UK artist Yungblud has been steadily making an positive impression on music fans with his unique take on alt-pop equally inspired by punk, hip-hop, and UK garage. The 20-year-old Northern England native is up-front on the topics that he writes about that provides his perspective on everything from gentrification to disenfranchisement to addiction, which has produced catchy protest songs that reveal the personal toll of political tensions. Having released his first full-length, 21st Century Liability, the artist born Dominic Harrison stated, “I want my music to always have a message, but I don’t want to preach to anybody. When people preach to me, I completely switch off—like, ‘Why are you trying to tell me to do?’ This music’s just an outburst of emotion and anger, and everything else going on in my head.”
Born in Yorkshire, Harrison first picked up a guitar at age two and began writing his own songs when he was ten. At 16 he moved to London, then spent the next few years struggling to define his musical vision. “I got slightly lost for a while, writing stuff that didn’t make sense to who I was,” he says. His passion for music from The Clash, Arctic Monkeys, N.W.A and Eminem got him back on track, as he stated, “Once I figured out what I wanted to say, I went on this mad rampage and wrote so much.”
B-Sides caught up with Yungblud at Austin City Limits 2018 to talk about 21st Century Liability, his live performances and more. Check out the interview:
