Behind Closed Doors with Demeanor
Justin “Demeanor” Harrington is a songwriter, rapper, storyteller, and activist based in Greensboro, North Carolina. He will be performing in our upcoming Keepsake show, Fighting for Folk. Tickets are on sale now! In this interview, Justin chats with Jay and Hailey on the sentiment “Rap is Folk”, the most challenging and rewarding parts of being an independent artist, and his most treasured live performance.
In this semi-weekly blog series, we post in-depth interviews that take you behind closed doors (or #BCD) with independent artists, many of whom have performed or will perform in a Keepsake show.
Jay & Hailey:
How did music and songwriting “begin” for you? Who were some of your early influences?
Justin:
Songwriting began for me at a young age to a certain extent. I was writing poetry pretty early, maybe 9 or 10? I also used to just make up songs in the shower. I started writing more serious songs in high school though. My first verse was written to a Mac Miller song. My influences at the time were Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, The Roots, Lauryn Hill, Chance the Rapper, Vic Mensa, Mick Jenkins, and other rappers prominent during the time.
Jay & Hailey:
We are so intrigued by “Rap is Folk” and you say it’s intended as a bridge between contemporary and traditional cultural music. Can you tell us more about your philosophy behind that sentiment?
Justin:
I started saying this because I was frustrated at the way I felt torn between the two spaces, whether that’s explaining why I play banjo or where it comes from to rappers, or why I rap to Folk folks. Mostly, it was because both sides seemed to resent the other a bit, especially in black spaces. Folk Music just means the music of the people. I reject the hierarchy of genre, the inherent classism, racism, and caste-ism of identifying “good” music. If you’re making folk music, you’re telling your story. You represent your community, your experiences, your ancestors. I believe it has less to do with genre and way more to do with culture. And I think culture should be honored and protected.
“If you’re making folk music, you’re telling your story. You represent your community, your experiences, your ancestors. I believe it has less to do with genre and way more to do with culture. And I think culture should be honored and protected. ”
My truth is that I grew up in Hip Hop and Old Time Music. That is who I am, and where I come from. When I am making music or creating or speaking, I am not traveling between worlds or genres, I am simply reflecting the sole world that I live in and fight for. I’ve grown a bit since I first said Rap is Folk, but my underlying sentiment is the same.
However, when it comes to the historical side of things, I consider myself a DIY ethnomusicologist and when it comes to overarching themes found in Rap, Gospel, Old time, Folk music, I’ve found similar patterns. All of these spaces share the voice of the oppressed, of the overcomers. Rap is Folk, the statement, was originally about black people claiming the power that lies in the history of the banjo and our words. From the porch to the stoop. So much history was hidden from us, and I felt like I had the platform and the opportunity to not only bring up the history, but to point towards a stronger future together.
Jay & Hailey:
Did you teach yourself the banjo and how do you incorporate that into your writing? On the surface, rap and folk are stylistically and musically quite different. Can you talk about the similarities in the process of writing both folk and rap?
Justin:
I didn’t necessarily teach myself the banjo. My aunt and her other band members taught me the basics, then I just did the best I could to learn old time tunes and tweak them a little bit. I’ve never thought about whether or not playing the banjo affects my songwriting. When I started playing the banjo, I wasn’t writing music. When I started writing music, it wasn’t to my banjo playing. The first lyrics I wrote were over hip hop beats, so by the time I was writing to banjo tunes, I guess I looked at the process similarly to writing to an instrumental - find the rhythmic pocket, settle into a Point A to B scheme, and let the universe do the rest of the work. Honestly I think most of my songs write themselves, I’m just there to put the pieces together.
“Honestly I think most of my songs write themselves, I’m just there to put the pieces together. ”
When it comes to the differences in writing styles, it’s a bit hard to separate. I’m a rapper before all else so whether I’m writing over a boom bap beat or a fiddle tune, the same parts of my brain are activating - flow, rhymes and inter-rhymes, metaphor and simile, storytelling, etc. When it comes to the instrumental elements, there are differences, but I don’t base my music in traditional rap styles nor folk styles, so I’m finding it a bit hard to speak to. But I will say that both are pretty based around Loops in my experience. A traditional old time tune is gonna have an A part and a B part and you just cycle through until the jam is over. A rap record is gonna have a part of a sample or chord progression that might play over the hook, then switches for the verse or bridge. I’ve never thought about it in that way before but I think that’s a key similarity between the two forms as they are traditionally practiced.
Jay & Hailey:
What has been the most challenging part about being an independent artist? The most rewarding?
Justin:
The biggest challenge I would say is navigating your ego and prioritizing your efforts. You have to decide what success means to you, and that’s a challenging road in this society. You have to make money to survive but does that mean you’re doing it for the money? You have to make records you like, while also keeping in mind that other people will listen, so who are you making the record for? It’s easy to take things personally whether someone is criticizing or complimenting your music, and I find both to be equally dangerous at times. One must figure out what they want to look back on, while knowing you might change your mind, but staying the course and being true to yourself. Time will guide you, you just have to have the patience and humility to allow it.
“I don’t fully believe in getting a seat at the table, I believe in building the table. Let’s not use the metrics of the oppressor to define “progress” as a society.”
To that point, the most rewarding moments to me are when you placed faith in a certain endeavor and then it worked out better than you could’ve imagined it to. For example, I didn’t want to release my album O Henry for a moment because I didn’t think people would “get it.” But I had to realize I don’t get to decide what someone is going to appreciate, whether I’m right or wrong, all I can do is express something I enjoyed making and hope it means something to someone. Years later, I’ve learned more and give a lot of credit for my progress as an artist to the act of releasing that album, maybe even more than making it.
Jay & Hailey:
Can you tell us about your relationship to social activism? In what other ways has social engagement informed your work as a musician? In what ways do you hope your music can inspire current and future movements and conversations?
Justin:
My work in my community and my music come from the same place in my heart, I think. It’s the place of attempting to create the world I want to see. I want to see cultures protected and honored. I want to see people expressing their truths. I want to do everything in my power to provide whatever I can whenever I can, and I want to collaborate with and support those with similar intentions. I don’t fully believe in getting a seat at the table, I believe in building the table. Let’s not use the metrics of the oppressor to define “progress” as a society. These sentiments pushed me to do what I can to empower myself as an indie artist as well as others. How can we get away from the US vs. THEM mentality and focus more on US for US? I hope that makes sense, and I hope that my music speaks to other people who want to fight for a better and stronger future no matter what field they are in.
Jay & Hailey:
You are also the co-founder of Haus of Lacks, which is cemented on community, activism, and supporting fellow artists. What directly inspired the formation of Haus of Lacks? Can you tell us a little bit about your work? What are some of your future goals to create change within local/federal governments?
Justin:
The Haus came together as community members during protests in Greensboro. We did what we could to keep people safe, educated, and inspired enough to hope for a better day. We are all artists, and had been supporting the local artist community in different arenas before them, so we felt it was important to join minds to affect change as soon as possible. We believe that in order to see a safer and stronger future, we must first fight for safer and stronger communities. Artists are the culture bearers; they reflect the community and voices of those who are often unheard. If we empower the artist, we empower the community. If we empower the community we empower the people. If we create space for empowered people to share truth, song, and voice, I feel confident that we will see a stronger future as we always have.
“Artists are the culture bearers; they reflect the community and voices of those who are often unheard. If we empower the artist, we empower the community. If we empower the community we empower the people. If we create space for empowered people to share truth, song, and voice, I feel confident that we will see a stronger future as we always have. ”
We host live shows where we encourage audiences to interact with artists, bridging the gap between performer and listener - both are integral to the world. We also have a new show coming out where we create music on the spot highlighting the beauty of empowered collaboration across musical cultures. We also host art galleries, panels and other means of uplifting the various artist communities.
Jay & Hailey:
Our upcoming show Fighting for Folk is a nod to the history of folk music as roots to American protest music and movement. We love that the folk music sound is ever evolving, and an artists’ voice to speak about change transcends to multiple genres and interpretations. Your music in particular crosses multiple genres of folk and hip hop - what are some of your observations on the modernization of folk music?
Justin:
I believe that music in general is supposed to reflect the experience of those creating and enjoying it. I think that as time passes trends come and go, equipment, rhythms, and circumstances change, but the soul remains the same. People will always enjoy the music they grew up listening to, and each generation will likely have new-soon-to-be-old-sounding folk music. It’s our job to share the music we loved with our kids and explain to them why it mattered to us. Then I think it’s up to them to keep it alive, and if they don’t, that’s their choice. It will always be ours and will always have moved us the way it moved us. However, if they keep it alive, it’s no longer just ours. Just as the music of our ancestors that we now share with them. It’s an interesting statement to think about: “The modernization of folk music”, and I don’t really look at it that way.
Demeanor will perform in Keepsake’s first in-person show, “Fighting for Folk,” at Mika in Bushwick on Saturday, July 31. Buy tickets now!
Poster by Jeff Deng.
Jay & Hailey:
What’s next for you? What are some upcoming projects or shows you can share?
Justin:
Next up I’m working on my new-as-of-yet untitled album which I expect to release in September. I’ve curated the first instance of Hip Hop programming at North Carolina Folk Festival this September. The Haus is continuing our summer concert series, which I guess is rapidly going to become a fall concert series haha. I could spend a few pages talking about the various stuff that we have coming up, but I’ll just say check us out.
Jay & Hailey:
At Keepsake House, we talk a lot about the magic in live shows and the communities they help create, almost like every live performance is itself a keepsake that you cherish from a whole house of life experiences. Tell us about your most memorable or fulfilling live performance, the one you would grab first in a fire.
Justin:
My most fulfilling performance is actually one I just had at Newport Folk Festival. It was my first time performing there as a solo artist with my own set. I performed with my aunt in 2017 and I’ve always wanted to go back. It’s also the first time I tried live banjo looping with Ableton that I rapped over, which was super terrifying but so rewarding. It was also just really incredible to be able to bring my close friends and share this really empowering moment with them. I also believe this was, if not the first, one of the first mainly rap performances at that festival which I am just overwhelmingly proud of. I think people are really starting to understand what I really mean by Rap is Folk.
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