This Friday, February 18 Antonio Eyez will be performing along with E'naj B Da Light for a live performance on the outdoor stage. Though Eyez and E'naj B Da Light have a distinct sound, they both share soulful R&B roots and are sure to make for a great evening of music reflecting Houston’s range of talent.
“A good thing about Wonky Power is that they do recognize real artists, artists who do originals and not only covers, and I think that's something I gravitate towards because they get a chance to really hear the artists,” says Eyez.
This will be the first time performing at the venue for Eyez who will have his full band for the show. He says the audience can expect a set filled with funk, rock, R&B, psychedelic and overall, “A little bit of everything.”
Throughout his career and on his previous releases FutureRockNRoll, Eyez has been in charge of every aspect of his production from playing all of the instruments to recording the tracks and videos but his recent partnership with Love Child Production has allowed him to collaborate with others.
His most recent releases “Whip Appeal” and “Love Like This” are wisely selected covers of R&B hits. On “Whip Appeal” Eyez takes the Baby Face hit and makes it his own by breaking down the song to a slower and funkier yet more natural interpretation of the romantic track.
“I just tried it and those are probably the most selling tracks that I ever put out,” says Eyez of the singles released last year. The songs were selected by his management and he decided to roll with it, departing from his previous rock and roll centered songs.
Though he was familiar with the songs as R&B hits, he admits that he wouldn’t have personally thought to interpret them. “I just tried to put my interpretation of it, my rendition of it and make lemonade,” he laughs.
Though he kept the original and sexy R&B roots on “Love Like This,” originally done by Faith Evans in 1998, there is no escaping the winding guitar solos and vocals that Eyez does so well and where his individuality really shines.
For someone who has always worked on his own, Eyez describes his relationship with Love Child Productions as a “breather” where he can collaborate with others on how to not only get the music done, but also how to present it to audiences.
As an artist that doesn’t easily fit into any clear category with his brand of psychedelic funk, R&B, soul and rock, Eyez knows the challenges that come with finding management, marketing strategies and co-bills that are a good fit.
“If you ask the average consumer, ‘Does this really sound good to you?’ They're going to say two things, yes or no," he says describing the frequent disconnect between artists and the support of their management. "I think when people don't know what to expect, sometimes they are kind of afraid of what they don't know or don't understand.”
Due to the size of the city and the volume of new music that comes from it, It can be challenging to shine a light on everything that Houston has to offer. Antonio Eyez knows this firsthand and hopes to expand his presence and partnership with local artists."When people don't know what to expect, sometimes they are kind of afraid of what they don't know or don't understand.”
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“People know about the rap scene and the country scene but they don't know about the funk, R&B, soul rock situation that's happening right now,” he says referring to artists like Gaitan or The Suffers.
“There's an eclectic thing happening right now, it’s an interesting time. There just needs to be more put on it, there's other artists here that are a force to be reckoned with.”
Antonio Eyes will perform with E'naj B Da Light on Friday, February 18 at Wonky Power, 3534 Navigation, 7 p.m., $10.
