A CONVERSATION WITH... BEHARIE
We chatted with Beharie to dive deep into the person behind the artist, his latest singles, and his upcoming album.
credit: Big Hassle Media
It’s 3 in the morning, you’re walking home with the buzz of a wonderful party carrying you through exhaustion, and this somewhat melancholic moment of reflection hits. After an incredible night being surrounded by friends and strangers alike, you’re now only surrounded by your thoughts, emotions, and somewhat empty streets. Who has the right songs for that?
Enter Beharie, an expressive and open-hearted Oslo-based singer whose music will carry you through the city streets, the butterfly-filled starts of relationships, and so many moments that life throws your way.
Born into a musical family, Beharie fell in love with music before he was even born. It was always around him, from daily reggae and old school soul in the living room before school to him and his four siblings going to the local choir from the time they could walk.
But now his parents play his music — loud and proud. Right after Beharie finished his album, he sent it to his dad, one of his biggest fans. “He listened to it right away, and instantly after he finished I got bombarded with the sweetest messages. Saying how proud of me he was, how passionate about it he was, and how it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.”
For those of us who aren’t as lucky as Beharie’s dad, we can get a taste of Beharie’s upcoming project Are You There, Boy? through his latest singles, ‘Oh My God’ and ‘Do I Ever Cross Your Mind’.
Both these singles represent the early process of meeting someone who shakes up the very ground you walk on, frustrating you and giving you so many feelings that you don’t always know where to place.
All of Are You There, Boy? has a dual meaning. First, it’s asking ‘Are you really present?’ in your life — if you know who you are and if you’re taking the chances to grab life and not let go. It’s Beharie and the listener both searching for themselves, for someone else, and for love. As the album progresses, Beharie takes the listener, and himself, through the journey of falling in love. All the awkward parts you can’t express on your own, all the moments you want someone else to relate to, and the somewhat fearful uncertainty of where it will all go.
“I used to always hold back a little in fear of who knows what, but now I’m getting more vulnerable. Over the last two years, especially after performing in Book of Mormon, it doesn’t feel as scary to be vulnerable. I feel like now with Are You There, Boy? I’m writing what I want to say and saying it out loud for once.”
It’s not like Beharie hides who he is on or off stage, but with the upcoming release, he’s finally connecting the two sides of him. “I think it’s really cool that some people have their on-stage selves as an act, but I really feel like I’m me on stage,” he says. “When I’m on stage performing, I feel like I’m really genuinely connecting. Not only to the people in the audience, but who I am inside.”
“All of this is so scary to say,” he laughs. “Putting yourself out there, you wonder how people will interpret what you make. We live in an era of playlists, where people only get fragments of the journey and I want people to get swept into it all the way to the good ending. You learn so much about me, and any artist, that way.”
While there’s a lot of fear in making music, falling in love, and baring your heart to new crowds routinely (like he’s doing this summer with a festival run and dates across Europe), there is so much joy as well. “When you’re making music with someone else and you all realise at the same time like ‘Wow, this is something amazing’. You feel the pulse of the music together as it comes alive, and you really feel like you’re making magic.”
The magic of Beharie’s music is truly enchanting, they are songs that you wish you had heard before but are so ever-grateful that you heard now. So whether you’re taking in a busy day as you walk home, or you’re sitting at home dreaming about what love has in store for you, you’ll feel heard by his music. He puts it best: “When you get to take that breath and you reconnect with your body after meeting so many people, that’s where my music finds you best.”