about is the music. Anything else is just another part of the experience. “I have respect for every side of what I go through,” he admits.

His ability to just go with the flow, for lack of a better phrase, is most apparent in his music. He’s admitted to having a set goal whenever he makes music now. But he doesn’t allow that vision to hold him back. In fact, one might say it frees him more than acts as a restriction. Expands his ego, if you will. This is fundamentally why I fell in love with his music. Even what he considers “lame” and “thoughtless.” I’ll say it until I can’t say it anymore. Samuel Seo does not make bad albums!

It’s apparent, his desire to constantly improve. Constantly dig for more musically. It’s what makes an album like “UNITY” so damn impressive. He confessed in an interview that the project was a product of his desire to see how it was to work with various people from various musical philosophies and backgrounds.

samuel_seo-4

I can’t help but wonder if he believes that same idea is possible in a real-world setting. Does music in fact have the ability to bring the kind of harmony he aimed for with “UNITY”?

“Of course.” He’s emphatic on this point. “I don’t know if this is the proper example. But there’s this record label that I admire and I someday wanna be signed to. It’s called Motown Records.” Naturally that gets a reaction from me. “Just look what they did. What Koreans need is what they’ve done back in the 1960s, ’70s. Trying to achieve more than what music can do. Because they don’t just consider music as a recreational side. They consider music has more power and more into it. That’s what I aim for here.”

Seo has the type of ambition and hunger for truth to actually pull it off himself. Hey, he’s had aspirations of opening his own music school once he’s decided to hang up his mic. So why not?

“That’s simple,” he says. After a pause, he exclaims, “I’m not that famous yet!” Cocky, but there’s also disarming humility oozing out of him at every turn. “Look, if I’m that famous to be able to open up a huge studio and gather people around me, I wouldn’t be here. I’d be in some other part of the world, some other country.”

However, Berry Gordy started Motown Records with money from one of his sisters. He bought a small house where they used the bathroom as the echo chamber. “You gotta start somewhere,” I say.

“That’s true,” he concedes. “Actually I rented a warehouse in Korea. But I intend to take my time on finding new artists. Not something you can find in a day, right?”

Also true. It’s exciting to note that he’s actually actively seeking new talent.

“I do that all the time. I just go watch some random musician’s concert, see what they’re doing, and just listen to what they think about the music and stuff. 

“Actually I found one in 2019. This little kid’s name is DAMYE. A local musician here too. He’s from, I don’t know, LA? He’s not Korean at all, but this kid is amazing. You should check his album out.”

Samuel Seo: The Misfit

Without a doubt, Samuel Seo’s a busy man. Between competing on “Breakers” and finding artists to add to his future roster of stars, he created one of the best albums to come out of South Korea this year. The entirety of our conversation has led us here. 

His fixation with exposing perhaps some of the less complementary aspects of his culture bleeds into his work. “The Misfit” is a culmination of everything leading up to the very moment of its release. It might be his boldest, most poignant commentary on the culture that raised him to date. What a statement it makes.

The entire album is compelling. However, there are a few songs that really resonate with me. “Something & Nothing” sparks me as a particularly scathing self-examination. As if his best-laid plans amounted to less than he’d hoped.

“Well, remember like ten years ago when I released my unofficial dumb album?” And we’re back. “All I cared about was, ‘Hey, with this album I could be famous, riding around in those big rides and stuff.’ That’s all I aimed for,” he says. “But when time flew [by], it turned out it’s nothing. Right? All that materialistic [stuff] doesn’t matter at all. As long as I can take care of myself and my family, that’s all I need. I don’t care about all that other stuff now.

“It’s kind of gypsy stuff, right?” he says with a laugh. I don’t deny it. We might hate to admit it, but most of us are constantly worrying about paying rent, keeping the lights on, having enough to maybe go out for an occasional drink or meal. 

“It’s real out here!”

“It’s real to a lot of people out here too,” he says. “But I’m glad it’s just not my story, that’s all. That’s all I need. I don’t care about other stuff.”

Undeniably, Seo is very cognizant of his history. Of the uniqueness of South Korean culture. With everything he is, he embraces it with his entire being. Again, his goal is to bring his culture to the music he cares so much about. The music video for “PlayaPlayaPlaya” attests to that fact. 

It’s a gorgeous video. The first features legendary mime dancer Yu Jingyu. With raw passion, energy, and emotional candor, the elder interprets Seo’s lyrics. Surrounded by sand, dry shrubbery, and the looming presence of the mountains in the back, Yu pours his soul into the words. Version number two features Seo in a separate part of the desert. The elder mime is silent (per the nature of the artform). Conversely, Seo sings the lyrics out, head tilted to the heavens. The dynamics are fascinating.

The idea of the older mime is so interesting to me.

“I don’t know about in other countries, but in Korea, the younger ones kind of don’t have respect for the older ones anymore, you know what I mean? But there’s always at least one thing you can learn from the older ones, right? So I really wanted to remind [people of] that throughout the music video. That’s all.”

You contrast that with “Ordinary Kids.” It’s a song that asserts that kids don’t learn or dream from school. They learn from actually living life. Certainly a relatable sentiment. In the States, point-blank, you learn in order to pass tests, not to prepare yourself for the world. Certainly not to believe your dreams are attainable. Pretty gutsy stuff from the perspective of someone living in a country whose obsession with education is staggering. 

“I wrote that song because the culture, the education being hardcore and stuff here, I thought it was stupid, you know what I mean? What I think is if a kid wants to do something, you should let him or her do it.

“As you grow up, going through all the schools in Korea, your dreams are narrowed down, literally. When you were like a six- or five-year-old kid, they got like a hundred different things they can do in their mind. But when they turn 17 or 18, then that’s the time when their dreams are narrowed down into, ‘Well, you can do this. You can do that.’ To only like eight or seven things. That’s a really sad thing.

“So I really wanted to pick that point to let us Koreans be reminded that we are living in a… I don’t know. I wouldn’t say it’s a wrong culture, but it should be more flexible.”

“Do you think that mindset is ever going to change?”

Without hesitation, “I don’t think so. I’m a victim growing up.”

Once again, relatable.

“You should remember this name…”

When it’s all said and done, it does my heart good to hear that he plans to take some time for himself in the near future. Self-care, especially in relation to mental health, is still a very new and nuanced conversation for South Korea.

“I’m thinking of heading over to Bali to spend some vacation. I need some time to rest. I’ve been working too much. Throughout my 20s I didn’t really get much time to take a break properly. So I thought, I think it’s about time to get some rest.”

samuel_seo-3

Yes, it’s true. Samuel Seo’s quite a simple man. However, he has such an incredible belief in himself. Such a strong sense of awareness. The very first thing I notice about him? He speaks clearly and with confidence. Don’t let his opening quips about being just a “local musician” fool you. Samuel Seo knows who he is. Somewhere in his soul he’s aware that others know exactly who he is as well.

“To the ones who’ll be reading this, I know you’re not familiar with this name Samuel Seo that much. But even though it’s your first time coming across my name, you should remember this name. It’s gonna turn out huge!”


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