{"id":1894,"date":"2022-11-23T00:44:09","date_gmt":"2022-11-23T00:44:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newblog.sofarsounds.com\/new-blog\/?p=1894"},"modified":"2022-12-01T00:47:01","modified_gmt":"2022-12-01T00:47:01","slug":"neone-the-wonderer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/articles\/neone-the-wonderer","title":{"rendered":"EXPAND YOUR MIND: MEET NEONE THE WONDERER"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"sc-iuJeZd cijOPC\" data-qaid=\"article-lead\">\n<div class=\"sc-esOvli gHHfid\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm gCZRKY\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm sc-cmthru gEyBjN\" data-qaid=\"main-container\">\n<div class=\"sc-iuJeZd cijOPC\">\n<div data-qaid=\"introText-content\">\n<p>NEONE the Wonderer calls himself a music experimentalist, and the title feels apt. The Wolverhampton, UK-based artist makes music that feels exploratory, fusing elements of R&B, hip hop, sizzling drums, airy saxophone, and NEONE\u2019s verses, which feel like they roll off the tongue. They\u2019re not just songs, but experiences, a window into NEONE\u2019s mind.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-iuJeZd cijOPC\" data-qaid=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"sc-fAjcbJ chedHR\" data-qaid=\"slice\">\n<div class=\"sc-esOvli gHHfid\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm gCZRKY\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm sc-cmthru gEyBjN\" data-qaid=\"main-container\">\n<div class=\"sc-iuJeZd cijOPC\">\n<div data-qaid=\"introText-content\">\n<p>It didn\u2019t necessarily start that way though. NEONE began exploring music as a teenager in the grime era, finding his footing as a musician. But it became clear to the artist that his music wasn\u2019t going to be about a genre, but about taking in life and using his songs as a place to process.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI explore things like mythology, sciences and sociology, all the things learned through those experiences is what guides the music itself\u2014the lyrics, [and] the choice of sounds as well,\u201d NEONE said. \u201cIt\u2019s all about being able to tell a good story. And with a good story there always has to be some background and research that goes into it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-fAjcbJ chedHR\" data-qaid=\"slice\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"sc-jWBwVP hGGMIk\" src=\"https:\/\/images.prismic.io\/sofarlive\/4cf4e492-e3ad-414a-8a0d-4ad705ff217c_Web_Ready-NeoneTheWonderer_BelsizePark_London_AustejaCheg_2022_10_12--8.png?auto=compress,format\" \/><span class=\"sc-dxgOiQ bGDywq\">NEONE the Wonderer performing Sofar London, photo by Austeja Cheg<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-fAjcbJ chedHR\" data-qaid=\"slice\">\n<div class=\"sc-esOvli gHHfid\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm gCZRKY\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm sc-cmthru gEyBjN\" data-qaid=\"main-container\">\n<div class=\"sc-iuJeZd cijOPC\">\n<div data-qaid=\"introText-content\">\n<p>The artist recently spent a month in London as part of Sofar\u2019s new artist residency program, a space to open doors for artists to create, perform, and network in new locations, and help tell their artist stories in the process. NEONE was located in UNCLE Stockwell and Elephant & Castle, residential buildings adorned with designer furniture and spectacular views, where he lived and performed for residents. For NEONE, an explorer, the days consisted of jumping on a bike to ride around the city, getting to know his surroundings, working on new material and unfinished tracks. Nights were for playing Sofar shows, or getting to know other artists. One evening included a jam session with more than 60 artists, each making their way to the mic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere [was] a lot [of] encouragement and involvement,\u201d NEONE said. \u201cWhereas some of the jams I\u2019ve been to people are stuck to the wall or there\u2019s a bit of cliquiness, [at] this one, I was able to speak to everyone there. I remember toward the end of it it was like, \u2018ok, we need to leave\u2026.but let\u2019s do two more songs,\u2019 The energy was so contagious it could\u2019ve went on til the next day.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-fAjcbJ chedHR\" data-qaid=\"slice\">\n<div class=\"sc-iIHSe ixgbXC\" data-qaid=\"player\">\n<div class=\"sc-gldTML iNpSIx\" data-qaid=\"player-innerdiv-player\">\n<div class=\"player-player-DnCWD9BucOQ\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"ytplayer-DnCWD9BucOQ\" title=\"Sofar Artist Jam\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DnCWD9BucOQ?enablejsapi=1&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sofarsounds.com&widgetid=10\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-forms allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-6=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-2689853_572=\"true\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-fAjcbJ chedHR\" data-qaid=\"slice\">\n<div class=\"sc-esOvli gHHfid\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm gCZRKY\">\n<div class=\"sc-Rmtcm sc-cmthru gEyBjN\" data-qaid=\"main-container\">\n<div class=\"sc-iuJeZd cijOPC\">\n<div data-qaid=\"introText-content\">\n<p>Though London\u2019s only a short distance from NEONE\u2019s home base, it felt much wider, as he has small children at home.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey came to visit twice during my stay, and that was the most blissful moments,\u201d he said. \u201cOne thing I\u2019ve learned with how far I\u2019ve gotten in music, which still isn\u2019t far yet but it’s past where I would\u2019ve ever imagined, once you feel like you’ve got your family with you and that they\u2019ve got your back you feel invincible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And it wasn\u2019t just invincibility that NEONE began to experience in London, but a greater sense of possibility. Sometimes a show would lead to a random collaboration with another artist the next day, or even meeting people involved in the industry. One of the apartments NEONE stayed in during his residency was high up, overlooking the city. The view was stunning, and revelatory.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt put into perspective the progress that\u2019s meant to happen throughout my career,\u201d he said. \u201cI know I\u2019m not at that stage where I can be living on the 43rd floor, [but] to be in that position and know that there\u2019s somewhere to get, the potential is there. I remember halfway through [the residency], the doubts started kicking in. When I get back home the gas and electric\u2019s gonna be higher, I\u2019m falling behind in my college work, I don\u2019t know what we\u2019re doing for money, It got really scary for me. But toward the end I saw a shift. It\u2019s like, there\u2019s more to [music] than what I’m experiencing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<p>Words by Sofar Editorial Team<\/p>\n<p><em>Photo credit: NEONE the Wonderer, photo by Adam Jalloh<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEONE the Wonderer calls himself a music experimentalist, and the title feels apt. The Wolverhampton, UK-based artist makes music that feels exploratory, fusing elements of R&B, hip hop, sizzling drums, airy saxophone, and NEONE\u2019s verses, which feel like they roll off the tongue. They\u2019re not just songs, but experiences, a window into NEONE\u2019s mind. It […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":1895,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1894","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-artists"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1894"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1894\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1894"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sofarsounds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}