Drawing inspiration from recent events both personally and globally, Joshua Luke Smith is set to drop Volume Two of his ‘Beats And Pieces’ mixtape series. The six-track offering sees the UK spoken word/hip hop artist continue his uniquely personal approach to music, taking stock of the fragility of life and celebrating it in all its mystery, absurdity and beauty.
After 2 weeks that saw his wife and father admitted to hospital and then the Covid-19 crisis hit the world, Joshua found himself taking to the pen in order to try and compute what was going on around him, writing the tracks in hospital waiting rooms and recording the mixtape in under a month at home. The resulting project is a cathartic and celebratory collection of songs which muse on his current mindset, calling to all on humanity to sit back and take in just how lucky we are. Joshua explains further:
“The songs were penned during an intensive four-day stint in the hospital where my wife was undergoing unexpected surgery at 28 weeks pregnant. My dad was having surgery to remove cancer and the Covid-19 crisis consumed the news. Rejecting the choice to retreat into the questions of ‘why’ I leant into the ancient wisdom of spiritual writers, echoing the chorus ‘what a gift it is to live at all’. This project is both for the existential crisis and the moments of awe-struck wonder because sometimes, in the midst of both calamity and clarity the only fitting words are ‘Thank you’.”
Out 14th April, the project replaces Joshua’s up-coming album which he has put back, alongside a UK tour for later this year. Instead the mixtape represents Joshua’s creative offering for a period that is crying out for more art and positivity.
‘Beats And Pieces: Volume Two’ is out on all streaming platforms 14th April 2020
Streams: https://ditto.fm/beats-and-
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Rishma Dhaliwal

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