TOWER Family: Dr. Martens and TOWER meet Sub Blue

TOWER Family: Dr. Martens and TOWER meet Sub Blue

For AW22, TOWER has joined forces with HQ resident Dr. Martens to cast a yellow-tinted spotlight over a healthy dose of up-and-coming talent.

On this occasion, R&B artist Sub Blue takes centre stage in giving our community an insight into his style inspiration, before delving into the on-stage footwear essentials that make him tick.

Take a look at his self-written info-block below before we delve into the nitty-gritty!
"There is an assumption that kids in the suburbs have it easy, that money solves everything. But this is far from the truth. Suburban life brings its own challenges, from ‘absent’ parents and lack of guidance to the suffocation of monotony and, perhaps most damaging to the young, the peer and societal pressure that comes with a more middle class upbringing. This is the essence of Sub Blue’s music – that juxtaposition of perception versus reality. The name “Sub Blue” grew up in the suburbs of Merseyside. As one of the only black children in both his school and his postcode, he was shy and introverted. “I didn’t want to stick out too much, so like most kids I tried to fit in with my peers” he remembers. Therefore, despite being raised on a wide range of black music at home, he began to follow what his classmates were listening to – mainly white indie and rock bands. It all began to change for him after a trip to Houston with his parents. While there, he heard Drake, long before he made a name for himself in the UK. Sub Blue returned to school telling his classmates that Drake was going to be one of the biggest stars in the world. Two years later, he was proven right.
This – along with a seismic shift in teen culture – brought him around to R&B."
Formalities out of the way, our team at HQ took the opportunity to dig a little deeper - why R&B? What does Sub Blue's creative process look like? How does he break the mould? We're creating a platform to support education and inspiration for future generations - this, is Sub Blue.

TOWER: What’s been at the top of your ‘On Repeat’ playlist lately?

Sub Blue: I’ve really been bumping the new Steve Lacey Gemini 'Rights' album on repeat!

TOWER: Walk us through a typical day for you when you’re making music.

Sub Blue: I’ll usually wake up pretty early, I’d say I'm a morning person. Then, I'll start off by free-styling a few melodies and playing some chords on my guitar, and hitting record on my voice memos then just seeing what comes out. There will usually be a stand out point in the voice note which will either end up being the chorus or the first verse of the track.

TOWER: What keeps you going creatively when you feel unmotivated?

Sub Blue: I'd say being surrounded by such supportive friends and having them there to talk to whenever I feel motivated keeps me motivated. Life experiences are a big part of my writing process, my last project ‘Honesty’ speaks for itself, being honest with myself was the main driver and inspiration for the project.

TOWER: What traditional ‘style rules’ do you like to break/subvert?

Sub Blue: I would say mixing different colour palettes that you wouldn’t expect be the style rules I break.

TOWER: A large part of performing is expressing your identity through not just your voice but your image, how does Dr. Martens and footwear weave into this?

Sub Blue: I’d say Dr. Martens weaves into this by always being innovative and so durable, I can piece together an outfit with Dr. Martens in mind no matter what occasion.

So, you have now met Sub Blue! Thank you for joining TOWER, and you can find his socials below. Now, we have a question for you - who would you like to see hit TOWER's artist spotlight next? Find us over on Instagram and slide your suggestions into our inbox. Sub Blue social: