Music<\/a> background, a beautifully forlorn falsetto that explores everything from existentialism to mortality and a wide range of genre-agnostic influences, Khamari primarily operates in the blues lane of R&B, while never forsaking his contemporary approach to narrative songwriting.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tLast winter, Khamari parted ways with RCA, citing creative differences, and joined forces with independent record label Encore Recordings ahead of his new full-length, the enrapturing To Dry a Tear<\/em>. Introduced by singles such as \u201cHead in a Jar,\u201d \u201cSycamore Tree\u201d and \u201cLonely in the Jungle,\u201d Khamari\u2019s sophomore album distills two years of life experience into 11 incredibly lush and seamlessly sequenced tracks. Across the album, Khamari gets introspective regarding withering romances, crises of faith and the frustrating allure of distance. Pulling from D\u2019Angelo\u2019s \u201cUntitled\u201d and the understated drama of Jeff Buckley, To Dry a Tear<\/em> finds Khamari building on the sampling innovations of his debut, while reaching new heights as both producer and arranger.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\t\u201cA lot of the things I was aiming for on this project were an imperfect version of something already,\u201d he tells Billboard<\/em>. \u201cWhen I listen to D\u2019Angelo or Jeff Buckley, none of that s\u2014t is perfect. It\u2019s a very raw version of what they had in their head, and it\u2019s a very musical, dramatic emotion they experienced. Trying to translate that into something today can be difficult in terms of production style, but that\u2019s definitely something that I fought for. I don\u2019t want it to be perfect; I just want it to be this <\/em>version of imperfect.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tBelow, Khamari discusses crafting his sophomore LP, parting ways with RCA and the rise of rock influences in contemporary R&B.<\/p>\n
\n\tWas there a particular song that signaled to you that you were headed towards a new album?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tEvery song is so individual in the creative process that there wasn\u2019t one song that was [clearly] the centerpiece. There were definitely dope moments along the way, like writing \u201cLonely in the Jungle\u201d and \u201cSycamore Tree\u201d and \u201cLord, Forgive Me\u201d and \u201cAcres.\u201d Those were such specific moments that I was like, \u201cThis is definitely going to be a part of whatever I do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tWho did you most closely work with to bring this album to life?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tMy collaborators are still similar to the [Brief Nirvana<\/em> cast, including production duo Trackside]. I brought in a lot of my musician homies and my music director, Q, to help me flesh out ideas that I started in my bedroom. I play a lot of keys on the album, as well as guitar. I\u2019m also leading the production that ties everything together. I play bass on \u201cLonely in the Jungle\u201d too. I had a hand in all of the parts for songs like \u201cLonely\u201d and \u201cLord, Forgive Me,\u201d even if I didn\u2019t play them myself.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tHow would you compare the experience of creating a project driven by samples to one that\u2019s not?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tWith samples, you have to be respectful of the [original record\u2019s] history and context. You\u2019re thinking about where everything came from, what it was a part of, and what it meant to other people and how it feels. With original music, starting from scratch is so dope because it\u2019s a blank slate, and the possibilities are endless.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tBut that\u2019s also why it\u2019s hard. You\u2019re making sure the parts don\u2019t just feel good musically, you\u2019re also ensuring they feel tightly knit enough that they\u2019re memorable for anyone that\u2019s not a music head. It\u2019s daunting to try and find a very distilled version of something that feels musical and is still very original, given that everything\u2019s already been done.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tYou flip D\u2019Angelo\u2019s \u201cUntitled (How Does It Feel)\u201d on \u201cSycamore Tree.\u201d Is there added pressure when you\u2019re messing with a song of that magnitude?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tI didn\u2019t run into that. I genuinely try not to put out things that I don\u2019t love. I obviously respect the history of D\u2019Angelo and what he\u2019s done for R&B music, so when something like that comes up, I\u2019m like, \u201cThis is a part of my history too.\u201d It\u2019s a part of my inspiration and my process. I\u2019ve listened to it as many times as my parents; it\u2019s in my blood. I don\u2019t feel pressure in that way \u2014 but there\u2019s definitely that moment when you hope he or whoever is going to clear the song hears that I\u2019m trying to pay homage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tJeff Buckley is also a major influence on this album\u2019s sound. What drew you to his music?<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tI\u2019m always looking for inspiration outside of what other people who look and sound like me would be inspired by. Jeff Buckley was it for me. He came up in conversation with my manager, and I listened to him one day, and I was like, \u201cHow the f\u2014k did you not put me onto this s\u2014t earlier?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tI love Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Strokes and alternative rock, but [Buckley] was one person I\u2019d never heard before. There\u2019s such drama in his music, voice, and even his guitar-playing. He plays so gently, but he\u2019s also very aggressive in the same way that there\u2019s drama in a Kanye album. I was able to really appreciate that and figure out how to bring some of that into what I do.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tWhat was the most difficult song for you to land on a final mix for?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tAll of them. [Laughs.<\/em>] If you ask me, the mixes still aren\u2019t done. There are songs that took longer than others because there\u2019s more going on in them. \u201cSycamore Tree\u201d and \u201cLonely\u201d were the two songs I had the most versions of. If I were given more time, I would change a lot.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tA lot of people think I\u2019m an artist who never stops working on a project \u2014 and I kind of fell into that thinking that about myself, too. As creatives, we feel like the thing to say is that we\u2019re hard to please. Sometimes, it\u2019s just that you know things aren\u2019t right, but you don\u2019t know how to navigate yourself to that place of rightness. More and more, I realize that I do actually know what\u2019s right. I\u2019m also very aware that I can\u2019t always be the executor who gets it across that finish line. I don\u2019t think I\u2019m unpleasable, and would work on an album forever, but I do recognize when things don\u2019t feel the way I feel. It\u2019s a balance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tIt feels like we\u2019re hearing more R&B songs with rock sensibilities penetrating the mainstream this year. Why do you think that might be?<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tI think about that all the time. I\u2019m not an anthropologist, but music is always reflective of the culture. It\u2019s self-expression, so it\u2019s going to mirror what\u2019s going on in our lives. We\u2019re all anxious. I look at [Playboi] Carti, and that\u2019s the new rock to me.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tPeople want more for themselves. Whether it\u2019s because of our phones, the way we digest things or how much we\u2019re pushed to consume things, people want to express themselves more. They don\u2019t want to be told what to do. Not just in the U.S., but in the world, we\u2019re all internally anxious and looking for a way to release this thing that\u2019s bubbling inside of us.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe instrumental arrangements got the same level of care as the vocals and lyrics on this project. Why was that important to you?<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tThere are so many people who are dope musicians. I went to Berklee [College of Music], I did the whole thing, and I wanted to be that person. But I realized there\u2019s a difference between being a good musician and being a producer, knowing how to make a record, and knowing how to make something palatable enough for people who aren\u2019t musicians to appreciate. That was a skill that I had to really work on to develop, because otherwise this s\u2014t can get crazy, musically.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tI was actively cognizant of how I could distill this moment, and that was through repetition and fine-tuning phrasing and instrumental arrangements. Does the music evolve or loop? Does the topline then evolve to better serve the chorus? I didn\u2019t want the musicality to be so broad and engrossing that it became distracting. That\u2019s what movie scores or operas are for.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tWhen people hear music, they don\u2019t necessarily want to hear how talented the musicians are. As a musician, I do \u2014 but people want to move more than they want to listen. They want to feel things. They aren\u2019t necessarily like, \u201cOh my God, that bassline is crazy!\u201d There are so many artists and songwriters who are top-tier musicians of our lifetimes, but the musicality has to stick out like an extension of the songwriting.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tNina Simone understood that; she was a pianist, but her instrument was the song. I\u2019m trying to grow more in that direction. I\u2019ll just pick up instruments as they feel right, and if it\u2019s the right way to tell the story, not necessarily, so I can be flashy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tTo Dry a Tear<\/em><\/strong> really emphasizes the \u201cblues\u201d in \u201crhythm and blues\u201d and explores that side of the genre beyond love and romance. Was that intentional?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\t100%. I wanted this project to feel more narrative than my last one. On earlier projects, I wanted to get out of the box that I put myself in, which was writing love songs. I was tired of writing love songs and things that I felt people expected from me. My manager once told me that whether you\u2019re writing about something you hate or something you love, everything\u2019s about love. That\u2019s why I gravitate to writers like Frank [Ocean], SZA, The Weeknd and Kendrick [Lamar], because they write about love through subjects you wouldn\u2019t expect.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tOn El Dorado, <\/em>I was searching for that place. On A Brief Nirvana<\/em>, I was looking for a moment of peace. To Dry a Tear<\/em> is coming from a narrative perspective because it\u2019s about being present. Instead of wanting more and wishing you were somewhere else, it\u2019s about standing still, acknowledging life, and telling those stories.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tWhen did you part ways with RCA? What led to that decision?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\t[Winter 2024]. It\u2019s difficult. A business has to make business decisions, and, as an artist, I try to make decisions based on what I think is right for the art. Sometimes, that may not align with what the expectations are for a business partner. It\u2019s all love. It\u2019s all about the team.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tWhen did you partner with Encore? What made that decision feel right?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tThis partnership fell into place around January, soon after [I parted ways with RCA]. I felt like they understood me and what I want to achieve \u2014 and, most importantly, the way I want to achieve them. It doesn\u2019t matter if you become the biggest artist in the world if you end up not being the artist you want to be. [Encore Recordings president] Ned [Monahan], who\u2019s on my team, was one of my biggest early supporters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tWhen I put out El Dorado<\/em> and we got a random top 15 spot on the New Music Friday , before I had any real editorial placements, even though I was on RCA at the time, Ned gave us that shot. He\u2019s at Encore now, so it\u2019s a cool full-circle moment that made the decision to partner a no-brainer. You want people who have seen you grow throughout the years and still want to be a part of that.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tIf you turned <\/strong>To Dry a Tear<\/em><\/strong> into a movie, who would direct and who would star?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\tI gotta go with Denzel [Washington]. One of my favorite directors is Christopher Nolan, because he\u2019s got such a f\u2014king twisted way of telling a story. He\u2019ll start in one place, and you think it\u2019s going this way, and then it\u2019s a zigzag that brings you back to some place that was kind of adjacent to where you expected, but equally as refreshing.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.billboard.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cIt\u2019s hard singing about s\u2014t that feels sad,\u201d says Khamari. And with buzzy, somber tracks ranging from 2021\u2019s \u201cDoctor, My Eyes\u201d to this year\u2019s triumvirate of To Dry a Tear pre-release singles comprising the bulk of his catalog, Khamari knows a thing or two about sadness.\u00a0 After officially debuting with 2020\u2019s Eldorado EP, scoring an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1974684,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[310971,21800],"class_list":["post-1974683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-genre-rb","tag-music"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Khamari-Talks-To-Dry-a-Tear-Leaving-RCA-Jeff.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1974683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1974683"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1974683\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1974684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1974683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1974683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1974683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}