Kicking off with vibrant guitar, bold keys and pulsing drums, Clifford opens Can We Dance To This with the intentional lyrics, “This song’s for the one I’ve never met, I needed to get this off my chest, I dream of you nightly in my bed, my message to you is a request…”

Can We Dance To This expands into a charming indie-pop ode to manifest the love of Clifford’s life. Speaking on the meaning of the track, Clifford confesses, “I personally have not met my soul mate yet, but I wanted to write a song that exemplifies my feelings of happiness to know that they’re alive.”

The rising artist from Westminster sings the hook “When we first meet Can We Dance To This?” with passion and purpose and we are obsessed with the vulnerability and charm that Clifford exemplifies with this composition.

Elaborating on his creative process, Clifford says, “This song was another one of those simple yet extremely complicated Pop songs. Everything that I chose to keep in it was strategic, and every vocal take was critical and sometimes even grueling. Even when shooting the album cover, which was originally going to be an outdoors image, we battled numerous thunder storms which concluded in our shooting indoors.”

Clifford cites a long list of influences including The Temptations, Fairouz, Blind Willie Johnson, Aretha Franklin, Stromae, MIA, Drake, Diana Ross, Kool & The Gang, Shakira, Jerome Brailey, xxxTentacion, David Bowie, Rihanna, Mozart, Kate Bush, Michael Jackson, Johnny Cash, Eminem, Amr Diab, Beyonce and Yo-Yo Ma as influences, although it is certain that the rising star is creating a frequency of his own. We love Clifford’s energy and continue streaming his songs on Soundcloud!

He leaves us with an optimistic quote, “I hope that as we begin to get past two years of reclusiveness, we are beginning to get back to a world of engagement.”

The post Clifford manifests the love of his life on powerful new single, Can We Dance To This appeared first on KIMU.

We recently featured Clifford for his intimate and whimsical single, Close To Me, so we were thrilled to hear the rising artist’s latest release, Too Big Too Strong.

Setting the tone with synthetic and industrial soundscape, Clifford sings introspectively, “why is everybody so big to me? It feels a little bit intimidating to me… just give me some time, I think I could grow up too big and too strong…” as he opens Too Big Too Strong.

Speaking on the meaning of the track, Clifford, who vehemently does not release on Spotify says, “Too Big Too Strong is about believing in yourself and pushing through your fears with courage.”

Clifford cites The Temptations, Fairouz, Blind Willie Johnson, Aretha Franklin, Stromae, MIA, Drake, Kool & The Gang, Shakira, Jerome Brailey, xxxTentacion, David Bowie, Rihanna, Mozart, Michael Jackson, Johnny Cash, Eminem, Amr Diab, Beyonce, Yo-Yo Ma and so many more as influences, but it is clear that he is creating a lane of his own.

He ends Too Big Too Strong with the inspiring and self-realized lyrics:

Can’t stop me now cuz I’m
I’m walking with such confidence
What else do I gotta do to prove it to you
Na
Don’t wanna prove it to you
I wanna prove it to me

We love the message that Clifford is sharing, along with the soundscape and energy of Too Big Too Strong, which you can buy on Bandcamp here!

The post Clifford knows his worth on epic new single, Too Big Too Strong appeared first on KIMU.

Setting the scene with a bouncy electronic pop soundscape, Clifford opens his latest single Close To Me with the lyrics, “no more, I can’t feel my legs no more, I can’t feel my mind no more…”

The rising artist begins to tell us the story of a unique and hypnotizing personal encounter as he lures us in with the hook of the song, “get close, get close to me…”

Speaking on the track, Clifford says, “Close to Me is a sweet song for bitter times”.

A pop-house hybrid, the production fuses dance beats, a lighter bass and deep kicks. Clifford explains, “It’s a whimsical song about a person making the best out of a world turned bitter, upside down. Sometimes we find sweetness by going to the club, hitting the dance floor, finding similar souls. The mind, body and soul are three energy’s that keep us safe, stable, but it’s the soul that takes over during turmoil.”

This is reflected in his lyrics, “…a place where no one else can see…a place reserved for you and me” as he describes two people floating into a safe space.

We love the message and frequency that Clifford is sharing with us, you can buy it on Bandcamp, and can’t wait til it is on Spotify so that we can add it to our New Music Spotlight playlist! Meanwhile, you can stream Clifford’s wider discography below!

The post Clifford releases intimate and whimsical new single, Close To Me appeared first on KIMU.