Published: 12:00 AM, Fri Nov 09, 2012
Listen Up: Artist Steven A. Clark says musical balance matters
Steven A. Clark has no hesitation calling Fayetteville home, even though he bounced all over the country with his military parents.
The singer-songwriter, who now lives in Miami, explains he spent "those prime years" at Morganton Road Elementary, Seventy-First Classical Middle School and Westover High School before moving to New Jersey his freshman year.
It also didn't hurt to have Air Force parents, an Air Force grandfather and a grandmother who worked on Fort Bragg for 30 years.
Last month, Clark was named as one of SPIN Magazine's Best New Artists. He also released his album, "Fornication Under Consent of the King," in September. Last month, Clark performed multiple shows at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City. It was his second time at the annual music festival that has been the breakout stage for artists such as Bon Iver, My Morning Jacket, Arcade Fire, TV On The Radio, Jason Mraz, M.I.A., Mumford & Sons, and more recently rappers Kendrick Lamar and A$AP Rocky.
"Both times were awesome," Clark said in an interview. "This year, people were actually singing the songs, and that was super cool."
Crowds are singing along now, but there was a time when music was Clark's own little secret. He always had sung but had been mum on details, something fitting of someone dubbed "Most Quiet" in his senior yearbook.
After bouncing around three high schools, Clark returned to North Carolina, attending High Point University.
For Clark, moving back meant returning to a comfort zone personally and musically.
"The most important things I was listening to was definitely in my North Carolina days," Clark said.
Clark said a large chunk of his inspiration today comes from the R&B, pop and radio hits he soaked up during his youth in Fayetteville.
Growing up, Clark remembers his influences coming from big names such as Michael Jackson, Sade and Seal. His mother's musical taste rubbed off on him as well.
"I used to ride around with my mom and hear her play that first Boyz II Men album, like on repeat," Clark laughs. "That song 'It's So Hard to Say Goodbye,' I don't know what it was but I needed to hear that everyday."
Clark said those influences were a product of growing up where he did.
"Back when radio had it and MTV mattered, in North Carolina that's all we got," Clark said. "That's your culture. Seeing those videos, hearing the radio play something new."
After several years in North Carolina, Clark realized his musical opportunities were limited, so he moved to Miami in 2006. Comfort was never the issue. Clark just wanted to see and experience more.
"Wanting to get out of the bubble," Clark said, describing the spark behind the move. "I went back to North Carolina, discovered music and realized I didn't want to be there anymore so I did what I had to do."
Clark's brand of steamy R&B music has recently earned comparisons to buzzworthy transformative R&B acts such as Frank Ocean and The Weeknd, North Carolina duo The Foreign Exchange, and even Seal.
"You never really know how much you touch people starting out," Clark said. "To see comments, and people are like 'Oh, man, your album is album of the year,' and I'm like 'Man, I did this stuff in my bedroom.' It's just crazy to me. It's incredible."
With his new album, Clark said he knew what he wanted from the project after just a few songs in.
"I just felt it," he said. "These things, they make themselves. The songs, they write themselves. You just need to keep going off that feeling."
Clark doesn't really have a concept of where his music is going in future projects. He just wants the process to feel natural.
"That's how you know you're doing it right," Clark said. "There's a way of making popular music and not being a sellout, one of those industry robots."
As accolades roll in, Clark said it means more coming from North Carolina.
"It almost feels better than national recognition, just the fact that you're reaching home," Clark said.
He plans to continue experimenting with his music until he finds that perfect balance of staying true to himself, yet ready for mainstream consumption.
"That's what I'm trying to find. That's the experiment," Clark said. "I'm almost there. I can hear it, I just hope people can feel it."
Staff writer Mike McCray can be reached at mccraym@fayobserver.com or 609-0649.