It’s hurricane season, a reminder of the unpredictability of natural disasters to rattle daily routines. This is a sentiment captured in rising star Pell’s new video “Patience (NOLA Remix)” that was shot in New Orleans during Tropical Storm Cindy in June of this year.
The video directed by Alan del Rio Ortiz contains a colorful, upbeat motif under the raindrops of Tropical Storm Cindy—an unexpected natural element that highlights the resilience New Orleans is known for. As seen in the video, the show goes on; the vibrancy and celebrations continue in the New Orleans streets that bred Pell. “Patience (NOLA Remix)” is like a bridge connecting new generations to the traditional New Orleans sound.
“It’s a cross pollination between the old generation and new generation,” Pell said
Pell, whose offstage name is Jared Pellerin, began implementing New Orleans tributes as part of his sets. After playing a song by popular New Orleans artist Juvenile, “Back That Ass Up”, he found out that the younger generations in his audience were not familiar with some of the legendary New Orleans artists. “Patience (NOLA Remix)” was produced by London On Da Track and is a step toward the idea of linking new generations to past New Orleans music.
“I think it is important to be that bridge. You have to create certain doors for people to walk through,” Pell said.
He credits New Orleans artists like Curren$y, Lil Wayne, PJ Morton, and Mystikal as instilling in him his drive to continue to put out good music in high quantity. In college, he tried to write a song a day to keep up with Curren$y’s work ethic.
“When I was in college, I listened to a Curren$y mixtape once a week. This man was dropping so much music,” he said.
While past New Orleans artists have ever-lasting influence on the current scene, especially in terms of the entrepreneurial spirit of Cash Money and No Limit, Pell describes the new NOLA sound as being limitless.
“The New Orleans sound today has no real boundaries,” he said adding that NOLA is a place that breeds artists in all mediums.
“Everyone I know does some type of art,” he said.
Pell very much fits the new NOLA artist characteristics of being limitless. He is a “futuristic soul” artist who can rhyme effortlessly on a London On Da Track beat like “Jam” followed by an introspective soulful flow on “Runaway”.
“I just want to have a good time and talk about the way I am living in a poetic fashion,” Pell said.
A self-described student of music, he values collaborations. Some of his resume includes performing “Anyone Can Get It” on La La Land’s soundtrack and working with New Orleans artist PJ Morton on “Claustrophobic”. He plans to team up with up-and-coming artist Ambré Perkins in the future.
Aside from developing his musical identity, New Orleans has taught Pell some valuable life lessons. It’s a place he describes as being “chill” where he was immersed in the world of sports as a boy. As a child, he wasn’t as aware of the uniqueness of “The Big Easy” until Hurricane Katrina forced his family to relocate. He could then compare other cities and appreciate the character back home. Living through Hurricane Katrina is an experience that has shown him how to be resilient and pay attention to what is meaningful in life.
“I am a little more appreciative as well as more caring about relationships and about what I am doing,” he said.
Presently, the horizons look bright and clear for Pell. He is doing more shows; Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado on September 29 and the ACL Music Festival in Austin, Texas on October 13-15 are some of the upcoming shows. On November 18, he will be joining Aminé and A2 for a sold out show at the Metro Chicago for the Red Bull Sound Select 30 Days in Chicago concert series. There is also an album in the works for fans.
“They can expect the best I have ever done. It is very forward thinking but still has the soulfulness to it that I enjoy,” he said.