Multitalented artist Aart Strong heads into the holiday season with a new single, “Happy Holidays!” set for a November 22 release. Featuring an upbeat tempo, joyful tune, lively melodies, a hint of rap, and an enchanting chorus, the single is sure to delight listeners for generations to come.
An outstanding lyricist with wide-ranging influences and life experiences, Aart Strong is a singer, rapper, songwriter, producer, and mixing engineer. His ability to write and produce music spans multiple genres, including pop, R&B, soul, hip-hop, funk, Latin, and EDM. “I could be writing a piano ballad and suddenly have an idea for a pop song or a rap song,” notes Aart to underscore his versatility as an artist.
Prior to releasing his own music, the artist performed with cover bands under the stage names “Mister Shy” and “Shaman” and earned the nickname “Mr. Marley” for his impeccable renderings of Bob Marley’s hits.
The African-born artist, based in the New York area, has perfected his music production, mixing, and mastering skills over the years and takes pride in fully owning his art, from writing his own lyrics to designing his artwork and doing all the creative and technical work in between. He writes across genres, styles, and languages, which enables him to have “something unique for every listener.”
“I always wanted to write a song that would join the ranks of those nice, heartwarming and familiar songs that we hear around the holidays,” shares Aart.
According to the artist, despite the many recurring occasions for celebration, the number of songs to commemorate important holidays is quite limited.
“I always thought special occasions, like Christmas, New Year, Thanksgiving, and birthdays, that occur over and over again, have a limited number of songs that we reach for. It’s the same old ‘Happy Birthday to you’ every time, as if no one could come up with something new and more exciting.”
This made Aart want to add to the repertoire of world-famous celebration songs with what we now know as “Happy Holidays!”
The artist disclosed that the project started out quite differently from the finished product. “I didn’t like the direction I initially took, so I decided to start over,” shares the lyricist, songwriter, producer, and mixing engineer, who singlehandedly created, mixed, and mastered the song.
“Sometimes I am inspired with a melody or chord progression that evokes strong feelings in me. From there, I find the ideas that best pair with the melody. Other times, I have a message or story to tell and figure out what music would go best with what I want to say,” adds Aart. “I always keep a keyboard handy for when inspiration strikes.”
“Happy Holidays!” is Aart Strong’s eighth single and his most joyous yet.
“It channels excitement, elation, and happiness, especially the chorus and outro, which are super easy to sing along to.”
“I want listeners to feel what I felt as I was creating the song,” says the artist.
“It’s a song that makes me happy and always brightens my mood. It captures the warm, fuzzy feelings of the Christmas season and conjures up cheerful celebrations with loved ones. I want listeners to feel joy and happiness and ‘forget their worries,’ as I wrote in the lyrics.”
Up next for the artist is the celebration in February of another holiday, Valentine’s Day, with a fresh single titled “My Valentine.” We can look forward to a chill R&B and hip-hop song about a lover who realizes that he took his loved one for granted and drove her away and who wants her back.
“Of all the women that I have loved, you’re the only one that I think of. I took too long to realize what was written in the skies. Now I gotta ask, Will you be my lover?” Aart sings in his next song.
For the time being, the artist sends everyone his warmest holiday wishes with his new single “Happy Holidays!” available on all streaming platforms beginning on November 22, just in time for Thanksgiving.
Make sure to follow Aart Strong on all platforms for new music, videos, social media posts, and concert dates.
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