In the world of R&B, Kevin Ross is one of the most accomplished vocalists of his era. Since coming to prominence, Ross has captivated audiences with his infectious songwriting and silky smooth vocal delivery.
As a songwriter, he has penned songs for Jamie Foxx, Trey Songz, Toni Braxton, Nicki Minaj, Johnny Gill, and SWV just to name a few.
After debuting as a solo artist in 2017, he released the critically acclaimed albums The Awakening, Dialogue in the Grey, Long Song Away, Drive, Audacity, Vol. 1 and 2, and Midnight Microdose, Vol. 1 and 2.
For his latest project, Ross recently released his new single “Love In The Middle”, another bop about the beauty of love and we come to expect nothing less from him. The scorching track is the first single from his new EP Love Uptempo that’s slated to drop on March 21.
In an exclusive interview with WBLS, Ross spoke about his new project, what drives his creativity, and the lessons he’s learned as an independent artist.
You broke into the industry as a sought-after songwriter. Did you always want to be a performer and were you content being behind the scenes?
Ross: I think it was more of my desire to be a complete artist. I started off performing and then, for me to sustain myself in the music business, I knew I had to be more than just one thing. I had to do as many things as possible like a Swiss army knife. When I got into the music industry, I started off writing first because I didn’t want my entryway to be an artist. I didn’t want to be like, ‘Hey, man, I’m an artist looking for a deal’ because I feel like, sometimes, that’s coming up the hard way. I chose to work behind the scenes to see how the machine works. Writing was the best way for me to get into the business, for sure.
What was your first placement with an artist when you knew you were officially in the game?
Ross: Actually, there were two. The first one was working with Jamie Foxx. He flew me out to LA, to his house to record a song that I wrote. That was the moment where I was like, ‘Okay, I’m in the game. My warm-up suit is off, and they threw me on the court.’ I was with Jamie Foxx and that was crazy for me because he was coming off of “Blame It” so it’s like 2010,2011. I was barely legal but I knew I was in the game at that point.
Then when I worked with Trey Songz a couple of years later, I landed my first number-one with ‘Touchin’, Lovin.’ It went to number one in the R&B and Rhythmic charts. It all happened, within a matter of six months. We recorded it in April, it came out in September, and hit number one in January of the next year. So it was crazy and surreal. It changed my address and changed my perspective on a lot. Those are the two moments that I felt like this is how the game can change your life.
How would you describe the current state of R&B today?
Ross: I think independent R&B needs to be highlighted a lot more for the genre to go to the next level. We’ve done everything that we possibly could on a major label scale. Now they are saying R&B is dead and yada yada yada but it’s taking a new shape and a new form. The future of R&B looks like freedom. So we have to educate ourselves to make sure that our business is right and to pave the way for the next generation. Their genre is at a very interesting turning point. It’s like this could go really bad, and R&B could become like jazz in the next couple of years, in the sense of it being a very novelty genre that is more of an afterthought. There could be smaller venues and that glass ceiling being lowered more if we don’t smarten up and we don’t capitalize off of certain moments and momentum. So we need to step into our ownership and independence.
A few years back you launched your own label, Art Society Music Group. How has it been to bet on yourself?
Ross: This was a divine calling. It wasn’t something that I was looking for like “I want to be a boss.” God actually kind of tapped me and I felt I needed to be in the position of leadership. This is something that will help me with my vision. I was cool with just going with the flow of life and the flow of music. Sometimes you need to stand and take charge to fulfill the assignments that God gives you. So it wasn’t necessarily a desire when it came about but I’m grateful. In hindsight, being in my entrepreneurial bag means a lot for the Art Society Music Group. I want to represent artists and creatives at all times as an advocate. So I wanted to make sure that the brand reflected my mantra which is “God-engineered and vision-driven.” With every decision I make, I want the next generation to have a better blueprint to look to.
Your newest song “Love In The Middle” is another hot track about the importance of love in our lives. What inspired you to create the song?
Ross: Shout out to Louis York who wrote and produced it at the Weirdo Workshop in Nashville, Tennessee. I went out there and told them the premise of the album, and what I was looking for. Chuck Harmony had these chords and thought it would be a great start. Me and Claude Kelly just went ahead and started to form the melodies and concepts and we landed on “Love in the Middle.” I told them that I represent the blue-collar lover. Every single person that works a nine to five, like the nurses, the teachers, the post office workers, and every person that clocks in and that gets their money. I feel like they get overlooked a lot of times, especially within today’s R&B. I wanted to make sure that they felt seen, that they felt appreciated and that men had a soundtrack that they could play for their lady if they couldn’t express themselves and be like, ‘Look, you deserve this.’ So with the hustle and bustle of things, with social media telling you that you just need to be moving constantly, I wanted something to be the antithesis of that. There’s nothing wrong with putting love in the middle of the things that you care about. Whether that’s your significant other, family, your art, or whatever.
Lastly, what do you want your fanbase and new listeners to take away from your new music?
Ross: I raised the question to everybody, what pace are you living your life at, and are you okay with that? Whatever pace that you’re living your life at, this is your soundtrack. What I want people to get from the album and to do their own thing and set the pace for their race.
I have an intentional message that. When we were working on the project, I knew I would be coming out during the wintertime. By the time this record starts to warm up, it’s going to be spring and summertime. People are going to start wanting to fall in love, stepping outside in their new bodies, new whatever. This will be a really good soundtrack for all that stuff. I felt really good about “Love In The Middle” and that’s why we went with it as the first single from Love Uptempo.