Toronto, ON-based rap artist, Ryan “Grandsome” Solmon has unveiled his new single, “Know Myself”.
“Whenever I write I try to put all of myself into the song … all the elements I’ve lived through make up my song-writing. Essentially you could say my music stems from the ‘grand sum’ of my whole life up to the point I recorded the song”.
Such is the case with his newest single, a witty and introspective jam that features Grandsome spitting some of his most reflective lines yet.
The song is essentially a snapshot into someone’s life as they wrestle with all of the insecurities and perceptions about themselves and the world around them. The instrumentation of a steady beat and quiet synth chords are just laid back enough to let the lyrics truly shine through.
This is clearly a song very personal to Grandsome, but he leaves just enough ambiguity in the lyrics to make it feel relatable for any listener.
“This song looks at self-perception, finding positivity, and trusting yourself. It explores some of the ups and downs one can go through when finding who they are and what they want to do in life”, he says.
Check out “Know Myself” below, and find out more about Grandsome via our Five Questions With segment.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
What’s up readers! I’m Grandsome, a 27-year-old rap artist from Toronto. I’m also finishing up an aerospace engineering degree at Ryerson University and working at a wearable technology company. I’ve been writing raps since I was around 13/14 and started taking it more seriously over the past few years. I’m still making music because I love to and don’t see myself stopping any time soon.
Tell us a bit about your music and writing style.
I’ve always been influenced by more lyrical hip hop artists (J Cole, Kendrick, Eminem, Shad, etc.) so that’s what my writing style has leaned towards. I tend to focus on clever bars and rhyme schemes and add in some melodic backing, especially on the hooks.
What have you been doing to keep yourself creative during the pandemic?
Writing, recording/mixing music, and editing videos. I also watch a lot of random educational content on YouTube/Netflix (if I find it interesting). That stuff tends to fuel me with new inspiration all the time.
If you were asked to suggest only one of your songs for someone to hear, which would it be?
Definitely my newest single, Know Myself.
Canadian Beats is all about Canadian music, so who are your current favourite Canadian bands/ artists?
As far as favourite Canadian artists go, I’ve got to give a shout out to Diggy Sol. He produces a lot of beats for me and if you’re ever needing something in the background his beats are perfect. Also, my buddy Forest Gumption got a nice lo-fi underground rap thing going.