Anwar Sadot - Illuminated Review
“I hear a cold beat and I’m starting to get the chills, now that feeling's gone wishing that feeling was here still”
The snow's falling outside while trucks shuffle back and forth salting the roadways. As the light of the day fades street lights blink on.
Life is good. Bills are paid, there's food in the fridge, but something feels like it’s missing. As I play this Anwar Sadot drop, finally a light bulb clicks on. I know what it is. A ghostly sample plays, starting the song off with a singer venting about sleeping in the cold and wearing feet to the bone. As Sadot's first verse begins, a sense of nostalgia floods over me as I sip my morning coffee.
I remember staying up writing in my parent’s basement over beats I found on YouTube. No idea about the horrors of the music industry. No concerns over views and plays. Just genuine excitement at the chance to create another song. I admit I have a personal investment in this one. Sadot was one of the first artists I got a chance to work with through my indie start up label GeTxUp Music and Promotions.
I was a 20 something artist walking through Eastern Michigan University's campus, looking for any show I could perform at to prove myself. I remembered the writing sessions where a room full of talent would compete for who had the best verse.
I remembered the events, looking at the crowd staring back in amazement at our skills, even some of the embarrassing moments where words were forgotten or things were missspoken. As Sadot continues through his first verse I hear him communicating a feeling that many indie artists encounter. You still enjoy the music, but something’s changed. In a market flooded by new releases every minute of every day, pouring your heart out into a verse just to see it get plays, but seemingly not reach the entire world is an intensely disappointing and frustrating feeling that goes unspoken by many.
Another memory breaks loose from the swirl of thoughts in my mind. Sadot and I walking across Eastern Michigan’s campus on a food run. In the sky above, suddenly a shooting star crosses, seemingly signifying and cementing our rise to power in the music industry. Now as I look over bills, expenses, and other “grown up” trappings of the modern world, I realize it's been months since I’ve even thought about releasing any new music.
A cache of songs sits unmixed in my studio. Fatherhood and other responsibilities have drawn me away from the craft I once loved. I feel like Robin Williams in the film Hook. I’ve grown up, but have I forgotten how to fly? To me this song encapsulates that feeling perfectly. The chipmunk soul sample and the crisp drums call to mind cyphers of yesteryear where bright eyed rappers were just happy to showcase their verses. I suddenly wonder how they’re all doing.
“I can’t wrap my head around the fact that I might not make it because I never sound like my peers”
I myself was always an oddball musically. My first loves were poetry and writing. I started rapping after learning the front man of a band called My Chemical Romance wrote to deal with depression. A local DJ at the time convinced me to get in the booth and the rest was history. I rapped because I was nice at it, but I was always interested in the written word, and learning how the industry worked.
Though I felt the call of the stage I was more satisfied playing the background and learning how to compete with large labels. When the pandemic hit, I was able to leverage my music to obtain music grants for housing. I personally hate attention but I at times still feel that familiar pull to create a song and share it with the world. Sadot's song describes another all too familiar emotion. The feeling of wanting to give up. And for the first time in a while I feel anger. No artist this talented should ever have to write this song.
The first thing that I learned about the industry was that many of us have been lied to. Like soldiers waiting to rush out onto the beaches of Normandy, we all thought that if we performed well enough, if we wrote well enough, we would surely make it. I learned that the biggest lie the industry sold was that your talent will carry you through. The undeniable truth is, no matter how good you are, you have to find a plug and invest in yourself. Otherwise your product will be drowned out among the millions of new songs being released every day.
I learned it has nothing to do with talent. It's all marketing. Not knowing this fact can lead to feelings of disappointment. I myself have felt this, as well as scores of artists. So far it seems Sadot is the only one honest enough to actually say it.
“When was the last time you did something for the blacks? Man I’m just sayin, when the last time you did something right?”
Until now I haven’t spoken on it, but I’ve talked to CEOs after raising thousands of dollars for their label. I’ve seen them make excuses as to why they can't upgrade the budget to market talent. I’ve seen them deflect and make it about other issues, while pocketing the money and spending it on business dinners.
I’ve watched industry labels run by CEOs that look nothing like us, purposely perpetuate stereotype after stereotype. In a time where social media has inverted morality. Where doing something kind is cliché, and tearing people down is now the norm. Where states in America are labeling black history as critical race theory, and literally banning it from classrooms. The question at the end of Sadot’s verse rings more true than ever in 2024. When was the last time you did something for the blacks? When was the last time you did something right?
The song ends and I stare at my television. Some of my old self still remains. I still game and write songs. I’m preparing yet again to try to master Call of Duty Modern Warfare. (Gamertag is DoublN517 btw shameless plug)
In the back of my mind the need to pay bills continues to nag but this song has awakened another senee. One that I hadn’t altogether forgotten, but one that I had simply not made a priority. We’re supposed to be millionaires traveling the world and changing people's lives with our music. What happened to that? Everyone is lining up to buy from Amazon, Apple, McDonald’s, and Best Buy. The list goes on and on. But who is asking how they got started?
The snow is still falling as I stare out my window. Like a forgotten vision I remember that all of these companies started as dreams in the mind of human beings like you and I. For many of these well established dreams to be brought into fruition, shadowy deals have been made in back rooms. Many have given up.
But with the rise of social media there is hope.
If an artist can invest in themselves, breaking free of the purely consumerist mentality that’s been sold to us for generations, you do have a shot. I think that Sadot’s song Illuminated perfectly achieved what it was created to do.
I stand up and start rummaging around.
I look around forna notebook, locate a pen and begin to write. Like one of my favorite gaming titles Kingdom Hearts describes, there may be darkness in many places, but light can still shine. Sometimes all you have to do is click the light on.
__________
Tired of the same people dropping the same content about the same artists?
Support this platform.
We're here to help change that.
Paypal.me/getxup
Cashapp – JediJackson
The snow's falling outside while trucks shuffle back and forth salting the roadways. As the light of the day fades street lights blink on.
Life is good. Bills are paid, there's food in the fridge, but something feels like it’s missing. As I play this Anwar Sadot drop, finally a light bulb clicks on. I know what it is. A ghostly sample plays, starting the song off with a singer venting about sleeping in the cold and wearing feet to the bone. As Sadot's first verse begins, a sense of nostalgia floods over me as I sip my morning coffee.
I remember staying up writing in my parent’s basement over beats I found on YouTube. No idea about the horrors of the music industry. No concerns over views and plays. Just genuine excitement at the chance to create another song. I admit I have a personal investment in this one. Sadot was one of the first artists I got a chance to work with through my indie start up label GeTxUp Music and Promotions.
I was a 20 something artist walking through Eastern Michigan University's campus, looking for any show I could perform at to prove myself. I remembered the writing sessions where a room full of talent would compete for who had the best verse.
I remembered the events, looking at the crowd staring back in amazement at our skills, even some of the embarrassing moments where words were forgotten or things were missspoken. As Sadot continues through his first verse I hear him communicating a feeling that many indie artists encounter. You still enjoy the music, but something’s changed. In a market flooded by new releases every minute of every day, pouring your heart out into a verse just to see it get plays, but seemingly not reach the entire world is an intensely disappointing and frustrating feeling that goes unspoken by many.
Another memory breaks loose from the swirl of thoughts in my mind. Sadot and I walking across Eastern Michigan’s campus on a food run. In the sky above, suddenly a shooting star crosses, seemingly signifying and cementing our rise to power in the music industry. Now as I look over bills, expenses, and other “grown up” trappings of the modern world, I realize it's been months since I’ve even thought about releasing any new music.
A cache of songs sits unmixed in my studio. Fatherhood and other responsibilities have drawn me away from the craft I once loved. I feel like Robin Williams in the film Hook. I’ve grown up, but have I forgotten how to fly? To me this song encapsulates that feeling perfectly. The chipmunk soul sample and the crisp drums call to mind cyphers of yesteryear where bright eyed rappers were just happy to showcase their verses. I suddenly wonder how they’re all doing.
“I can’t wrap my head around the fact that I might not make it because I never sound like my peers”
I myself was always an oddball musically. My first loves were poetry and writing. I started rapping after learning the front man of a band called My Chemical Romance wrote to deal with depression. A local DJ at the time convinced me to get in the booth and the rest was history. I rapped because I was nice at it, but I was always interested in the written word, and learning how the industry worked.
Though I felt the call of the stage I was more satisfied playing the background and learning how to compete with large labels. When the pandemic hit, I was able to leverage my music to obtain music grants for housing. I personally hate attention but I at times still feel that familiar pull to create a song and share it with the world. Sadot's song describes another all too familiar emotion. The feeling of wanting to give up. And for the first time in a while I feel anger. No artist this talented should ever have to write this song.
The first thing that I learned about the industry was that many of us have been lied to. Like soldiers waiting to rush out onto the beaches of Normandy, we all thought that if we performed well enough, if we wrote well enough, we would surely make it. I learned that the biggest lie the industry sold was that your talent will carry you through. The undeniable truth is, no matter how good you are, you have to find a plug and invest in yourself. Otherwise your product will be drowned out among the millions of new songs being released every day.
I learned it has nothing to do with talent. It's all marketing. Not knowing this fact can lead to feelings of disappointment. I myself have felt this, as well as scores of artists. So far it seems Sadot is the only one honest enough to actually say it.
“When was the last time you did something for the blacks? Man I’m just sayin, when the last time you did something right?”
Until now I haven’t spoken on it, but I’ve talked to CEOs after raising thousands of dollars for their label. I’ve seen them make excuses as to why they can't upgrade the budget to market talent. I’ve seen them deflect and make it about other issues, while pocketing the money and spending it on business dinners.
I’ve watched industry labels run by CEOs that look nothing like us, purposely perpetuate stereotype after stereotype. In a time where social media has inverted morality. Where doing something kind is cliché, and tearing people down is now the norm. Where states in America are labeling black history as critical race theory, and literally banning it from classrooms. The question at the end of Sadot’s verse rings more true than ever in 2024. When was the last time you did something for the blacks? When was the last time you did something right?
The song ends and I stare at my television. Some of my old self still remains. I still game and write songs. I’m preparing yet again to try to master Call of Duty Modern Warfare. (Gamertag is DoublN517 btw shameless plug)
In the back of my mind the need to pay bills continues to nag but this song has awakened another senee. One that I hadn’t altogether forgotten, but one that I had simply not made a priority. We’re supposed to be millionaires traveling the world and changing people's lives with our music. What happened to that? Everyone is lining up to buy from Amazon, Apple, McDonald’s, and Best Buy. The list goes on and on. But who is asking how they got started?
The snow is still falling as I stare out my window. Like a forgotten vision I remember that all of these companies started as dreams in the mind of human beings like you and I. For many of these well established dreams to be brought into fruition, shadowy deals have been made in back rooms. Many have given up.
But with the rise of social media there is hope.
If an artist can invest in themselves, breaking free of the purely consumerist mentality that’s been sold to us for generations, you do have a shot. I think that Sadot’s song Illuminated perfectly achieved what it was created to do.
I stand up and start rummaging around.
I look around forna notebook, locate a pen and begin to write. Like one of my favorite gaming titles Kingdom Hearts describes, there may be darkness in many places, but light can still shine. Sometimes all you have to do is click the light on.
__________
Tired of the same people dropping the same content about the same artists?
Support this platform.
We're here to help change that.
Paypal.me/getxup
Cashapp – JediJackson