First off, I have to give a big shout-out to the people over at KWUR for getting me this opportunity! This interview would not have happened without them, and I very much appreciate the experience.
Frayne Vibez is a Chicago-born indie pop artist who is everything you would want out of a pop star: a talented vocalist, a vibrant personality, and an electric stage presence. If I had to describe him in one word, it would probably be “radiant”. He has a sort of cool, sunny disposition, which sounds a little oxymoronic but is accurate. True to his name, the vibes are great, and the music is too! I had the opportunity to see him perform in St. Louis as a part of Lupe Fiasco’s Samurai Tour, which he was one of the opening acts for. Truly, he is an exceptional live performer, and everything throughout his set was curated to create the best audience experience possible.
Original photos by me + Mary Charlotte Peacock
Really, his whole brand is incredibly well-curated, promoting individualism, positivity, and joy. In all the complexities and grit of modern music, sometimes you can lose sight of the simple joy of it all, and it can be refreshing to take solace in music aiming to capture this. That’s not to say his work is surface level- he is obviously a very passionate and motivated individual, and I think he has a bright future ahead of him. And if you won’t take my word for it, Lupe Fiasco and his team seem to think so as well, and they are probably much more qualified to make such a claim.
As per usual, what follows is the transcribed interview I did with Frayne before his performance! You can find out more about him and his work by following this link, and you can find his recent single “Take It Easy” here. Also, be on the lookout for his EP dropping in 2025! Other than that, enjoy the interview.
Intro / Background
[ Originally recorded November 9, 2024 ]
I guess if you just want to introduce yourself and maybe pitch your music, your brand, that sort of thing, to start.
Frayne Vibez: I'm Frayne Vibez, from Chicago, and I really love music. I got into it because- especially during high school, [there were] a lot of growing pains for me, feeling like the outcast, feeling like I just wasn't able to find my spot. And music was that escape, it was therapy.
And so I wanted to create that same escape/therapy for somebody else. That two minutes and thirty seconds, however long the song is, I want it to help people get that outlet, hence the name “Vibez”. Whatever vibe it is, I want to get people through that. So, that's what I'm all about. I just want to make really good music that helps people.
What does your musical background look like? Obviously you're a very talented vocalist, but any other instruments?
Frayne Vibez: I know piano and guitar, but I am more so past the beginner stage of guitar. I’ve been practicing piano since I was a kid, so I know my way around a piano, but guitar I just started picking up maybe two years ago. I'm a little bit past beginner, somewhere in the intermediate range. Not a master at it yet, but I just love the sonics of it. I love acoustic [guitar], I love the sonics and the emotion it brings out in a song, so I really wanted to pick that up and learn that.
If you could only play one, which one would you choose?
Frayne Vibez: I'd have to go guitar. I can really sit at a guitar and just strum around and find stuff forever.
You're not supposed to put labels on music, but what labels would you use to describe your music?
Frayne Vibez: I do, like, pop/indie alternative- obviously I’m inspired by like all the other genres. I’m just all over the place. I love hip hop, love R&B… but definitely pop indie alternative.
Who would you say are your biggest influences or inspirations?
Frayne Vibez: Keshi, Joji, Luna Lee, John Mayer… Cuco, Clairo, Mac DeMarco, Boy Pablo. We the Kings, Plain White Tees- that's sort of what I grew up on. The Neighborhood, Panic at the Disco. I also listened to, like, a lot of Fallout Boy too.
But yeah, mainly the indie alternative [scene], the Cucos and Clairos, Men I Trust. I love that entire world, that psychedelic indie world. I love that, that’s my biggest inspiration.
Chicago has a lot of culture, obviously- how do you feel like that's impacted you, growing up there?
Frayne Vibez: Yeah, so like I said I was in the West Suburbs, so I was not all the way directly in Chicago. My parents wanted me and my sister to have a different upbringing than they had, so they had me in private schools. But due to that I was just surrounded by… private school. So that's why I'm, like, all the way into the rock, the Plain White Tees. I was listening to One Direction and The Wanted trying to impress crushes with the songs I’d know from there, but that was all because I was surrounded by this entirely different environment.
Once I got to high school- I went to Fenwick in Oak Park- once I got there, that's when I started trying to look for more music outside of just what my friends were listening to. In high school I was just like, “I just want to listen to some dope music”.
But the culture in Chicago… when you think of Chicago, you think of hip hop, R&B- Lupe, because we’re at his concert. It’s also the home of house music, so that's where you think of house music sometimes too. But, I feel like there is a huge side of it that is not seen, which is the pop-indie world of Chicago. When you think of pop-indie music, you don’t really think of Chicago. So I want to show that side of Chicago, and there is a very, very beautiful side of it.
The Present
How did you end up opening for this show? What's your connection with Lupe Fiasco?
Frayne Vibez: So, it's funny, I was looking for a studio to hold my EP listening party. I was looking for studios around Chicago and then I come across a studio called “1st & 15th”. And I meet with the people there, show them my music, saying, like, “Oh, can I hold my EP listening party here?” and they’re like, “Oh, yeah, you're dope! We love your music”. Just so happened to be Lupe’s manager who was at the studio listening to it!
So ever since then, they let me hold my EP listening party there, and they just believed in me. And they were like, “Throw this kid on the tour with Lupe. He deserves to be on there”. And so it's just… I'm so grateful to Lupe and everybody at 1st & 15th for believing in me and having me here. That's really how it happened, just- it's not even luck, because it's the hard work that gets you to this environment. But it was literally just looking for a spot to hold my EP listening party, then it turned into this. It's crazy. The universe is wild.
In my limited experience, I feel like a lot of the music industry is networking and like, what people you know. What has your experience been with that?
Frayne Vibez: You have to underline the industry part of “music industry”. So, obviously there’s the music, but there's the whole side that I think people don't really see, which is the aspect of, it's like another business. But the biggest thing is you're the business. So the marketing, the networking, it's not like you just send a resume to a company and you’re networking and now you're in their world and a part of this brand and this brand.
You are the brand, and so it's all about just getting out there, meeting people, connections. “Do you know this person? Oh, wow, your cousin did this person's hair? Your brother played with this person in church?”. It's all interwebbed. A lot of people have asked me as well, like, “How do you navigate that?”. The biggest thing- and my family has always told me this, 'cause they're big into music as well- is just to keep it all about the music, because that's going to speak louder. Whenever the industry gets too loud, get back to the music part of “music industry”. If the music is dope regardless, it’s not going to matter, because people are going to see it, hear it, and be like, “This is dope”.
What does your life look like outside of music, if applicable?
Frayne Vibez: Outside, I'm definitely more of an introvert, which surprises people. I guess you could say I'm an ambivert, 'cause I'm an introvert, but I'm also an extrovert when I have to be. Outside of music, I'm either working- well, that's not outside music- but I'm working on music, or I'm playing the game, going to restaurants. I love to swim, I love to bike… I think I already said playing video games. I’m trying to get into longboarding, I’m gonna try to do that soon.
But I'm just a really big… some would say a nerd, but I'm also a geek. I just love anime, video games, pop culture, Marvel, DC, anything in that realm. So I'm always either on YouTube watching stuff about that or playing the game. And other than that, it's really just either rehearsing music or making music. 'Cause, that's really the main focus, and then when I can fit in the video games, swimming, working out, going to different restaurants and stuff, that's when I do that.
Yeah, that's why I said “if applicable”, because I’ve asked people before and they’re like, “I’m just biding my time until I can get back to doing music”.
Frayne Vibez: (laughing) Yeah, I know, right? I do value the time outside of music though, because it's good to have that release. That balance is definitely needed.
When you're performing live, what are the most important things to you? What are you focusing on to make it the best performance?
Frayne Vibez: The number one thing that I try to do during a live performance is just give people a good show. And what that looks like is trying to engage [people], make sure everybody feels included, try to create a safe environment where people can let go of the stress of the outside world. I feel like I've done my job if I just see people smiling, not worried about the stresses of the outside world, just having fun.
Photo by Mary Charlotte Peacock
At the end of the day, I want people to have fun and be themselves. If you're able to do that, if you feel like you can do that at my show, then that is a complete success. My biggest reward is when people come up to me like, “Man, your stage presence, I love it! I love that song, I drove all the way from so and so and I love the song so much and it reminded me of this and this when I was growing up!”. That's why I do this. That's what I want to do during shows, just make sure people are having fun, able to be themselves, and pull something away from it.
The Future
Where do you see yourself in the next year?
Frayne Vibez: I don't even know- I'm not a fortune teller, I got no idea. But I know I'm gonna be making dope music and I know this is gonna keep going up. The number one thing I know for sure is that the music is gonna keep getting better. And the momentum, just keeping that going.
I don't know what the future's going to look like. I never try to focus too much on the future- it hasn’t happened yet. I don't focus on the past- it already happened. I just try to stay right there. I try to stay right there. But, all I can do is just make dope music and whatever is on that path of making amazing music that helps people and gets them through tough situations, that's the path I want to be on regardless.
Do you feel like right now is kind of an inflection point in your career?
Frayne Vibez: Yeah, there've been a lot of times when I’m like, “This is crazy. Like, this is a dream, what the heck?” So it definitely feels like a step, like a really big, giant leap. I'm very grateful for this.
Yeah, it does feel like a crazy spot in my career right now, and all I can do is just… my best. And keep pushing and giving people dope music. That's really it, I just want to keep giving people all of me every show, and giving my best foot forward. Again, I cannot say thank you enough to Lupe and everybody for having me. This is insane. It's a dream.
Do you have any advice for people that are thinking about what they want to do with music or even just, like, their lives?
Frayne Vibez: If you're somebody that looks at music as a hobby, then don't stress too much about it. Just keep it as a hobby, just have fun, don't try to be like, “Oh my god, I saw John Mayer do this solo with Grateful Dead, I have to do that”, like, just have fun. Don't try to compare. Outside of a hobby, if you're trying to actually be like, “Nah, I want to be the next big artist”... it's funny, you sort of take the same mindset of not trying to compare, but be inspired. I would say, look at John Mayer- if you're looking at the same example- look at the solo John Mayer did with Grateful Dead or look at what Billie Eilish or Ed Sheeran did and be inspired by it.
Don't try to emulate or copy, because the number one thing that you have as a new artist is your uniqueness. So, your experiences, how you retell a story, that's all unique to you. So just tell your stories, be authentic to yourself, don't try to fabricate or make up something. As long as it's true to you, that's always going to win over everything else.
And then for life, man, that's tough… I would really just say, nobody cares as much as you think they do. As simple as that. People are just trying to live their lives, all you can do is live yours to the best that you can do. And don't be too hard on yourself, be kind to yourself and just live your life. There's a lot of craziness going on in the world, that’s why I do music, to try to be that outlet that’s sort of like, “Ok, don't focus on that. We can just escape from that”.
Obviously it's real, it’s there. It's not like it doesn't exist, but the music is there to be an outlet, like, “Ok, I can just zone out this music for a little bit… and ok, now I can go back to work”. Life is going to life. It's going to always life, but just live yours. Don't overthink stuff too much and just be the best version of yourself you can be. And if anybody has something negative to say about it, they can kick rocks, because it's not their life, it’s yours.
Do you have any closing thoughts or things you want to announce- maybe not announce, but just say, like, on the record?
Frayne Vibez: The new single, “Take It Easy”- actually it came out in June, so it's… relatively new- “Take It Easy” is out on all platforms. Obviously, [we] just started back up the tour in St. Louis and I think the last show is the Ohio dates that got moved to December 20th and 21st, so that's when the tour will officially end. And then like I said, I'm finishing up the little finishing touches on my EP that will be coming out hopefully sometime next year. That's the plan.
And that concludes my interview with Frayne Vibez. Once again, big shout out to KWUR and their social media team for connecting me, and thanks to Frayne for letting me interview him. I’ve actually never been to a real concert like this before, and it was definitely an experience.
Thanks for reading The Bobcat Press! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.
I think that’s all I really have to say though, happy holidays bobcat nation, and thanks for an amazing year!
