Just listening to the beat in “Get the Funk,” the new single from Billy Ray Rock, is enough to conjure memories of a historical funk sound for anyone who appreciates the genre’s best moments, but don’t get me wrong – this track is hardly a pure throwback. Straddling the rhythm with a smoky vocal that lends a lot of agency to the slick lyricism in the track, Billy Ray Rock is breaking off a contemporary take on classic grooving in “Get the Funk” that will have as many millennials raising the roof as it will audiences who kept this style of music alive for decades. These are rhythm-focused melodies for grownups, and they’re arriving just in time for the heat of the summer.
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In more ways than one, the bassline here is as much a provocateur of the underlying groove as any of the drum parts are, creating a physicality in the backend of the mix that makes anyone within earshot want to shake their hips to the rhythm of this song. For the most part, Billy Ray Rock stays out of the way of the instrumentation, letting the melodies provide some color to the black and white beats instead of relying on his potent vocals exclusively. He’s disciplined in his approach to the verses in “Get the Funk,” which is half the reason – I believe – why this single is as danceable as it is no matter how many times you’ve given it a spin.
Billy Ray Rock’s lead vocal in this song is as intoxicating as a glass of straight-up gin, but it’s not always t asked with being the most expressive element in the whole of the track. One of the coolest components of “Get the Funk” is the multifaceted harmony that accompanies every word our leading man is crooning to us, which not only makes his narrative sound and feel authentic, but it proves that he’s more than a one-trick pony in the recording studio. This artist takes his medium a lot more seriously than some of his commercially-bankrolled rivals do, and in 2020 – a year in which the independent player is taking control of the game like never before – his moxie could end up elevating his status from underground up and comer to serious mainstream contender a lot sooner than some might expect.
AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Get-Funk-Billy-Ray-Rock/dp/B088DDG4SP
I didn’t know much about the music of Billy Ray Rock before I heard “Get the Funk” for the first time just recently, but now that I’m aware of his skills and the impeccable songcraft they’re yielding, I’ll definitely be looking out for more of his material in the future. R&B needs a lot more funk in its big picture right now, and though this isn’t the only example of an indie player reintroducing it to the melting pot of melodies in the American underground, it’s unquestionably one of the more well-rounded that I could personally point you towards. All in all, you’d have to be tone-deaf to deny Billy Ray Rock respect for this release.
Troy Johnston