Sonny Apollo delivers his inventive debut album, "Stimulate"
Review by Austin Sher
Debuted earlier this year in April, Sonny Apollo’s first full length album Stimulate has finally made its way to us. Join us as we break down our thoughts on the record, in addition to a bit of background on the artist as well.
After a move from Chicago to LA, balancing his dreams of becoming a star with the delicate world of human relationships, Sonny Apollo is here and stimulated, with his new music video for FRIENDS (linked below) from his current project Stimulate.
We got a chance to speak with the artist about the record and he gave us some insight on it here, “Dealing with young adult themes, Stimulate aims to take listeners on a stimulating aural sensory experience through the soundscape of dance, pop, and R&B, and through the eyes of Sunshine Thelonious Jax Apollo. Early private listens have garnered Sonny comparisons to his heroes David Bowie, Prince, and Janet Jackson, while carving out a lane of his own. While studying Music, Dance, and Theatre as a kid, Sonny Apollo gravitated to the music of Madonna, Stevie Wonder, Lady Gaga, David Bowie, Janet Jackson, Queen, Prince, and Elton John. "I touched my first instrument, the piano, and wrote my first song when I was 9. Music is my therapy."
Experiencing homelessness as a teenager into his early 20's, Sonny didn't let the setback deter him from going after his dreams of becoming a star. "I'm a BlPOC. I'm Queer. I'm the product of a single parent household. I was born with asthma that left me using a nebulizer for at least the first 3 years of my life. I don't practice a religion, except love. Different forms of adversity have challenged me at different times in my life, but they have also motivated me. They still do. I identify with kids who feel like a misfit, an outsider. I want to win. I need to win. I will win. We will win. Welcome to the Xlub."
Now that we’ve familiarized ourselves with the background of the artist, we feel that knowing this information can help get into the mindset of what they were trying to accomplish on their records. In this scenario, we can tell Sonny didn’t have the easiest childhood and it has certainly come across within certain themes that are portrayed on the record.
While we enjoyed the record from start to finish we certainly had our favorite tracks. The ones that stood out the most to us were the album opener, “Clouds”, “Friends”, and “Misery”. All fantastic cuts off the record, but what’s even better is that there’s a music video that goes along with “Friends”. We’re highly recommending you check it out as well, you won’t be disappointed!
With this all being said, I hope we’ve made ourselves clear that this is a record worth listening to. So please, stop reading, and start listening! For all things Sonny Apollo, to listen to Stimulate, and to keep up with all future releases and information, please check out the following links below.
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