Ty Bru - C.A.M. Memories Made It Better w/Interview
Ty Bru is an independent musician from Asheboro, NC. We have previously covered this experienced globetrotting artist and his brilliantly heartfelt track, “Like It Used To”. Bru’s musical roots started with hip-hop but he has evolved his style into something unique and special. Today we have the pleasure of sharing our write up of Ty Bru’s new track, “C.A.M. Memories Made It Better” from his upcoming album, Rustract Boombap as well as our latest interview with him!
“C.A.M. Memories Made It Better” is a track that commemorates the life of Ty Bru’s friend Corey, who passed ten years ago. Bru wrote the beat for this song the day he received the tragic news but wrote the lyrics this past year; this allows the song to serve as a convergence of Ty Bru’s previous hip-hop style and his new writing style. Lyrically, the track takes us through some choice memories of Corey and the times they shared together, giving us a personal glimpse into their friendship. The track has a bittersweet and nostalgic feeling to it overall; Bru shares both feelings of sorrow that his friend is no longer with us but also a gratefulness that he was able to experience those memories with him.
Now let’s jump into the interview!
Thanks for being with us again! Last time we spoke, we were talking about your song "Like It Used To". What have you been up to in the time since then?
You are quite welcome, I really appreciated your thoughtfulness and research of my work during that process! Since we last talked, I’ve had a few setbacks personally. I had major surgery on my arm in November and had to push back the recording and release dates for most of my art. Thankfully I had a enough songs recorded back in October that I can release until the calendar balances back out.
I was able to finish the film (Once Upon A Christmas 2020) I was working on and we screened it on Dec 19th, at Sunset Theater, Asheboro, NC the same day I released the single ‘Naomi’ https://open.spotify.com/album/4doux5BZQwzfPr8rn7Vz0r?si=Qa25eZN9Q7y9LgGhP13twg which was in honor of my cousin that passed away. It has the same vibe as ‘Like It Used To’ and kind of got lost in the transition of the holidays, so I plan to re-promote that in the next couple weeks.
I also released a really fun music video for my version of ‘Santa Baby’ that featured my wife and a few of our good friends. If you have five minutes check it out. https://youtu.be/pkLOoS6Pcf8
With the new COVID vaccine there is a lot of optimism that we might be able to have live music again sooner than later. Do you have any touring/live events in the works now that live music seems to be on the horizon again?
My labelmates/crewmates have another live stream performance coming up on February 6th 8-10pm on Twitch which is our 4th installment of the series called ‘Live from the BASSment.’ https://www.twitch.tv/EdERuger
It’s something safe and small that we’ve done to adapt to these times, but as of now I have absolutely no interest in touring or live events but I do share the optimism of it being a renaissance type period for the live music circuit sooner than later. I will happily focus all my time on creating and writing.
I’ll explain a little bit. I really have to balance out my emotions before I make a decision to step back into that facet and it also has a lot to do with how artists and venues have reacted in the past year. During this pandemic, there are venues in and around our area that have proceeded as if nothing is happening, they might have been shut down for several weeks, but they reopened and becoming less and less serious about the situation. Venues and artists that choose to disregard any mandates or safety precautions so that they can play in front of a crowd have really thrown me for a loop. I love music and miss the stage, but there are stages I will never touch a microphone on again, venues and bars that I will never step foot in again and artists I will never work with again because of how they reacted during this delicate time period.
We took a listen to your latest track, "C.A.M. Memories Made It Better", which commemorates the life of your late friend Corey. You created the beat for this track when you got the news of his passing ten years ago but wrote and recorded the lyrics last year. Can you take us through your writing process for this song?
When I made that beat, it was initially just a coping mechanism to deal with the grief. I was living by myself at that time and it was 2am when I heard the news, so I wanted to put something together musically that would soothe me and also that helped me somehow “talk” to Corey one last time and get some quick closure. So I made that beat within an hour and had it on repeat. It was never meant to turn into a complete song. I mean I played with the idea here and there later, but it was always this sacred beat that I felt words might taint.
Then COVID19 hits, we are on lockdown, we are forced to stay away from loved ones, we don’t know what’s going to happen. Then it hits REALLY close to home, we quarantine to be safe and I told myself and my wife that there are things I need to say and write that were long overdue, so I started writing these songs from my ‘Heart’s Core’ to pay respects, tell stories about these people I love and what they meant to me and a little bit about who they are.
So I picked that beat back up on repeat, put up a picture of Corey, Casey and myself up and dipped into writing ‘C.A.M. Memories Made It Better’ it was emotional, but also such a huge adrenaline rush and a gigantic sigh of relief.
One of the last songs I wrote while visiting him in Yangzhou in 2008 was a song called ‘Trying’ https://youtu.be/d8ChYm-O9hM and he loved how it was going, we sung the hook together in taxis and at his flat, so I knew I wanted to incorporate some of the hook in ‘C.A.M. Memories Made It Better’ its almost like I was hoping for a better day in ‘Trying’ that I ended up getting those better days through thinking of the memories of him and others I’ve lost via ‘C.A.M. Memories Made It Better.’
I really feel like "C.A.M. Memories Made It Better" is a stirring tribute to your friend. Is there anything you weren't able to share in the song that you'd like to share about him?
Oh yes, much much more. Looking back I wish I could do a whole song about the day and night we were in the grasslands of Inner Mongolia and was part of this crazy wild feast. I think of that time frequently. We wrestled, joined a hunt party that killed a Yak, danced around a huge bonfire passing around the skull of the beast and stayed in a yurt, the whole nine. As soon as we got off the bus they gave us some super strong white liquor that we all needed to drink before we could go any further. It wasn’t as pervasive as it sounds, but hindsight feels something right out of ‘Midsommar’ which his brother and I talked about extensively last summer when we linked back up.
Have you written other music about him in the past?
I started a song about him that I never really finished, it was then going to be a feature verse for another artist who eventually stopped making music, so I put out what I had on my ‘unRAWleased vol 2wo’ album last year. it was called ‘Holding Strong’ https://open.spotify.com/track/4DH3cq6NzRm6tNE25MizyJ
"C.A.M. Memories Made It Better" is from your album, Rustract Boombap. Is there anything you can share about some of the upcoming releases you have in the works?
Believe it or not, I haven’t released a solo album in ten years!!! I have been so focused on other aspects of my artform like fashion, film, photography, production and family. So this year I hope to make up for that with a couple if not three releases.
‘Rustract Boombap’ is something I started working on slowly in 2016 and it will be an album of beats that I have made, kind of paying homage to my hip hop roots. There will be a few like ‘C.A.M. Memories Made It Better’ that blend the styles of ‘Like It Used To’ and ‘Naomi’ with straight up hip hop. Right now this is about 30% recorded.
The album, which will more than likely be called ‘Triple Bypass: Under Anesthesia’ was slated for Dec 2020, but after arm surgery we pushed it back to hopefully April 29, 2021. This one is 60% recorded and I should finish that at the end of February when I get back into the studio. This one is solely using beats from Virginia legend, Poe Mack.
I’m also juggling a project with long time producer and labelmate, Westtopher and a complete hybrid of my styles in ‘Doowop Diddy Bop’ each of which have a few songs recorded and finished in the vault ready!
Is there anything else you'd like our readers to know today?
There are always free ways to support us artists, like sharing, liking, following and commenting on our artistry!! Then we always have quality product to purchase as well. This helps more than you can ever imagine!! Check out my linktree for a few options!
Thank you for sharing with us again, Ty!
Through our interview, Ty Bru really enlightened us on his writing process with “C.A.M. Memories Made It Better” as well as shared his plans for the future (keep an eye out for that “Live From the BASSment” livestream and Bru’s upcoming music!). From the songs we have covered, it is clear to see that Ty Bru puts his heart and soul into his music while writing about his real life experiences in a personable and relatable way - something many modern artists fail to do but Bru absolutely thrives at. Be sure to check out Ty Bru’s linktree to keep up with his socials and music releases and as always we have “C.A.M. Memories Made It Better” embedded below via Spotify! You can also find the track on Apple Music, SoundCloud and Bandcamp!
