Written by | Ray Cornelius
I had the pleasure of attending a meet and greet recently with newly signed RCA singer-songwriter, Avery Wilson. The event was held at a recording studio in the Midtown district of Atlanta and was moderated by my girl, Rea Davis from AllHip-Hop.com.
Unfortunately, I didn’t arrive on time and totally missed Wilson’s performance. However, I was able to catch the tail end of the Q&A session that consisted of him and his producer, Sean Garrett fielding questions from Atlanta press including Rolling Out and FreddyO.com.
Wilson is music’s newest sensation and has been performing since the tender age of 9. The 20-year-old from Hamden, CT has appeared on the The Voice (2012) and performed during this winter’s NAACP Image Awards and this summer’s 2015 BET Awards.
Garrett, who is credited for discovering Wilson, hosted the private event to get Wilson more comfortable with Atlanta press and hopefully garner some support towards his current single, “Change My Mind featuring Migos.” The song, which comes from Wilson’s forthcoming debut album, is a musical gumbo filled rich R&B/hip-hop tones with a smidgen of international flavor. More than that, it shows Wilson’s versatility and range as an artist and furthermore proves he can sing more than just ballads.
In addition, Garrett also talked about how Black music is currently going through a metamorphosis and hopes that Avery’s presence will help with that change. He also believes that Black music is more than just “hip hop” and boldly declared that Avery’s “runs and riffs” are proof that “R&B is not dead.”
Wilson also chimed in that he hopes fans will embrace his diversity and described himself as a “colorless, creative and determined” artist that doesn’t want to be boxed into a single category. Instead, he would rather challenge the norms of what an R&B or Pop artist should look like or sound.
Check out more photos below + Avery’s audio video for “Change My Mind feat. Migos” and tell us what you think!
Avery Wilson with a fan who painted this while on her way to the event
Sean Garrett with All Hip-Hop’s Rea Davis
Photo Credits: RayCornelius.com