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New Jersey-born and Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, and producer Adam Melchor is one to watch in 2021. With over forty million streams already under his belt as well as praise from publications including Billboard, NPR, American Songwriter, and Wonderland, Adam has quickly made his mark on the industry.

Today, he announces that he’s officially signing to Warner Music, in partnership with R&R Records, for his forthcoming project Melchor Lullaby Hotline, Vol. 1. He’s giving listeners and fans a sneak peek at what’s ahead with his brand new track, “Begin Again“.

Pop Culturalist caught up with Adam to chat about his career, “Begin Again“, and the exciting year ahead.

PC: You come from a musical family. Did becoming an artist come naturally to you?
Adam: Music was always welcomed in any capacity. It was at every family party. We’d always write a song about the person whose birthday it was to the tune of something else. Instead of watching a movie, my grandma would be like, “Can you sing these songs? I have to work on these piano parts. Can you sing it?” It was always around. Something in music was always going to be my career path, and I just happened to be lucky enough to want to be an artist. During those harder times, I knew I would have a good support system to advise me through it.

PC: When you look at your career as a whole, who or what’s had the biggest influence either personally or professionally?
Adam: My dad is a guitar player, and my mom is a singer. I’m legitimately fifty percent of each of them—not only biologically, but also career-wise, that’s what I mixed together. They were always playing and singing songs growing up, but they were also very real with me when I wasn’t good enough. They’d be like, “Hey, this song isn’t that good. I think you can do better.” Having that awareness, too, I got that from them.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success throughout the years. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out to you?
Adam: I feel like I’ve learned the most about myself through the failures I’ve had. Right out of college, my friend signed me up to audition for The Voice on NBC. I did one of those auditions at a football stadium, where no one gets picked. I made it through to the TV round, but I never made it on the show. I did my audition, and I remember being bummed about it, but I also knew that I didn’t have the best voice. I was like, “This is totally, totally cool.”

But, what they said to me was, “You seem like you have the heart for this. You don’t have the talent yet, so if you can get your talent to be as good as your heart, then you’ll be fine.” I was like, “Okay.” That could probably break a lot of people, but I came from a New Jersey family, so our love language is talking sh-t. [laughs] So, I was like, “Yeah, I actually agree with what you’re saying.” I have to work hard. I tried to basically get my talent level to where my heart wanted to be. That really came to fruition when I first moved out to LA and was able to meet people. I was like, “This is the moment that I was working towards.”

PC: Tell us about “Begin Again” and the inspiration behind it?
Adam: “Begin Again” is about wanting to start fresh with someone, knowing you can do a better job and knowing it was your fault that it got messed up. Even when it’s not, we somehow drum up ways in our brain that it’s our fault. It’s like, “Oh man, maybe it was this moment that broke the camel’s back, or maybe it was this.” This one was literally about breaking a tooth. It’s a series of these frustrating things that can lead to this boiling moment. It’s like that Me, Myself, & Irene moment when he turns into a different person because of one thing. It’s more of a self-aware realization like, “Wow, I really messed that thing up and I had a great thing going for me, so is there a way to begin again?”

PC: “Begin Again” is a song off of your new project that’s dropping soon. What can fans expect from this next body of work, and how does it differentiate itself from previous releases?
Adam: This body of work isn’t dissimilar to what I put out before, but the intention behind it is supposed to be very calming new lullabies—lullabies you haven’t heard before, but still have that familiarity and comfortable feeling that you can close your eyes and fall asleep if you want to. I know, for me at least, when I go to bed, I think of all the things in the world. It’s a deep dive into that long look in the mirror you have before you shut your eyes. Then, all of a sudden, it’s morning.

With that being the direction for it, there are different things that I haven’t done before—like, I’ve never released a cover per se, and I’ve never released a voice memo of something. There are all sorts of studio recording, voice memos. There’s one that I did completely on cassette. It’s a vibe of different things.

PC: You’ve steadily been releasing music throughout the years. If you had to pick one single that best encompasses who you are as an artist, which would it be and why?
Adam: Man, that’s a good question. I would pick “Joyride” because it has a full arrangement of things. It has a trumpet on it. That was the first song that had drums and all these things that I totally produced by myself. I feel that there are a lot of things probably going wrong in that song, like, recording technique-wise, but somehow, it all pulls itself together and makes it feel like something that’s completely me. That was the first song that I did where I was like, “Oh man, the imperfections are what makes this me, regardless of if I liked them or not.”

There’s a John Prine quote: “If you make a mistake once, it’s a mistake. But if you make a mistake twice, it’s a style.” That’s me making a mistake twice. But yeah, for me, that was a big turning point in my sonic career. It made me feel like, “I can be myself and it’s fine.”

PC: As we look ahead to the rest of 2021, what does the year hold for you?
Adam: Hopefully a maintained sense of optimism. I’m trying to stay as optimistic as possible. The past year has shown me more than ever that your work is not your identity. Your identity is not your work. You can have bad days and good days, all at the same time; it’s very nuanced. I feel lucky to be able to do what I like to do and have this vehicle of expression—which is going to sound way more pretentious on paper than it does while I’m saying it right now, but I’m going to commit to it—having this way to express myself, and to also have an opportunity to let people feel the same things. I’m hopefully doing more of that, whether it’s shows, whether it’s more music, just finding ways to communicate to a community of people is what I’m looking forward to.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Adam: Idles. Idles is my favorite band of the past two years—I love them. They’re this punk band from the UK and I am obsessed, because they just find the funniest ways possible to say things. Their music is so aggressive, and that’s the kind of stuff where I am like, “Okay, how come they’re having so much fun? How do I have that much fun?” So, that’s a band that I would put on that list.

PC: First album you bought?
Adam: The first album I ever bought was Phrenology by the Roots at Tower Records, which was on Columbus in New York City. My grandma lived right by there. I remember you could do the thing where you put the CD up to the listening thing and you could hear it. The cover was so sick that I didn’t even do it until I was going to buy it. Then, I was like, “You know what? Maybe I should do it! This is my grandma’s money. I heard “The Seed (2.0)” with Cody Chestnut and the Roots, and I was like, “This is very cool.” But actually, that album was what introduced me to John Legend. When Get Lifted came out the next year, it had a similar cover; it was a side profile. I was like, “All right. I’m going to use my grandma’s money again.” [laughs]

PC: First concert you attended?
Adam: The first concert I have ever attended was Guster at the Nokia Theater in 2003, in Times Square.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Adam: Rubber Soul by the Beatles. I used to drive around and listen to that album over and over again. It made me closer to the people I was really close with. When I lost those people in my life, that album still gave me a sense of comfort.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
Adam: Madison Square Garden…and Red Rocks!

PC: A must-have on the road?
Adam: Flossers. I have no idea if this is wrong or not or right, but my dad had open-heart surgery and the doctor said that the biggest reason why his heart was failing him was because his gums weren’t taken care of. He’s like, “The gums are a very big correlation with your heart health, just because it’s like an open-source in your mouth. I never knew that before. Once he told me that information, I became just, like, a non-stop flosser, but those flossers are great, and you can get them anywhere and use them in the car and stuff. Anytime you stop at the bathroom, floss your teeth.

To keep up with Adam, follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify. Pick up or stream “Begin Again” today.

Photo Credit: Muriel Margaret