The Houston rapper shares his bad experience getting drunk for the first time and how it influenced his new song.
When Cory Jreamz, who held our rapt attention with last year’s ‘Gods‘, talks about developing his upcoming performances other rappers don’t even factor into the equation. The rivals he’s gunning for are Dame Zaha Hadid and Es Devlin. The former is an internationally renowned architect while the latter is a stage designer best known for the Watch The Throne tour and the closing ceremony for the 2012 London Olympic. Those are the ambitions Jreamz sets as he drops his first single since last year’s raging ‘Freedom‘ (which had ambitions of its own with its “still tryin’ to be better than Hemingway” line).
Now Jreamz shares ‘Drunk In Toronto’, the new single off his upcoming EP Brando which straps you into a stream of consciousness ride through a night of drinking in Toronto. It’s a song that feeds the sense of grandeur alcohol brings (“call me Lord Brando”) but with every repetition of “I can’t feel my face” Jreamz slides the song into an increasingly nightmarish space changing the context of Different Sleep’s glitzy, late night beats.
We caught up with Cory Jreamz recently over email to talk about the night in Toronto that inspired the song, his now-untitled album due later this year, and his work with artist Erin O’Keefe on the art direction of his new work. Listen to ‘Drunk In Toronto’ now and read our interview below.
What was the inspiration for ‘Drunk In Toronto’? It’s such a distinct title it really creates a scene in your mind.
Ironically enough, my first time getting drunk was in Toronto. I took the scene from that night and just wrote a song about it. Drinking is something I was always apprehensive and very conscious about. Last September, I went to Toronto to shoot a video, and beyond my control the plans for that completely fell apart. Once I found out the video shoot was canceled I kinda wilded out and hit the bottle for the first time. I ended up at a party that led to me fighting with a window — which the window won. The next morning I woke up with glass in my hand. Drinking still isn’t something I’m too keen on, but it was a strong enough incident in my life that inspired me to write this song.
This is part of an upcoming EP, how has that process been?
I’ve been recording most of the Brando EP and my album in places such as New York, Toronto, LA and Houston of course. Both projects will be worth the wait, I haven’t put out anything since Invictus in December 2013. I feel like the artwork for the project should get noticed too. I got one of the most innovative artists now, Erin O’Keefe, to handle the art direction. That was special to me.
Do you have any plans for later this year?
Once both projects are out I’ll start the performing process. I’m excited for people to see my live shows, the experience will be something you don’t see. From props to background visuals, I’m bringing my A-game. I’m in competition with Zaha Hadid and Es Devlin. I want my shows to be on that level one day.
