In 2015, my brother, Mitch, and I founded a musical artist collective and bass music record label called WUMP Collective. Gathering a roster of musicians that inspired us, over a 5-year period we released dozens of EPs, albums, and singles, as well as 5 compilation albums. We gained notoriety in the industry as forward-thinking and deeply creative artists with a story to tell.

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My role was Director and Head of A&R. I scoured the internet for new additions to our roster, cultivated meaningful relationships with our artists, and coordinated the logistics of all of the releases.

 

As part of every release, I would write a colorful piece about the music, which served as a beautiful and cathartic creative outlet for me as an aspiring writer. I would often speak with the artist to tune into the meaning from their perspective, and then immerse myself in the song(s) for several days.

 

This melded me with the music itself, to where I could write what I was finding in that space of sonic disembodiment. Sometimes the result was a profound statement about love, connection, and life itself. Other times it was a silly story about a cowboy galloping around in a technicolor acid trip.

 

Below are some of my select favorites from that era. I recommend listening to the song(s) as part of the experience, to get a full sensory journey.