The Light

Album: Back and Fourth (2011)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Jared Evan is a New York-based songwriter/producer/rapper. In 2008 at the age of 19, he won the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival's Spit 16 competition, which was curated by The Source magazine. Off the strength of his performance, Evan was invited to perform several shows including an opening gig for Lupe Fiasco in the fall of 2008.
    In June 2009, Evan signed with Zone 4/Interscope, and that same year his song "Frozen" appeared in the 2009 LeBron James documentary More Than a Game. In 2010 Evan's debut street single "In Love With You," produced by Polow Da Don, was featured on the HBO series Entourage.
  • This single from Evan's second mixtape Back and Fourth was produced by ill Factor (Róisín Murphy, Matisyahu). Evan told AOL Music how the track was created: "Recording 'The Light' was an interesting process. I was recording with Jimmy Douglass and ill Factor in Miami, and we all had the idea to make an uptempo record but to keep it very much my swag. I took a handheld mic and just started freestyling over the beat that ill Factor was creating, and that is basically what birthed 'The Light.' Matt had some ideas for the hook and we just merged that with my freestyled verses, and at the end we all just looked at each other like 'that's kind of a fly!'"
  • The music video features artist David Garibaldi whose specialty is his "Rhythm and Hue" stage act in which he rapidly creates paintings of notable rock musicians. Evan told AOL Music how he came across the performance painter: "I was introduced to David's work by my manager Matt Graham and I was just amazed by his creativity and talent! I told Matt that we had to do something with this guy, and we came up with this dope idea for the video. Matt set up a meeting between David and I in L.A., and I just immediately knew that David and his director Chad Ross were going to create magic with my song."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

How The Beatles Crafted Killer Choruses

How The Beatles Crafted Killer ChorusesSong Writing

The author of Help! 100 Songwriting, Recording And Career Tips Used By The Beatles, explains how the group crafted their choruses so effectively.

Lace the Music: How LSD Changed Popular Music

Lace the Music: How LSD Changed Popular MusicSong Writing

Starting in Virginia City, Nevada and rippling out to the Haight-Ashbury, LSD reshaped popular music.

Steely Dan

Steely DanFact or Fiction

Did they really trade their guitarist to The Doobie Brothers? Are they named after something naughty? And what's up with the band name?

Millie Jackson

Millie JacksonSongwriter Interviews

Outrageously gifted and just plain outrageous, Millie is an R&B and Rap innovator.

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine Band

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine BandSongwriter Interviews

Harry Wayne Casey tells the stories behind KC and The Sunshine Band hits like "Get Down Tonight," "That's The Way (I Like It)," and "Give It Up."

Francis Rossi of Status Quo

Francis Rossi of Status QuoSongwriter Interviews

Doubt led to drive for Francis, who still isn't sure why one of Status Quo's biggest hits is so beloved.