Andrew Williams — aka Onji — is the kind of artist who can’t separate the strands of his influences out from one another. So he doesn’t even try, instead, he’s begun embracing the way the disparate threads work together. In his work, you can hear the LA-based producer and songwriter tracing bits of folk, hip-hop and electronic music into his dreamy one-off tracks, and slowly releasing them one by one completely independently.
Of course, that kind of artistic solitude is rare for any creator in 2018, but it has afforded Williams the space to come into a sound that’s entirely his own, pushing forward into a style of music that has roots in hip-hop and pop, but moves forward into something entirely its own. In the moody video for his latest track, “Make Time,” which we’re premiering above, he wanders the Mojave desert, contemplating his place in the universe, and his own creative impulses.
According to Williams, the song is a step forward in the way he blends styles, and draws on his experience growing up in the south:
“‘Make Time’ was produced and recorded entirely by me. It represents my effort to weave together disparate musical styles and emotions. It sort of brings together post-rock and trap, among other influences. The video was shot by Sygmod and Adam Gharib in the Mojave desert. I grew up in southwest Florida and western North Carolina. I used to be a worship leader and play music in church. I’ve been making various genres of music for years and am just now crystalizing it all into something cohesive.”
Watch the video above and check out more Onji songs over on his Spotify.
