Cleveland, OH, artist-producer Will Cherry’s eclectic influences range from Marvin Gaye to Kanye West and everything in between. While his music is rooted in hip-hop, he often dips into the sounds he was primarily raised on, gospel and R&B. Through producing and mixing his own music, Will has curated his own sonic palette, delivering a consistently clear vision.
With a wide-ranging sound of harsh drums, light samples, and melodies, Will plays with juxtaposition while rapping and singing about relationships, his childhood, and grief. His music is as unpredictable as it is infectious and presents a unique perspective to the next generation of hip-hop.
Fresh off of being highlighted for the Pigeons & Planes x Hornitos “Take Your Shot” competition and headlining a sold-out show in his hometown of Cleveland, Will Cherry has released his sophomore album ULTRAVIOLET. The 10-track project arrives with contributions from Sango (Frank Ocean, Bryson Tiller) and Dom Sarfo (Fivio Foreign, KayCyy), among others.
The album’s title is a reference to the invisible nature of ultraviolet rays, which Will uses as a metaphor for the work he’s put in when no one was watching, as well as the album’s narrative of an artist finding love but struggling to hold on to it as his career skyrockets. The music manages to stay cohesive while spanning the genres of melodic rap, R&B, bossa nova, gospel, neo-soul, trap, boom bap, and dance. In the album’s trailer, Will asks, “what happens when you can’t see the light?” These are the things we cannot see and can only feel.
Speaking on the album, Will had this to share: “ULTRAVIOLET is all about feeling things that can’t be seen, like an ultraviolet ray. So, the album is filled with emotion and feeling, and it’s more about the impact tangible things and relationships have on us. This album really tells the story of an artist finding success and struggling to balance it with his love life at the same time.”
ULTRAVIOLET is a strong display of the artist’s different interests and abilities. The project maintains the energy of the first two singles, “ice” and ‘worst of me,” while the new tracks, “wants + needs” and ‘southside’ shows the versatility of the artist. Every track builds on the themes of the last, and the tracklist is captivating from start to finish. In its entirety, ULTRAVIOLET sees Will Cherry being extremely straightforward with his vision and identity.
Listen to ULTRAVIOLET below.
