Q&A: JAM & Philly Debuts Suave New Single “Bring Home”
☆ BY Kristian Gonzales ☆
Photo by Archit Upadhyay
ESTABLISHING SOUTH ASIAN IDENTITY IN POP AND R&B — Brothers James A. Mathew and Philly Mathew, musically known as JAM & Philly, are making ambitious moves to solidify a new voice in the genre. Finding themselves skyrocketing into the music space with support from Converse, the Chicago-bred duo is slowly heating up for the release of their upcoming January debut, Falling In Falling Out, through their self-owned label Outer Voice. Succeeding their singles “Sweetest Bittersweet” and “Clock In,” they linked up with fellow South Asian artist Neha Dharma for the uptempo bop “Bring Home.”
Dripping with alien synths and the brisk snap of drums, the trio takes turns serenading listeners with a sugary sweet combo of catchy hook melodies and punchy verse flows. “‘Bring Home’ is about looking for your forever person: a real love that lasts a lifetime,” JAM explains. “Someone you can laugh with, cry with, run away and hide with.”
Striking like lightning with their music, their career initially seemed like a pipe dream for JAM & Philly. Initially envisioning a traditional path, fortunes changed for the duo in November 2019, when JAM’s campaign video to become Harvard’s next student body president went viral, garnering over 5M views on social media, as well as the attention of several celebrities, including Kerry Washington and Dwyane Wade.
In the blink of an eye, JAM found himself working for Converse through the interest of the company’s chief marketing officer, and by the summer of 2020 the duo gained a major boost in composing music under the mentorship of Tyler, the Creator for Converse All Stars, a marketing film for the brand.
Additionally empowered by encouragement from Tyler’s manager Christian Clancy, JAM & Philly launched Outer Voice in 2021 in partnership with Converse to increase South Asian representation in mainstream music, taking inspiration from the recent success of labels such as 88rising. Raising the flag for their diaspora, the duo hopes to uplift others. With “Bring Home,” they’re helping to shine a light for peers such as Neha Dharma, who finds herself on a similar trajectory after catching fire as a content creator and performer in the Broadway-bound Come Fall In Love – The DDLJ Musical.
Eager to dig into the duo’s peculiar story, we caught up with JAM & Philly to learn more about their roots, lessons from Converse, their mission in starting Outer Voice, and their road into the release of their debut album. Read the interview below.
Photo by Kevin Wang
LUNA: How did the both of you get started in music and when did you each find your own lane as a duo?
JAM & PHILLY: As brothers, we grew up around music together. We learned instruments and started singing in grade school but properly became a duo when we started to write our own music. Philly took to production, starting almost every beat on the piano. JAM always loved writing and took to lyrics. We created the melodies together. We made music to ourselves for over five years before ever recording in the studio.
LUNA: What were projects that made the biggest impression on your taste and approach as artists?
JAM & PHILLY: Nothing inspired us more than the R&B/hip-hop of our childhood — artists like Kanye West, T-Pain, Ne-Yo, and more. We got a shared iTunes account in 2008, [and] “Heartless” was the first single we ever bought … Year of the Gentleman was the first album. These genres and the artists we listened to most embodied several elements that we incorporate in[to] our music: soulful, instrumental-heavy production, lots of vocal layers and harmonies, and well-crafted lyrics.
LUNA: In your initial intentions to follow a more traditional career path, was music always in the back of your mind as an alternative option?
JAM & PHILLY: It was and it wasn’t. Music was a lifelong passion that we knew would be a dream career, but we didn’t consider it a viable path until just before pursuing it. When JAM was just about to head off to college, there was a pretty well-connected manager who expressed interest, but that world was too foreign to our family for us to take the opportunity seriously enough. Everything worked out at the right time a few years later.
LUNA: When you got the attention of Converse with your campaign video for Harvard’s student body president campaign bid, what qualities did they see in you that made them want to start a partnership?
JAM & PHILLY: “Creativity with intent” was the phrase we landed on with Converse. That campaign video used music to run for an office and directly promote an inclusive vision for Harvard’s campus. As a brand, Converse was looking to align with the next generation of creatives committed to social impact. We started our working relationship with Converse in a strategic capacity, helping to build Converse All Stars, a program for the brand to resource young, diverse creatives.
LUNA: Was there any anticipation of where this work was going to lead your creative passions, especially if it resulted in a drastic pivot you didn’t expect?
JAM & PHILLY: We couldn’t have predicted how fruitful the work would be. Converse took an interest in the two of us as artists and opened up multiple doors for us to tangibly pursue the entertainment industry. Their insight and connections allowed us to realistically consider the career, especially after years of uncertainty around it.
LUNA: How was the process of composing music for Converse’s All Stars ad? Were there any nerves in getting mentored by Tyler, the Creator for this project?
JAM & PHILLY: That was an amazing experience. It was our first time composing music for any brand, and to have Tyler involved was extra special. Showing him one of our first drafts was definitely nerve-wracking, especially because we had been warned by the Converse team that Tyler will say if he doesn’t mess with something. We played the piano melody live for him on a Zoom call and were relieved that he liked it.
LUNA: What were the most impactful lessons you learned from him and Clancy that shaped your experiences in starting Outer Voice and your approach toward music?
JAM & PHILLY: Tyler’s most lasting word was to not trust anyone’s opinion more than your own, even when it comes from people on your team. You know your art better than anyone else. Clancy was the person [who] planted the seeds for our business thinking. Beyond our own artistry, he advised us to create a community of other artists to grow around, similar to how Tyler had with Odd Future. After we told Clancy about the low representation of South Asians in music, he encouraged us to do something about it. That guidance to lean into our culture and find artistic community sparked our mission for Outer Voice, a South Asian American record label that we launched with Converse in June 2021.
LUNA: Onto your new single “Bring Home,” what was the process and inspiration behind the track?
JAM & PHILLY: “Bring Home” happened at a moment when both of us had recently gotten out of relationships. After a few failed experiences, we were both in the headspace of wanting to find something that could actually last. The type of people we could “bring home” and “put a ring on.” The creation process was faster than it’s ever been for us, from production to melodies to lyrics. The inspiration was just so organic and strong.
LUNA: With Neha Dharma’s feature, how did her presence change the dimension you had for the song’s vision?
JAM & PHILLY: We wanted this song about finding a forever love to be a dialogue. Neha is such a talented creative, and her voice makes the hook a conversation, capturing that special feeling when two people choose each other. As a successful content creator, her experience with social media has also been a great help in brainstorming ways for us all to promote the song strategically.
LUNA: Can you give any teasers on how “Bring Home” brings a glimpse into what you guys have in store for your upcoming debut album, Falling In Falling Out?
JAM & PHILLY: “Bring Home” is the first track of eight on Falling In Falling Out. It is the epitome of falling in love and how optimistic things are in the beginning. Each song progresses the story of this relationship by introducing distinct experiences, whether it be attraction, doubt or acceptance. As artists, we love conceptual albums that have a cohesive narrative, whether sonically or lyrically. We’re really excited to bring ours to life.
