A Bronx-based musician is making his mark on New York City’s music scene.
July Quin got his start in music at 16 years old after noticing that a friend of his was filling his notebook with rhymes during math class. After working with him, Quin went hard into making music, even utilizing another friend’s makeshift studio to record.
“I guess because of how interested I was, he told me all the little secrets that he knew at the time, giving me like tips on what type of microphones to buy and what type of programs to use,” said Quin.
Quin took those skills and made his own home space, which is where he continues to make his music himself. He recently signed on with the Bronx’s own The Fox and King, Quin tries to keep a home-grown element to everything he does.
“Literally the same room that I’m in right now is like the room that I’ve been in for years and years making every single piece of content and every single sound, music, engineering, mixing and producing stuff. Everything is literally been in this room for the last 10-12 years,” said Quin.
On April 16, Quin dropped his newest album, “All My Heroes Are Mortal.” The album came together over the course of two weeks, when Quin was on break from his day job.
“I’m one of those people that when I get an idea in my head, it’s kind of hard to shake it loose. If I’m gonna do doing, I’m gonna do something,” said Quin. “A lot of things were happening right for me at the time, and I felt a sense of extreme joy in my life. I feel like a lot of my art has come from very dark and depressive states, which isn’t a bad thing, but I wanted the next project that I worked on to not be so much and looking towards the future.”
The album draws on that positivity while also reflecting on the darker times. Coming out of those depressing moments is in part how the album got its name in the first place.
“The overall message ended up being that, I’ve seen a lot of ‘normal’ people pull off very miraculous unimaginable feats in my life, like people who have come out of the other side of depression, people who have come out at the other side of feeling like they’re not the best, people who are still getting back up and trying again. And to me, those are the most magical people in the world,” said Quin. “I wanted to have something that captured that spirit. After listening back to the songs, that was pretty much the essence of everything. It was joy, it was spirituality, it was looking forward toward the future. It was having these little reminders of how far we’ve come, and then the celebration of that like that we made it out to the other side.”
Quin recently debuted his newest album with a concert at Rockwood Music Hall. The musician has been enamored with the venue since he saw his friend perform there.
“It was kind of surreal. We were kind of panicking, but it all worked out for the better,” said Quin. “Just something about the intimacy of a venue like that where it’s packed, you’re with your band, and everybody in the room is kind of sharing this one singular moment.”
Quin noted that playing the songs from the album live really sunk in how well-received the album has been, and how his music affects his audience.
“Seeing people repeat the lyrics to songs that you feel are kind of too rappy or too wordy, seeing how much it resonates with people is really, really awesome,” said Quin. “It’s been encouraging and motivating. Also working with The Fox & King has been a new stage in my life. I’ve never worked with management before, I’ve done mostly everything for years and years myself. So learning to break out of that do-it-yourself mentality, ask for help and seeing what comes along with that, it’s been pretty remarkable.”
Quin has another upcoming show on May 20 at Silvana NYC alongside Emelia Vero. Though he recognizes that he’s still pretty new in the music space, Quin hopes that he can start to book more shows in the future.
“I think the goal for me personally is to keep on getting gigs. I’m still a relatively unknown artist, and I still operate under that function,” said Quin. “I still have big dreams and I still view myself as somebody who’s put in the work, but there’s still a lot more work to do. And I personally feel that if you come to one of my shows, you’re getting something very special, like a moment in time. You’re getting something that’s handcrafted to be entertaining and to speak to you.”
To celebrate the success of the album, Quin and The Fox & King will be cutting made-to-order vinyl on May 14. Each vinyl will be recorded live with the song of your choice. Those who are interested in purchasing one can visit leestavall.com/collections/preorders/products/julyquin.
Quin’s music, including “All My Heroes Are Mortal,” is available on Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, and julyquin.bandcamp.com. You can follow Quin on Instagram @julyquin.
