Musician Taylor McFerrin

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LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 08: Taylor McFerrin arrives at the Red Light Management 2015 Grammy Awards after party at the Mondrian Hotel on February 8, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Joshua Blanchard/Getty Images for Red Light Management)

Taylor McFerrin is a gifted musician. He got his start as a beatboxer, making beats and producing tracks for others. He’s also made music as a keyboardist, a DJ and a composer. As an instrumentalist, McFerrin is brilliant. He creates these lush, kind of swirling songs. He blends jazz, electronic and hip-hop in a way reminiscent of Flying Lotus. In fact, his first album, Early Riser was put out on Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder label.

The son of American jazz vocalist Bobby McFerrin, Taylor grew up with a comprehensive understanding of song construction and an ear for melody. You can hear the influence of his father’s use of vocal percussion in Taylor’s earlier work as a beatboxer as well as the rich production value that he brings into every track.

Taylor has a new album called Love’s Last Chance. The album represents something of a first for the musician: his first time as lead vocalist on most of the tracks. Each song conjures up the feeling of two past lovers reminiscing about a relationship that once was. The lyrics are timeless but also have a modern feel to them, like scrolling through photos of an ex you’ve “forgotten” to erase from the Cloud. Taylor’s voice is confident and sensual but he also knows when to sit back and let his voice ride the melody.

Taylor joins us to talk about his love of the process of making music, experimenting with 808s and how his new album came together. Plus, we’ll talk to him about his work with other artists like Robert Glasper, Thundercat, Emily King and his own father. Don’t miss our chat with the talented artist.

Love’s Last Chance is available now.

Catch Taylor on tour across the US here.

Click here to listen to Taylor McFerrin’s interview on YouTube.

In this episode...

Jesse Thorn

Host

Kevin Ferguson

Senior Producer

Jesus Ambrosio

Producer

Richard Robey

Maximum Fun Producer

Daniel Huecias

Maximum Fun Production Fellow

Daniel Arón Speer

Video Editor

Guests

Taylor McFerrin

About the show

Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.

Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney’s, which called it “the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world.” Since April 2013, the show has been distributed by NPR.

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