Shamir rose to the spotlight with the release of his 2014 song “On The Regular,” but though the dancy, cleanly-produced music made the singer-songwriter what he calls an “accidental pop star,” it pigeonholed him into a certain stylistic box that proved detrimental to his creativity. With the popularity of that single and his 2015 debut album Ratchet (XL), Shamir found himself facing a question that plagues many rising artists after their first brushes with success; how can you change up your sound when doing so goes against the expectations of your label and audience, as well as mainstream trends?…
Shamir rose to the spotlight with the release of his 2014 song “On The Regular,” but though the dancy, cleanly-produced music made the singer-songwriter what he calls an “accidental pop star,” it pigeonholed him into a certain stylistic box that proved detrimental to his creativity. With the popularity of that single and his 2015 debut album Ratchet (XL), Shamir found himself facing a question that plagues many rising artists after their first brushes with success; how can you change up your sound when doing so goes against the expectations of your label and audience, as well as mainstream trends?…