Artist of the Day: Random Ties

For our Artist of the Day, we catch up with Youssef, frontman of rockers Random Ties for a chat.

Introduce us to Random Ties. How did you meet?

Random Ties are Youssef Salloum (Vocals / Guitar), KD Murray (Drums) and Karno (Bass). First let me take you back to 2018 which was when I moved to US from Lebanon, I didn’t know anyone or how the music scene was so I started going to open mics with my acoustic guitar and meeting other musicians. One thing lead to another and I met the rest of the guys.

Our start defines the type of band we are when I think about it. When we first started in Detroit, we didn’t have a reputation in the music scene and no promoter would return our messages. What I would do is follow all the venues around us on social media and in case a booked band cancelled an appearance at the last minute and the promoter or venue needed a fill in we’d be ready to hop in our car and be available to play the show.

What genre would you describe yourself as?

We are a high energy, feel good rock band, known for our dynamic sound, contrasting between quiet verses with loud heavy choruses topped with an honest message

Who is your main inspiration?

The sound that changed my life was the 90’s bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters. Their music shaped who we are as a generation. Honestly, growing up listening to them it was so powerful.

How do you write your songs?

There is so much going on around us good and bad and what better way to channel that energy and express it via music. The guitar usually comes first then the lyrics flow.

Our new single “Thawra” was inspired by the deadly attack that happened in Lebanon on August 4th that rocked the nation, leaving over 300,000 people displaced and thousands still missing or dead.

This humanitarian crisis really hit me hard, the blast is only second to the Hiroshima bomb, this prompted me to write “Thawra” and work with the incredible Layal @Ipr1ncess who produced the video with the most authentic shots of what’s going on down there. We hope this song will shed light & raise awareness of what’s going on in Lebanon.

All proceeds will go towards supporting the Lebanese Red Cross so if you do decide to contribute would be to purchase the single via our Bandcamp page https://randomties.bandcamp.com/track/thawra (video at the bottom of this post)

What made you want to start in music?

My first exposure to music was listening to my grandad sing the Opera which sounded so melodic yet powerful and I thought I would follow in his footsteps.

When I was 8 years old I started listening to the Beatles, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn and that’s where my love for music grew.

What is on the horizon for you?

Given that the future of live shows is up in the air, we are turning to social media more to connect with our fans and new listeners, keeping them engaged with engaging content via our Instagram page

We want to remain consistent by providing quality music to our audience and reach a wider fan base geographically so a big thanks to you for giving us this interview.

We also released our first EP “Believe” in June which you can stream on spotify. This was the EP I put on hold for years, I wrote and did a lot of the stuff myself as opposed to previously, I would work with a group.

Who would you most like to collaborate with (alive or dead)?

So many such a tough question, gun to my head and had to pick one... John Lennon

What is your ultimate goal?

Grow our reputation as a rock band that gave a voice to the less fortunate and defiant to corruption and abuse of power that was able to make this world better, when it’s all said & done.

If you could cover any song, what would it be?

Estranged by Guns n Roses - it’s such a masterpiece of a song!

Tell us your funniest joke!

Mama mosquito sends baby mosquito out to the world, baby comes back & mama asks how was he, baby replies great everyone was clapping for me.