story by Rachel Warren | photos by Haus Fehu | style and makeup by Syrn Myrage
Davis, who is gay, says that with this album he openly aligned himself with the LGBTQ community, and in doing so, he has found an even more authentic and meaningful place to create music from.
Local musician Jad Davis just dropped his newest album, Electric Stimulation this fall. Combining his talent for fashion, art and modeling as well as pulling inspiration from anime, cartoons, 90s nostalgia, comic books and pop culture, Davis has created a euphoric and vibrant electronic pop album that oozes glitter, positivity and dance-able singles like Dance Or Get Off The Floor! and Pizza.
Electric Stimulation is a seismic shift from Davis’ first album Rx, which was rooted in the style of alternative rock music. In his second album, Davis seems to have found a stronger place to create from, one that is truly himself – colorful, energetic, electric and upbeat. Furthermore, Davis, who is gay, says that with this album he openly aligned himself with the LGBTQ community, and in doing so, he has found an even more authentic and meaningful place to create music from. In a candid interview, Davis chatted about the inspiration behind Electric Stimulation and what it means to be an openly gay, up and coming musician.
This time around, Davis notes he went in an entirely different direction than his previous album project. Not only has his sound changed, he is not signed with anyone. He produced Electric Stimulation independently, sharing his music primarily through social media, which he says allows him to intimately connect with listeners all across the world as they experience his music. Working unsigned on Electric Stimulation also gave Davis the freedom to be really open about who he was as an artist and person, saying, “I went for a more authentic expression.”
“When releasing my previous album, people where more enthralled with what I might be than what I was doing with my music. This time, I have blatantly expressed my involvement with the LGBTQ community. I have found the reaction to Electric Stimulation to be more authentic as well because I got that right out there. I am finding now, because of that, I have the opportunity to talk real things and not beat around the bush what someone may or may not have been thinking.”
Local performer Syrn Myrage (and Davis’ drag mother) was also a big influence for this album. Davis says Myrage has helped him come into his adulthood as a proud gay man and encouraged him to be his authentic self. He notes that Myrage and David Cowell, producer and Davis’ big brother, really gave him the room and direction to truly represent his true self on Electric Stimulation. Davis also credits Dance Or Get Off The Floor! videographer Isaiah Conyers for encouraging him to tap into a true and creative place for the production of the video.
Album singles like Pizza or Dance Or Get Off The Floor! are a fun testaments of self love and empowerment, woven into electronic landscapes made of glittery parties, pizza, ninja turtles and the punny, anime-esque men of track Kitty Boi. Davis says the album really took control, noting he began the project with an alternative rock perspective but it was the idea for the song Pizza that changed things. Davis says he and Cowell were enjoying some pizza slices and drinks after a photo shoot when Cowell began to sing the word “pizza.”
“I just loved it. We made it into the song, and we had to scrap three other songs because we had just created this whole other style and sound. Essentially, we had to start the album all over. Fortunately, David understood where I was coming from. After we made Pizza, we thought maybe this is where Jad is going now.”
From there, they created Kitty Boi and it all came together as Electric Stimulation. Davis says the name of the album and its aesthetic came from reading about drug culture and politics of the 1960s. He also drew from his own experiences from growing up in the “psychotropic era of the 1990s.”
When talking about his music’s mission and his own as an artist, Davis says he wants to give people, and especially the LGBTQ community, inspiration. “I hope my music inspires them to be brave and continue especially those of you who may be aspiring artists. I feel like there is a void in our world for young men who are like me or who are like Prince or David Bowie or Michael Jackson were. Those options are gone now. Even if it’s not me, the next artists like that are not going to happen unless there are the me’s or people like me to show them that they can do something like this. With all the gay men that have reached out to me, I feel like it’s my obligation to represent people that don’t fit in a certain box.”
Listen to Davis’ music and more at reverbnation.com/jaddavis. Electric Stimulation is available for purchase at all major online retailers, and it can also be streamed on Spotify. You can also purchase CDs of it at CANVAS of Memphis in Midtown. Keep up with Davis on facebook.com/A.Public.Wreck.
