Music Artist Reid Jenkins Reveals His Favorite Release So Far And New Single ‘Giant Aster’

You have definitely heard him before!

Whether it be from his individual music or from being one of the members of ‘Morningsiders’, Reid Jenkins is meant to be on your favorite music playlist.

We had the amazing honor of talking with Reid about touring, his advice for aspiring music artists, and more!

When did you first realize that you wanted to pursue a career in music?

R: “It had been my plan B all my life, as I grew up in a family of musicians and started singing and playing violin when I was 6 years old. I studied music through high school but decided to study Earth Science for my undergraduate degree. Music became my plan A when Morningsiders (a band I co-founded in college) had some early career success, such as our song “Empress” becoming a number one on the Spotify viral charts in 2015.”

Tell us more about your amazing new single “Giant Aster”

R: “Giant Aster started as a midi marimba line in a demo originally called “Dragon Frogs” where I was trying to evoke the light, acoustic pointillism of Sufjan Stevens’s “Should Have Known Better.” While riffing over the demo, the words and melody “Giant Aster” came floating out of me. At first, I didn’t really know what it meant – I just liked the sound of it. As I developed the lyrics, the giant aster in the song became the sun, whose movement across the sky marks the time of day, and the song overall became about my relationship with procrastination. The story is about an anxious cycle I often find myself in – wake up in the morning, tell myself I’m going to be productive, waste many hours getting distracted, lie awake at night because I feel stressed that I didn’t get anything done, and promise myself that tomorrow will be different.
This cycle is honestly something I struggle with quite a lot, but I wanted to counterbalance the anxiety of the subject matter with the whimsicality of the lyrics and soundscape.”

If you had to choose, what has been your favorite song you have released up to date and
why?

R: “I would say “Pillow Song.” It was my first foray into conceptually driven acousto-electric maximalism that led to “Giant Aster.” Also, the music video by Neta Ben-Ezra is really quite amazing.”

In addition to your solo music, you are also a part of Morningsiders! What is it like working
with the group members?

R: “On the one hand, working as a solo artist allows me to explore ideas and sounds that wouldn’t necessarily vibe with Morningsiders’ style. On the other, working solo has revealed how many parts of the creative process that I had been leaning on my band mates for, and making music alone makes you have to stare down every neurosis you might have. In the end, I like having both projects. It makes me continually have to define what makes a “Morningsiders” song and what makes a solo song, and having sensibilities grow and bounce off of each other has been both fun and challenging.”

You guys went on a Summer Tour in 2022! Do you want to tour again?

R: “In its current state, I think touring is unsustainable – financially, emotionally, and in terms of carbon burn. The industry is in a pretty weird spot, with tickets costing a fortune while musicians make very little, unless they’re superstars. But I also think that now, more than ever, we need to encourage people to gather together in physical spaces to co-mingle and form communities. The internet is great and all, but I think we’re letting it take control of our lives a bit.”

As for my relationship with touring – I love seeing new places, and I like the idea of getting good through grinding it out every day. However, it’s really exhausting, especially when you’re losing money, as many artists are expected to do until they don’t. I’m also not in love with the idea of being a traveling t-shirt salesman, but that’s where the margins are right now.“

If you went on tour as a solo artist, who would you love to be the opening act?

R: “Emily King, Sufjan Stevens, Rostam, Andrew Bird.”

What advice can you give to young artists who want to pursue a career in music?

R: “Music royalties are laughably complicated but sign up for ASCAP/BMI and a pub aggregator such as Songtrust. They collect different things. Read Ari Herstand for all your music business needs.

I like Brian Eno’s idea of a “Scenius” – to describe how groups of people can be collectively creative and innovative. Whereas the idea of “genius” focuses on the preeminence of one individual, Scenius is about the community of artists that support and inspire each other to come up with new ideas. So lean on your fellow artist peers!”

Where can we follow your amazing journey?

R: “On my Instagram! @ReidJenkinsMusic, though right now it’s a lot of my trip to Japan (not work related). You should also follow @morningsiders.”

Stream ‘Giant Aster’, available now on all music platforms!

Je’Kayla Crawford– Founder and Director– Je’Kayla has been a journalist for years and decided to start a publication of her own, New Scene. When not helping her team and working on the monthly issues, you can find her watching a movie on Netflix or baking using a viral Tasty recipe.