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Quick & Dirty: Gemïny Dives Deep into His Influences, Fun Facts, and Nostalgia

R&B-inspired pop artist Gemïny sits down with us to dive deeper into his influences, fun facts, and to reminisce on the nostalgic experiences that shaped his artistry into what it is today.

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Gemïny, photo courtesy of Gemïny

With over 1 million streams across all platforms and fresh off the release of his newest EP, Special Episode, the R&B-inspired pop artist Gemïny fuses raspy rock and smooth jazz to create a unique sound that keeps audiences grooving.

Hailing from Raleigh, NC, Gemïny’s raw vocals and authentic sound make listeners feel like they’re in the audience at one of his live shows or alongside him in the recording studio. Connecting lyrical expression to heartbreak, guilt, lost love, and more, Gemïny displays a strong affinity for storytelling with songs reminiscent of a page ripped from a classic love story.

Constantly working on new music, the young artist sat down with us to dive deeper into his influences, fun facts, and to reminisce on the nostalgic experiences that shaped his artistry into what it is today.

What do you think is your greatest accomplishment?

Gemïny: “Well, I think there are a lot of cool trophies and medals that sit on a shelf somewhere around the house, but as far as my greatest accomplishment, I think it’s waking up every day and having what I have. Not to be cliché, and I certainly wasn’t always this appreciative of life in general – honestly, somedays I wake up and I go back to that old me. But I’ve come to recognize how easily life could have turned for the worst in many situations I put myself in. So making it to where I am now mentally and maintaining the relationships I have with my family and friends is a massive milestone for me because my relationship with them, and myself for that matter, all exist despite my most strenuous efforts and they took a lot of effort and hard work to maintain/rebuild.”

Gemïny

What’s the best purchase you’ve ever made?

“My PS5, I’m not super materialistic. I promise, but the R&R that little box provides is irreplaceable. The peace of mind? Unmatched. You can’t ruin my day even at work if I know I have my game at home. And say what you will, but you can’t put a price on being unbothered.”

Favourite Drink and Food?

“I’m a big juice fanatic, so that’s a hard one. I can’t live without a fridge stocked with a wide assortment of juices. But I think if I have to, I guess Minute Maid’s berry punch is the one. It has that nostalgic hold on me that no other juice can beat out. Now when it comes to food, it’s easily Chicken parm, the key to my heart. I honestly can’t think of a single birthday where I ate anything else (Except ice cream cake, of course).”

What is the Best Movie ever?

“I don’t want to confuse anyone because I still have grown to hate this movie with a burning passion that shines brighter than the sun. But I’d say, despite my newfound hate for the film. Gone Girl is probably one of the best cinematic masterpieces I’ve seen. I mean, off the top of my head, I can think of 6 movies and shows actively trying to mimic that success. And the message is there; it just hits a little too close to home, which is probably another reason I have to give it its chops.”

Favourite childhood musical memory?

“I don’t know if I’ve just gaslit myself into believing one of my dreams was a reality or what. Still, I vividly remember being young and watching this performance on BET where there were all these big lights, and this railed helical structure that was reminiscent of a slide. I remember it being this bigger-than-life performance with extravagant pyrotechnics, and for some reason, I swear it was an MJ performance, so I’m tying my awestricken to trying to decipher how on earth he didn’t face first in the ground after leaning so far forward. But as I scrounged the internet, it magically didn’t exist, so if that was real, it was that performance. If not, honestly, my whole life was a lie, and I would say Watching my first Grammys in 2011 and watching Lady Gaga’s stellar performance of Born This Way”

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would play the lead role as you?

“There’s only one answer to this, not for the reason you would think. But I will have to go with LaKeith Stanfield on this one. Just because of the sheer number of drunk conversations I got trapped into with people asking if I was the guy from someone great. Personally, I don’t see the resemblance, but the numbers don’t lie. Plus, he’ll have my whole sales persona down after his role in “Sorry to Bother You.”

Gemïny

Top 3 songs of all time?

“Alright, so right off the top, 1 is going to Marc E Bassy – ‘Westside Love.’ I know crazy to say forgive me, But it just holds too many memories and played such a huge part in my journey that I will have to request everyone leave my hot take alone kindly. Thank you.

“For 2, I’ll say ‘CrushCrushCrush’ from Paramore. It’s definitely a go-to, and I’ll usually find an excuse to put it on almost any playlist, so I can’t pretend it’s not one of my top 3. Someone would call me out expeditiously if I didn’t.

“Lastly, for 3 (and with all respect to Kate Bush, and this might be influenced by Netflix’s new affinity for the song), I’m going with Maxwell’s cover of ‘This Woman’s Work.’ I grew up with it since birth essentially, and to be fair, I only discovered it was a cover last week, so truthfully tipping my hate to Kate for writing such prolific music. But as is a theme today, Nostalgia will take the win.”

What was your first concert?

J. Cole 4 your Eyez only in Charlotte. I went with my girlfriend at the time and my best friend from high school. Was definitely a crazy experience to date. I think it’s the only concert I went to where I can honestly say I knew every act, which also made it a bigger experience because I truly jammed out the entire time. I was exhausted when it was all said and done, but it was a super cool experience.”

What’s your guilty pleasure?

“Ironically, I have a very toxic relationship with strawberries dipped in white chocolate and sprinkled with pistachios. But I’m also allergic to pistachios, so there’s that. But on occasion, I’ll suffer through the pain for a taste. Pretty sure I learned from my mom because I vividly remember the day pineapples majestically stopped giving her hives after years of just eating through the allergies.”

What’s the theme song to your life and why?

“As of right now, Brent Faiyaz – ‘Role Model.’ For anyone asking why, imagine walking into the club, and that song immediately stops playing; The vibes would be immaculate; you can’t convince me otherwise.”

Gemïny ‘Special Episode’ album artwork

Gemïny ‘Special Episode’ album artwork

 

Dawn Jones is the curator of the V13 imPRESSED Column. Previously known as imPRESSED Indie Music Blog, Jones and her team joined forces with V13 in 2020 to collaborate on an exclusive column on V13's site (imPRESSED) to bring a niche focus to the rapidly evolving indie music genre. Dawn is also the founder of Pressed PR - a boutique PR agency that focuses on PR for independent creatives. Pressed PR’s team works on a variety of campaigns partnering with independent filmmakers, independent artists, and independent labels. Pressed PR’s music clientele has landed in the pages of Billboard, Atwood Magazine, EARMILK, HYPE Magazine, and many others.

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