The male R&B world is quite a saturated market right now. There’s Chris Brown, Trey Songz, Bryson Tiller and Usher. However, there is always room for a new fresh and exciting artist who comes to change up the game. Meet Samuel Green. Sam is actually not new to the music industry. In fact, he started out in a 12 piece gospel group and now pursues music in the R&B lane. He’s much more than an R&B crooner though. His most recent singles, “She Don’t Know” and “Time Out” have been creating quite a buzz in the States and Internationally. I had a chance to catch up with him and gain insights on his music, thoughts on the industry, what motivated his extreme diet change and his upcoming EP, Seasonal.
Here are some of the highlights from our interview. Check out part 2 of my interview with Samuel Green at Peauxetic Expressions.
P.E.: Tell us how you got started in the music business.
Sam: I’m from Kansas City, MO. I’ve always loved music. My mom and my aunt sing. I started out in the church, like most R&B artists. I fell in love with music in 1st grade, listening to artists like Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra. I started singing my senior year in high school. I did American Idol and The Voice. Ever since then, I’ve been singing. I was in a gospel group for about 6 years. Then, I moved to Houston and auditioned for an R&B male group that producer, songwriter Bryan Michael Cox was involved in. Zacardi Cortez and Chad Black held the auditions. The group I was in was together for almost a year. Then I started my solo career in late 2015.
P.E.: Tell us about your new single, “Time Out”. The song is dope by the way.
Sam: Thank you. The name of the project is called Seasonal. Everything has its season. My first single, “She Don’t Know” is based on a true story about my ex. A girl I thought I was going to marry. She didn’t have patience, cheated on me, left me. Now, she hits me up even though she’s married now. I tried to tell her, “Stick with me. Have faith. Have patience”.
“Time Out” is about a girl I dated off and on. But she got in this relationship and would always tell me, “I miss you. I miss the things you used to do…” The song says, “You hit me up when you want some of that Sam time out”. My producer Isaac “Chill” Yowman wrote the majority of the song and I co-wrote on it.
The main single coming out next month is called “Seasonal”. It says, “You can be here today and gone tomorrow. Don’t get too comfortable”. He wrote majority of “Time Out” too. I wrote all of “She Don’t Know”.
P.E. When you’re in the studio, do you ever turn down songs that fall into current trends?
Sam: Majority of the time, I already have my mind made up. I believe if you go in with that mindset, nobody can stop you. I’m my own artist. I’m in my own lane. I believe I’m my own competition.
P.E.: How was your transition from gospel to R&B?
Sam: It was rough. I only talk to a few people from the group I was in, including my best friend. Some people in my family said, “You’re not using your gift for God”. I feel like if you stay in the church walls, you can only minister to people in the church.
P.E. What is one thing your fans would be shocked to know about you?
Sam: I used to be really fat. Not that there is anything wrong with being fat, but I was. I used to play football, but I was heavy. I was really insecure. Everybody has them though. People see from high school and they say, “Sam is that you?” I tell them, “Yeah it’s me!”
I’m also a vegetarian too. I have a couple cancer scares, so that played a huge part in me giving up meat. Nowadays, food is so contaminated. So I veer away from food that is less processed.
P.E. Tell everyone where people can listen to your music and find you.
Sam: I’m still working on my website now. I’m a perfectionist, so there is still some work being done on it. But you can find me on all social media at: @thesamuelgreen. I’m on all music outlets, iTunes, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, etc.
If people want to email me too, they can contact me at thesamuelgreen@gmail.com
I’ll have some shows coming up soon too that I’ll announce. I will be doing an HBCU tour soon though. I have some shows in Atlanta, New York, Kansas City and LA coming up too. I have really big following in South Africa and London too. Thank God. Shout out to them.