Traveling plays a key part in understanding Odeal and his approach as an artist. The Nigerian singer/songwriter was born in Germany and lived in Spain, Nigeria, and the United Kingdom. He adds stamps to his passport at every possible opportunity. At every stop in his journey, he takes a crumb of its culture and appreciates its wholly distinct beauty. In this sense, he’s music’s Anthony Bourdain. Odeal’s mission statement is to take in the culture of each destination he reaches and attempt to distill its essence in his art. “You can’t fake an experience, y’know what I mean? You were either there, or you weren’t there; you either get it or you don’t,” Odeal told Noisey.“Traveling to different places allows me to connect with different people and cultures and understand where they’re coming from. Now when I’m making art, I’m making it from a place of my experience, and it doesn’t feel like a gimmick. It’s real, and it’s coming from a certain place. It also gives me confidence to know people understand you.”This was the mindset on his latest EP For a Good Time. The record was made in the thick of winter for Westerners, but he went out of his way to pursue warmer climates. He describes how January is essentially summer in Nigeria due to its geographical location. Ditto for Brazil and Colombia. Records like “Bluey Vitton” and “Coming Home” were designed for sunsets painting our skin and warm, humid evenings filled with dancing and romance. Odeal Dishes on His Latest EP ‘For a Good Time’However, there’s an extremely fine line between cultural appreciation and exploitation, and he knows it. It’s why he makes it such a point to connect with his environment in such a meaningful way. Going to Ethiopia for a vlog saw him connect with a local for a prayer.This sets Odeal apart from a legion of artists who halfheartedly tinker with a sound because it’s popular. As long as there’s meaningful connection, who are we to gatekeep? “You might be able to form your own opinion or do something that takes from that aspect of the culture and push it to the rest of the world. As long as the love is there, I don’t think it’s a thing that should be gatekept. That’s what matters,” Odeal explained.“There’s white people who know how to make a good afrobeats rhythm. I remember working with The Elements, and they’re from Germany. I was in London, and they really understood the pockets and groove of afrobeats rhythms. You guys understand this, and I can’t knock it.”Odeal Talks The R&B That Raised and Influenced HimTraveling the globe alone isn’t the only thing that informs his music, though. Odeal is extremely diligent about his craft, studying what made R&B great before and the feelings from key records that made him who he is today. He cites Brandy, D’Angelo, 112, Jagged Edge, and various reggae artists such as Lucky Dube as pivotal inspirations from an early age.“The different personalities of those harmonies and how they sit in the back and enhance what’s being said on the lead. The different tones of each singer, it’s a raw feel,” Odeal explained. “Even if you go back, you’d hear some of the harmonies if you swallow them out, and they might not even be completely in key, but they add so much character. It’s like being in a crowd and the crowd’s singing a song, and in unison, it sounds incredible. But if you single one person out, it might not be the best thing ever, but all together it sounds beautiful.”This manifests in how he approaches harmonies on dazzling records like “Blame U” and “Nights in The Sun“. Doing more vocal takes and letting his angelic vocals stack against each other elevate a bog-standard R&B jam into a straight-up stadium anthem. That’s not to say Odeal is sitting around studying music theory. Instead, his stylistic influences merely enhance his musical influences.“I understand the imperfections and uniqueness of people’s voices aid in a really good harmony. That was it, but it was really a feeling. I couldn’t tell you the name of the kind of harmony, but once it feels right, then I’m done,” he said. Why House Music Played A Pivotal Role in The Making of ‘For a Good Time’While the London-based crooner mostly homed in on R&B and Afrobeats, house music played a huge role in For a Good Time’s mission statement. Ultimately, the record revolves around the liberty you feel on the dance floor. For one night, you let go of the overwhelming thoughts of the world. You’re granted the freedom to let a steady groove swoop you off your feet. “For A Good Time…is all about letting yourself go in the present and leaving who you think you are at the door and expressing yourself fully,” Odeal said.His love for house music traces all the way back to his stomping grounds. Living in Nigeria first saw him glued to the TV watching Afro-pop music channel Trace Urban. There, he’d learn all about South African house music and what makes Black Coffee such a legend in dance music. Then, London showed him funky house and how Calvin Harris eventually dominated the airwaves. After that, he learned about artists like Pal Joey who were fixtures in the New York house scene.R&B vocals over house grooves proved to be an effective gateway for Odeal. Now, with For a Good Time, he’s hoping to provide a sense of catharsis and connection through house music similar to what he experienced. “This project was important for me to put out in the state of the world right now. Everyone wants to be outside and connect with something that’s bigger than them. People are enjoying themselves more, and they’re ready for a record like this,” he explained. It’s this sense of service that informs so much about Odeal as a person. Scrub away all the noise of genre and gatekeeping, he’s an artist who just wants to impact others with his music. Otherwise, what is it all for? “I do think if my music wasn’t making an impact on the world, I wouldn’t make music. I could make music for myself to listen to, but I’d only do that for so long because how am I only impacting my own life?” Odeal questioned. “People be waiting on my songs when they’ve had a terrible week. The gratification of helping someone when they’re down is important.”Photo via Mark ClennonThe post ‘You Can’t Fake an Experience’: Odeal Talks His New EP, Gatekeeping, and the Importance of Traveling [Exclusive] appeared first on VICE.