Rising Genre-Crossing Duo YASSiN & Sean Terrio To Release Debut Album, Just Try
Introducing YASSiN & Sean Terrio, a rising Toronto-based duo known for their genre-bending sound that effortlessly blends soul, pop, blues, R&B, and a hint of country. With their highly anticipated debut album Just Try out now via Believe Digital, the pair showcases a unique collection of songs that reflect their deeply emotional and high-energy musical style.
The album’s 11 tracks feature Terrio’s powerful and dynamic vocals alongside YASSiN’s innovative production, crafted with the support of JUNO Award-winning producer Kevin Dietz (The Glorious Sons, JJ Wilde, Alexisonfire). Together, they’ve created an album that explores stories of love, joy, and introspection while inviting listeners on a journey through the music that has shaped their creative spirit.
“Just Try has been our mantra since the inception of our duo,” says YASSiN. “It’s gotten us through the highs and lows, and this record is everything we love thrown into one. It’s the album we wish we could’ve heard growing up.”
With this release, YASSiN & Sean Terrio hope to bring a spark of joy to listeners while continuing to break new ground on the Canadian music scene.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your musical journey so far?
I (YASSiN) started writing songs at 14. My best friend was always a musical person and he played piano his whole life. He inspired me to try to play at 14, and once I started I couldn’t stop. Since then I have written/produced/managed/and done about everything else you could do in the music industry for other artists. It was only in 2019 when I met Sean and decided to dedicate my time to being an artist myself. Sean & I became close friends quickly, and our creative relationship thrived. There has been no looking back since. Our dreams have been slowly coming true and there is no other human I would rather experience all of this with.
Please share the inspiration behind your new album Just Try and what you hope fans take away from it.
Just Try inspired by the idea that Sean & I can create our own paths in our lives and careers. It came from this idea that we don’t have to be what anyone else thinks we should be, and we don’t have to sound like what the industry expects us to sound like. It is full of love, joy, sadness, and introspection. We hope fans can listen to the first few songs, dance, smile, and simply feel GOOD. We also hope that fans will listen to the back half of the album to feel something a little deeper. Overall we hope the fans can find hope in what they hear, regardless of the actual themes of each song, we hope they see us and what we created and get inspired to create something good for themselves.
What was it like working with JUNO Award-winning producer Kevin Dietz on this album? How did his expertise contribute to the overall sound and vision of Just Try?
Kevin and I have worked together since I was 17 years old (I am now 30) He was the first engineer who was randomly assigned to my first studio session I booked at Metal Works Studios. Since then, he and I have built up an amazing friendship and musical partnership. I have literally never worked with any other engineer/producer other than Kevin. I believe when you connect with someone creatively and it feels good, you should stick to that and work on building that relationship. Back when we started working together he wasn’t a Juno award winner yet, we were both just working to be the best at what we do (and still are). His technical experience as well as his magical way in the studio to get the best out of any artist in there taught me everything I know about producing a record. I credit Kev with showing me how to act in a studio, how to communicate with artists, and how to thrive for the best possible product no matter how long it takes. After over a decade of working together, Kevin and I have a beautiful shorthand in the studio and without his top-notch studio abilities, none of the ideas or visions I had for this album could come to full fruition. Kev makes a good idea great. He makes working in the studio for 12 hours easy. Find yourself a Kevin Dietz.
Your music blends elements of soul, pop, blues, R&B, and even country. How did you develop your unique genre-bending sound, and which influences played the biggest roles in shaping it?
Our sound really comes from growing up with access to all sorts of music. We are from the “Limewire” generation, so we had easy access to every song by any artist all the time. The greatest gift and curse of the music industry. On top of that, both our parents and families are music lovers and we grew up with great songs being played by Billy Joel, The Beatles, Earth Wind & Fire, and more But having easy access to so many different genres of music at a time where we were finding our “voices” really influenced the way we’d play and sing. My biggest musical inspirations are the ones who never stuck to one sound like the ones I named above or even someone like Childish Gambino as a modern-day example of an artist being free to create more than one thing. Developing our sound was never something we thought about, it’s just a natural occurrence if you keep pushing yourself to create.
You’ve been part of the RBCxMusic First Up Program and placed second in Canada’s Walk of Fame Emerging Artist Program. How have these opportunities impacted your growth as artists and performers?
Both of these programs have been HUGE for our careers. I think the most important thing going into anything like this is really understanding that any opportunities that they present can change everything…Be ready. This career we are in has a lot of closed doors, but luckily programs like this can give Canadian artists a key into rooms that they dream of. I am very grateful that when these doors finally became available to us, we were prepared to show them what we got…So far it seems like they do indeed like what we’re doing and we’re stoked about it. These programs have given us the ability to be a little more free in our creative endeavours and it has strengthened our instincts as performers…It’s important to know when to play the right song at the right time.
What have you learned along the way that you would like to share with other aspiring artists and creators?
There are a million big and small things I’ve learned over the last decade of trying to make an impact in the music industry, but one of the most important things I think is…KEEP GOING. No matter what, keep going! If it were up to a version of me, I’d be a famous pop star by 19 touring the world…Would I be ready for it back then? Definitely not. In my experience, the universe gives you things when you’re ready for them. This world of being an artist takes patience, it will not happen overnight and it won’t happen exactly how you imagine…BUT if you keep going, it will work out even better than you could dream and it will be immensely satisfying for your soul. A hundred things a day could make you feel like quitting, but it only takes one song/melody/or chord to keep us creatives moving forward. Any artists reading this, I want you to know I believe in you and there is NO STOPPING YOU. Keep pushing, no matter how long it takes, no matter how hopeless it can feel, it can and will work out if you keep trying.
What else can fans expect from you for the balance of 2024?
We just came off a wildly busy summer and I’m currently writing this from a winery in Italy as I needed a rest. But with this album will come a video or two and we are planning a BIG charity show this Christmas in Toronto…I can’t say much yet, but I will say save December 20th in your calendars because it is going to be the BIGGEST show we’ve ever done.