Nu in the Shu sat down with us for an exclusive interview to discuss his latest album 'Back Seat Time Travel'

Can you tell us about the overall theme or concept behind this album?

The concept is about time travel using your thoughts and memories. Sometimes we can dwell on things that may have already happened and over time have those events look different by over analyzing. Sometimes we can forget crucial details and even add events that never happened to make us feel more secure. So I wanted to look to my past as unbiased as possible and use what I learned about myself and others to help me shape my future actions.

What was your main inspiration for creating this album?

To inspire my inner child. Like pretending the kid version of me is in the crowd and I'm trying to win him over.

How would you describe the sound and style of this album compared to your previous work?

The sound can range from dark to somber on certain cuts while others have a bit of funk and drive to help pace the album. As always I need the tracks to stay rhythmic and compared to my previous work I'd say the production is a bit more stripped back on certain songs.

Are there any particular tracks on the album that hold special meaning to you? If so, why?

The tracks Cynthia's Baby, How it goes and Lights in This Room all Hold a special place in my heart.
All the other songs on the album I can write in my sleep but those 3 were a test for me. Cynthia's Baby forced me to be a bit more vulnerable talking about some of my childhood and appreciating my mom's way of being there for me as nobody's perfect. How it goes started off an exercise to get me out of a bad writers block spell. Lights in This Room was simply therapeutic for me to express how I feel and I just love the sound of that song from beginning to end.

Did you collaborate with any other artists or musicians on this album? How did those collaborations come about?

I worked with my bro the Real OD on the track Campaign. The cohesion in his writing inspires me everytime. I also worked with the legendary iNTeLL and Agent Blurr on the track 2 God Emcees. iNTeLL is one of the craziest wordsmiths I know and I knew Agent Blurr just had to set the track off with the narration. I also worked with an amazing vocalist and great friend of mine Mariah Elle who was the missing piece to Lights in This Room. I worked with Dyamond Strings which started off as a session for another track but ended up going with the beat I produced for Cynthia's Baby and we felt it was a perfect combination for her violin. Lastly the bro Sir Clifton helped with the voice note at the start of Hold Steady which sets the stage for the rest of the song.

Were there any challenges or unexpected moments during the production of this album?

The very night I was uploading the album I had 2 tracks I had to cut as one was too far from being mixed nor did it add to the narrative and the other track was something I felt wouldn't age well as I wrote it from a dark place and I always stand on not writing when the anger is still fresh as you miss all the nuances of the bigger picture and end only hurting yourself and others in the process.

How do you hope listeners will feel or react when they hear this album for the first time?

I want people to get lost in the sounds and flows first and dissect my lyrics on the second go around. Just vibe first THEN listen with a microscope ya know?

Can you share any interesting anecdotes or stories from the recording studio or while on tour related to this album?

It's music done organically so a bunch of funny ish is bound to happen during the recording process. But the first track on the project has a switch up where I knew I wanted to scream and make everything sound trippy. Now I knew I wanted to do this for months prior but I was just waiting on the day where I felt I could scream and sing at the same time naturally as I'm against forced takes. So I just waited and waited and 2 weeks before I dropped the album I had this crazy urge to record the take and it came out exactly how I envisioned it. If that moment never arrived I had a back up sample chop ready in the chamber to substitute the take but still keep the emotion.

What message or emotion do you want to convey to your audience through this album?

Passion. There's only a finite amount of emotions and most of our feelings are a combination of the few. So instead of just listing off how I want someone to feel I would say listen to this album with an open mind and enjoy the...passion?

How does this album reflect your personal growth or evolution as an artist?

This album has helped me feel more secure in my artistry as a solo artist and pushed me to grow in both my rhyme patterns and production.

Are there any specific instruments or production techniques that were particularly important in shaping the album's sound?

I used a decent amount of parallel compression this time as opposed to in-line which allows for louder sound at the expense of dynamics but I kept the ratios low so you still feel the impact of the kicks and plosives. I also used a lot of Abby Road replicated delays.

Are there any lyrical themes or narratives that run through the album as a whole?

The theme overall is coming to grips with my reality. Nothing too crazy.

What are your plans for promoting this album, and what can fans expect in terms of live performances or music videos?

I've been creating small ads that get straight to the point meant for Tik Tok and IG. I've also been getting on Spotify playlists and pushing YouTube shorts in my spare time. Visualizers and lyric videos are being made for each track and a music video for Campaign is also on the way so look out for that.

If you could remix any song and have anyone on it, what song and who would be the feature(s)?

I don't know about remixing a track but a track I would to love make would be with Andre 3k, J.Cole, Masego and Janelle Monae produced by Kaytranada.

What advice would you give someone with a dream?

It's all in divine timing, keep going.

Connect

IG: @nuinthe_shu
Threads: @nuinthe_shu
Youtube: Nu in the shu

Link to album on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/album/179ouKrdnyW6M6Luz7OZzf?si=XpH1s2hZTiW5otapAhtZmw