After hearing Channel Orange by Frank Ocean, Myles Cameron knew that writing music would become a special part of his life. The 22-year-old self-proclaimed ‘suburban blackboy’ embodies his influences to create honest, emotional, and atmospheric soul tracks.

By taking a semester off of Yale University in 2019, Cameron shifted his songwriting hobby towards an ascending career, elevating his ability to tell stories through music and securing him a spot as a “fresh find”. Now, a recent graduate, his new EP, Black Sheep, explores the passionate narrative and sonic vision he discovered while taking time off of school. Through experimental production, heartfelt lyrics, and newfound confidence as an artist, Myles Cameron shines as an enlightened voice ready to be heard.  

Learn more about Myles Cameron and his musical journey below: 

Let’s start by hearing where you’re at now – what have you been up to during quarantine?

I’m chillin at home in Manhattan where my parents live now. I actually had just graduated college when everything started going down, so I was planning on making a pit stop at home for a few months anyway. It’s become a longer pit stop than intended, but it’s all good. My producer is just a short drive away so I’ve been able to keep working on music which keeps me sane. 

How did you get started with music/ how has the journey been so far?

I’ve been writing songs since I was like 14. I grew up taking piano lessons and never really got into it until I realized that all songs are built on chords, so I could learn the chords to songs and sing on top. I used to just sing John Legend songs and stuff until I heard Channel Orange by Frank Ocean and I was like “woah these songs are amazing I want to do that.” That’s when I started writing my own. 

The journey’s been cool. For a long time, I was just writing songs and posting them on Soundcloud for fun. In the last 3 or 4 years, I’ve started taking it more seriously and trying to make it my career. It’s a learning experience, ya know. The music industry can be tricky to navigate and it’s definitely a slow process establishing yourself, but at the end of the day I just really enjoy being in the studio and performing on stage. Every once in a while something cool will happen, like a song getting traction or big show opportunities, but mostly I’m just focused on grinding and continuing to get better. 

You attended Yale and decided to take a gap semester in 2019 to focus on music, can you tell us how those differing experiences affected your songwriting/musical career?

 Yessir. Yale was an amazing experience and taught me so much about myself.  Because you’re so busy it can be a bit creatively suffocating there though. I had a song called Caged Bird that was doing pretty well online at the end of my junior year and I wanted to make sure I followed it up with more strong material, so I took a semester off going into my senior year. Yale definitely made me a better writer in general so I’m sure that contributes to songwriting as well. The semester off mostly had an impact career-wise I think because I ended up meeting a lot of music industry people, my manager included, during that time. 

Do you have any advice for college musicians?

Don’t wait until after you graduate to try to really get the ball rolling for yourself. You gotta write and record a lot of songs before you start making stuff that you like, so don’t wait until you have a full-time job and bills to start doing that work.  

Can you give us any insight into your new EP, Black Sheep?

Black Sheep is my favorite shit I’ve made so far. It’s a little dark and angry at points, but that’s sort of how I was feeling when I made it. In my head it’s sort of a little story or screenplay. Each song is a different scene in the narrative. Frankie Scoca is the producer that I work with and he produced the whole thing. 

In just a few words, how would you describe your sound?

Lyric driven. Unapologetically black. Pop sensibilities. Weird song structure and sounds. 

Who would be your dream to collaborate with?

James Blake or Dev Hynes. 

What’s the most rewarding part of being a musician for you?

I mean I just love listening to music, so listening to music that nobody else in the world has heard, because you just made it is really cool. More recently I’ve been playing bigger shows and meeting fans has been really cool. 

What’s something people don’t know about you?

I’m allergic to probably most foods. Stay strapped with the epipen. 

What are you listening to right now?

Playboi Carti, Grimes, the new King Krule record, Jessica Pratt, and Orion Sun. 

Do you have any music or other exciting things coming soon?

I was about to start shooting a music video before New York City shut down so sometime in 2020 that’ll be getting shot and released. On the music end I’m trynna really take my time on this next project so things will probably be quiet for a while. It’s gonna be worth it though. 

Black Sheep demonstrates how the vulnerability of a musician can lead to something beautiful. Portraying a darker atmosphere, with pop subtleties and hypnotizing harmonies, the EP takes the listener on a journey through times of loneliness, uncertainty, and frustration. Listen below: