STORE MIX 126: GOYA GUMBANI

With his last album titled Warlord of the Weejuns, Goya Gumbani is upfront in how his artistry is tied to fashion. After dubbing himself the “Prince of loafers,” he’s now demonstrating an affinity for slippers, taking us for a walk wearing UGG’s latest drop – the Tasman Albite – alongside creating the latest LN-CC Store Mix.

Having relocated from New York to London as a teenager, Goya Gumbani has been immersed in the sound of both cities, which is reflected in his cultural aptitude within both fashion and music. Gumbani is fluent in style, evidenced by the fusion of jazz and hip-hop on his latest record, resulting in his work feeling well referenced but still unique in its own sonic landscape. His lyrics speak on his experiences, relationships, and words of self-affirmation, coupled with production that is often allowed to breathe, foregrounding the instruments within the storytelling.

With a process involving collaborating with friends within spaces he knows, Gumbani tends to avoid the typical studio setup, favouring a more personable and organic setup. With this in mind, it made for the perfect setting to show off the comfort of the Albites.

Given your title – “Prince of Loafers” – you clearly have a lot of love for footwear. What do you make of the Albite?

I really love the shoe its super slick and I love the woven finish, they’re also really soft and beyond how it looks it’s such a comfortable shoe.

Where have you taken us in this shoot?

Today you have followed me around my house , having a breakfast. I then had to go to a rehearsal in the afternoon to get ready for the evening as I was playing a show called After Midnight in Lock Warehouse.

You’re now six albums into your career. How has your process changed since your first album?

My process has become a lot more deep and takes a longer amount of time to finish things as I think that with the experience I have I'm so conscious about delivering things that reflect that level of craft that I am creating. The process now has been around developing a lot more patience and not rushing to deliver things until they’re right. I think this has come from maturity and age.

Warlord of Weejuns features a lot of your friends. Can you talk about what it was like involving and working with them?

A big part of my regular process is collaborative, it's kind of the beauty of it. It starts as one thing but as other people get involved it starts to evolve so it was really nice to create something with the homies and some people that I know. A lot of it was just working on music as opposed to working on the album - it was just coming together and naturally making music. It was like going to a friend's house and having dinner, it’s just a natural thing you would do with them if you've been hanging out for a little while. A lot of the collaborations happen organically and have been spawned from saying things like “Oh I really like this riff that you’re playing and I have something that I think could contribute towards it” and it builds like that. It’s always great creating things with friends because it never feels transactional and we get to create some really cool things.

In Beautiful BLACK you say, “it’s time to redefine.” What does redefinition mean to you, and how did you reach that proclamation?

It’s about taking back control of the narrative and shaping and showing it in a way that’s true to you and your own story - stepping out of the constraints that society has put on us as people. To reach this point it something that you keep working towards as your reality changes due to your experiences. It’s always important to check in with yourself and never stop reaching to be true to yourself.

“Genre” can be a contentious word for artists, but you’ve been open about your love for jazz. How do you feel about genres?

Genre is just so people can know how to describe it in their head but the reality of it is that sometimes music is just made without much thought about where it fits and more about how it feels. A lot of my music lends from Jazz, Hip Hop, Dub, Reggae and Soul but it’s put together though a curiosity. So I feel like genres are whatever they don’t really matter - do you know you connect with it, yes or no is more important. It’s more spiritual that what its defined as, sometimes you just got to feel it.

What are three jazz tracks would you consider essential listening?

Alice Coltrane - turiya & ramakrisnah Jazzbois & Telemakus - dream hands feat Tristan Chappel Underground Canopy - Zero – F All of these songs are essential because every time I listen to them it’s like im experiencing them for the first time.

How does your relationship with fashion inform your music?

They are both one and the same - to me. Getting dressed is like eating to me it's so necessary. Music and fashion feel so close to me and they both influence each other a lot.

You were born in Brooklyn, then came to this city as a teen. What did you learn about your sense of style across both cities?

I learned that a sense of style is really personal. Both cities have taught me that it’s best when you do you. It's about being individual especially when I was coming up and if you follow that ethos, you can never go wrong.

Any style icons from either city that you looked up to growing up?

From the UK I love Don Letts, my uncle dressed very similarly growing up - you know it's like a reggae /punk/ freedom revolutionary fighter vibes. I can't lie I used to really fuck with Jules Santana, with the tilted bandanna and I rocked with Jay Z too, you know big jeans fitted cap.

Thanks again for making this mix. What did you want to express with it?

I was in a movement based mood having just come back from a long bike ride so my heart rate was up so I wanted to make something that would capture that moment. It's a high energy mix so please move to it.

Describe the perfect setting you’d want to play this mix live?

It feels like the set would be best played in a festival at like 11.30pm and weather is balmy. It’s getting you ready for a great time. I also would like there to be affordable drinks at this festival which also helps create the vibe.