Ricky Alvarez
Forward It means a lot to Jordan Ward.
visit billboard In the office during our New York residency in the opening slot of JID and Smino’s joint headliner Luv Is 4Ever Tour, the St. Louis artist is having his second iced coffee of the day, and our hour and a half long conversation is It reflects.Ward is excited to discuss Forwardhis debut album released via Interscope on Friday (March 3).
The title of the record reflects the direction in which his sound and creativity are evolving.and for Ward is his dedication to his family and their future, the project he created for himself. Forward is also his fourth project, and as his debut album, serves as a preface to his story.
Over 14 tracks, Ward tests the limits of his voice while exploring themes of romantic, familial love and personal growth. “With this album, I wanted to see what kind of worlds me and my mates could build and how we could innovate on what we’ve been doing,” he says. “These are love songs. There’s a voice in the album of the person I’m talking to. I’m trying to kind of come to terms with breaking the cycle of these unhealthy relationship patterns.”
Born Jordan Alexander Ward, the 28-year-old grew up singing and dancing in his neighborhood and at school. He eventually joined musical theater as an adolescent and joined a dance studio to train in ballet, tap, jazz, and hip-hop. I booked gigs and taught classes to earn extra money. He moved to Los Angeles at age 18 and began touring as a back him dancer in his early twenties for artists such as Justin Bieber and Becky G.
“I was a black boy from the south side of St. Louis. First I started doing theater in the suburbs, then I became the only black person at dance competitions,” he says. “I wasn’t chasing that kind of space, but I found a lane. I found a creative space where I was like, ‘This is my escape.’ “
While dancing full time, Ward rekindled his love of singing. Becky G encouraged him to sing, and on his 2015 purpose tour of Bieber, he befriended his fellow dancers and artists, trying to freestyle and create his own songs. became. In 2017, Ward released his first EP. peak at summitsince then he has won Issa Rae’s synchronous placement. Unsafe (on his 2019 song “Trying things”) Volleyball Applicant), and signed a deal with Interscope in 2020. He’s also set to embark on a solo headliner tour in May.
billboard talked with Jordan Ward about ForwardSt. Louis, and adapted to the pace of the music industry.
Jordan Ward
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What is your earliest musical memory?
I was at this wedding and heard these strings and was like, “Yo, Mom. These strings sound yellow.” And she didn’t know what I was talking about. As I got older, I realized it was synesthesia when I heard the color of music. I remember seeing Lauryn Hill lying around the house. [The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill] I listen to the CD on the radio. When I was a kid, I used to listen to her Disney radio because her mother wouldn’t let me listen to other stations.
What made you switch from dance to music?
After high school, I moved to Los Angeles and began touring little by little as a dancer. For three years before I started Bieber, I danced for Becky G on and off, and Becky said, “Jordan, sing for me. I know you can sing.” “What are you talking about?!” the universe was trying to tell me.
I met Rudy. He does what they call martial arts tricks, but he’s also a dancer. I became comfortable just being around him in my freestyle.he basically helped me TRUE I got into music and started making demos as a hobby. Then I was like, “Wow, I want to make a tape.” So when the tour was over, I was like, ‘Oh, I’m going to have to focus on this music.
How did St. Louis influence your sound? You collaborated with Ryan Trey and opened for Smino. Did it happen because of your local connections?
Sumino, I’m a longtime fan. When he listened to Sumino’s music, he saw a small fragment of himself in him. We connected more on the back end and less on mutual hometown tips. Organically it happened that way.Ryan Trey is literally the same thing. We were eavesdropped on for one minute of him.i made [“WHITE CROCS”]I sent it to him and he sent it back the next day.
And St. Louis, how it affected my singing, I always like to start with gospel music.my mom was a singer and we loved it when i was born real A gospel superstar giving a concert.various choirs [came] From different churches for a conference and I was traveling with my mother and s–t. The influence is great, fasho’. Then there is Musical Theatre. St. Louis also has a large musical theater community that has had a huge impact on me as a child and as an adult.
When I was growing up, St. Louis was a melting pot, both locally and musically. Of course, Nelly, Saint Lunatic, it’s just been implanted. The father of rock and roll, Chuck Berry, is from St. Louis. Maya Angelou, Michael McDonald, Donny Hathaway, Jazz, Ragtime.Also its proximity to Chicago [and] Detroit. St. Louis is definitely Midwestern, but mostly Southern, but I’ve always been drawn to Midwestern influences. I often had to drive to Chicago for every s–t, so I was always into the whole Midwestern soul sound of Ye, Common and J Dilla.
I interviewed Metro Boomin…
We went to the same high school. He was my senior when I was a junior. We probably random he talked like s–t but never without music.
Have you reconnected since then?
no. I feel like it happens organically, do you feel me? I definitely feel like in the city, it will be difficult.
How did you come up with the name of the song? Forward? A more obscure name.
“Fam Jam 4000” [was] Because that song sounds like an electric slide. Because when you hear it, you just want it to load. It’s shiny like God’s Cadillac. Because “FORFOURFORE” for A word, then four words, then a preface. Then ‘WHITE CROCS’ because I wear white crocs a lot and when I was in the studio this girl said ‘I want to meet you’. I was like, ‘Man, I’m in the studio and I’m in Crocs. You can come here, but I won’t…’
Then ‘PRICETAG/BEVERLYWOOD’, which was a Lido song he played to me, but it’s just… the other half is called ‘BEVERLYWOOD’. I had to stay at this hotel in Beverlywood around that time because my crib had no power. I owned a condo but the power failed for a year and I had to move out. I had to file an insurance claim and live in a hotel but they said Told.
“DANCE MACHINE” I like that title because in this song we are talking about dancing with girls in Molly’s Club. Both are fleeting. Also, in the song, you say, “Dance the same dance every other week,” but the choreography. In your twenties, or as long as you live, you can feel isolated and mechanical. The first half of the song “0495” is hers from 2004 as me and my mom drive to my godmother’s new home in North Her County. And the second half is inspired by me who was born in 1995. “CHERIMOYA” – fruit, natural love, juicy, delicious.
Have you ever eaten cherimoya?
yes!I [eating one] This is the studio when I made it.
What was your biggest challenge during production? Forward?
Although not the biggest challenge, a The challenge was to finish the song and have to get back to the hook. I’m very emotional — very emotional in the studio. There are times when we don’t. If you don’t want to quit every day, you feel like you’re not really creative.
How do you see or categorize yourself within the music ecosystem?
I try not to categorize myself anymore — not because I don’t have an opinion, but because I actually have a strong opinion about it — but it’s exhausting and the most important thing I worry about I don’t think so. I just like to let the music speak, it’s not that deep. I could ride country beats, and I still plan to swag in a certain way. It’s not that it’s rap or that I’m a rapper, [I] brought in a new wave. It’s hip hop, new wave.
When did you sign up with Interscope and why was it the right fit for you?
I signed with Interscope in October 2020 and it felt like the most organic, so it was a good fit. I feel like we built an organic relationship even at the synchronicity level. You could say I’m R&B, but I’m on Interscope. It’s hip hop.
Now that you’re fully into the music industry with press tours and such, what’s the most amazing thing you’ve learned about the music industry?
How fast this s–t can go. Time and space, all the same. There are actually 4 projects in this s–t. It’s been seven years since I started doing this, and I swear I’ve literally felt like I’ve been out of the conversation in the back of my head since 2016. [But] No, I’ve grown up, those days are gone.
What are your ways to protect your energy and peace?
Meditation and just communication. I really want to avoid stifling anything. If I have something in my stomach or heart, I want to find a way to communicate it respectfully and at least to a place where I can agree to disagree and understand. Also, sometimes it’s not that deep. I’m really emotional. I hate feeling mean to someone, being an idiot, or being this or that. But you can’t be an a-hole to yourself either.
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