A sound you don't want to miss: Greg Banks

Hurricane Katrina at age 16 disrupted Greg Banks’ life in New Orleans and led him to write and release songs. He became a Brooklyn-based artist whose sound blends funk, rhythm and blues, and soul, shaped by a multicultural background. His music is described as honest hardship, triumph, and celebration, reflecting lived experience and hopes for future experiences. His manager credits versatility and balance as distinguishing features, noting mastery across multiple sounds. Storytelling is central, aiming to help listeners understand his experiences and potentially influence their own lives. Lyrics convey emotion and pain with raw authenticity, designed to be felt and experienced by audiences.

"When Greg Banks was 16 years old, Hurricane Katrina hit his hometown of New Orleans, Louisiana. The life he knew was ripped away, and he felt he had two options: be a part of what was happening in front of him, or imagine the life he wanted to experience. That's where music comes in. He began writing songs, releasing them, and hasn't stopped since."

"Lean[ing] towards funk, rhythm and blues and soul music, Banks credits his multicultural background to helping form his signature style. My music is honest, my music is hardship, my music is triumph, my music is celebration, Banks said. My music is my lived experience and the things I hope to experience."

"For Banks, storytelling is the most important part of his music. He hopes that his songs can make someone understand his life experiences, and possibly alter the course of their own lives. Narration, he credits to the link. The connection to the art, the connection to the feeling, the connection to the experience."

"Q shares that Banks' lyrics touch on so many topics, portraying emotion and pain in his music. Those are things that I've captured, not just myself even the audiences he's performed in front of, it's just that raw authentic, this is who I am and this is what it is and I want you to feel it and experience it,' he said."

Read at www.amny.com