In 2016; I formed my band, Skeptic. In the band, I take on the roles of lead writer / composer; guitar and vocals. Upon the bands inception, we felt that young musicians in Dubai were criminally under appreciated and so our aim was to create music that could provide an authentic representation of growing up in the Emirates. In 2018, we released our debut album: Wrath & Lust. We received local praise and were blessed with opportunities such as opening for music legends: Dream Theater and Bumblefoot. Due to the pandemic in 2020, we took a hiatus and will soon return with our long awaited sophomore album.

It was during this hiatus that I began writing / releasing music under my own name, as a solo artist. I found I could truly express myself through emotive songwriting that tackles themes such as love, longing, time, memory, order and disorder. In this pursuit, I have released two solo albums to date: Six (2020) and Slow Down Time (2023). I have been fortunate enough to receive acclaim for my work in both settings via playing my music around the Middle East and Europe as well as featuring on radio stations such as Virgin Radio and Dubai Eye.

The most pivotal artist in my entire soundscape and career thus far. To me, Axl is the epitome of the last great rockstar. From his songwriting / lyricism in the songs ‘There Was A Time’ and ‘Coma’ to his skillful musicianship in ‘November Rain’ and ‘Estranged’ - Axl is the full package and held by many (including myself) as the greatest frontman of all time. In my early teenage years, I became fascinated with the rock genre almost entirely via Guns N’ Roses debut album, ‘Appetite For Destruction’; an album widely acclaimed to be ‘Arguably the greatest debut hard-rock album of all time.’ (Claire, 2022.)

I believe Axl perfected emotive songwriting in heavy music. He navigates themes such as love, longing and loss using such articulate diction while simultaneously contradicting this audial vulnerability with his raucous and aggressive vocal timbre. I have always been intrigued with (and further implemented in my own music) the use of contrast in songwriting and I would merit Axl Rose as the reason for this application. Growing up, I likened vocal rasp as the primary sign of a great vocalist, and so I learnt how to sound in an aggressive vocal manner before I even learnt to sing. Now, as a folk musician (and previously in hard rock) I believe this has become my unique selling point. Americana folk with an Axl Rose inspired, aggressive vocal style.

Lana Del Rey is one of the more recent artists to have a major influence on my work and how I create within the components of music and songwriting. Lana’s writing is deeply rooted in the themes such as melancholia, epicureanism and Americana. She has created a visual world for us, her listeners, to live in as we navigate her discography. “One of Lana’s most interesting aspects is her ability to romanticize seemingly monotonous and common experiences. - Romanticizing one's life can also drastically help one view their situation in a different light and can even help someone cope with depression and dissatisfaction by reinforcing a belief that there is beauty in all things and all levels of life, not just the rich and unobtainable one." (FaceTatt Philosophy, 2023.)

I connect with Lana’s music because I believe we create from extremely similar inspirations; her songwriting is such a candid and conversational representation of her battles with profound feelings of existentialism: "Whatever the case, Lana Del Rey’s music presents the messiness of our modern existential crises, our human weakness, our internalised, toxic behaviours. While perhaps we’d do best not to glamorise it all perpetually, we can nevertheless learn something from it being said out loud, admitted, even cried over —from the raw pain and the endemic emotion it opens up and admits." (Spens, n.d.) I am greatly inspired by her semantic lyrical focus on time as a theme that allows her to perfectly capture the sentimentalism of nostalgia, written and audial.

I would also like to mention that I maintain a deep fascination by the contrasting direction in how her music is produced. She opts for dry and relatively unaffected sounding instruments in her mixes, directly opposing most of her peers in the dream-pop / psychedelic rock genres; genres greatly defined by their effect drowned soundscape. "Within an effects unit, we distinguish between two types of signal. The dry signal is simply the unaffected, original input signal. The wet signal is the new signal that the effects unit produces. If we take a delay, for example, the vocal sent to the delay unit makes the dry signal, and the delays generated by the unit constitute the wet signal." (Izhaki, 2013.)

Elton John is a legendary British singer / songwriter / pianist notable for his music contributions from the early sixties to present day. His long and lustrous career is highlighted by legendary songs such as 'Rocket Man' and 'Your Song'.

Many times throughout his career, Rose has merited Elton John the very reason he began a career in music as well as his greatest inspiration: “Bennie and the Jets made me know I want this. Especially the first seven albums, - and Elton was just amazing in the studio. For me, that’s my classical music because some of the stuff is classical. I listen to Elton John all the time." - Axl Rose (MTV, 1990.)

It is also imperative to note that Axl's piano playing is of direct influence from Elton John. Both artists are predominantly singers who play piano (with a focus on rhythm and accents) to provide an added an element of instrumentation in their music: "Because Elton John is singing his melodies, often his piano playing is providing accompaniment to his voice. As such, there is a strong use of the piano as a rhythm instrument, adding additional layers of groove and syncopation in and around the drum kit and bass guitar. You can particularly hear this in songs like 'Benny and the Jets' where the piano can feel like it's taking you by surprise at times. His early work as a session player for R'n'B groups was likely a big influence on this style of playing. In the gaps between the singing, the piano also adds a drum-like feel by inserting 'fills', or more complex rhythmic sections to help build excitement." (Counterpoint Music, 2019.)

Janis Joplin was an American singer / songwriter most notable for her iconic presence and powerful rock vocal performances. She rose to fame with her extremely popular cover version of 'Piece of My Heart' and her final recording, original song 'Mercedes Benz'. She died at just twenty seven years old and embodied Roses' mantra: 'Live Fast, Die Young.'

Since the inception of Guns N' Roses, many have likened Rose's voice to Janis Joplin's; both share a forward and upfront, aggressive vocal style that cuts through just about any studio / live setting. His vocalizations in Guns N' Roses second studio effort, 'GNR: Lies' greatly resemble the timbre and vocal choices a young Janis Joplin would make.

In 2014, Rose responded to a list noting him as the 'worlds greatest singer', to which he responded: “If I had to say who I thought the best singers were, I’d say first that I don’t know there’s a definitive answer as in my opinion it’s subjective, and second that my focus is primarily rock singers. - That said, I enjoy Freddie Mercury, Elvis Presley, Paul McCartney, Dan McCafferty, Janis Joplin, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Roger Daltrey, Don Henley, Jeff Lynne, Johnny Cash, Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Scott, Etta James, Fiona Apple, Chrissie Hynde, Stevie Wonder, James Brown and a ton of others (predominantly Seventies rock singers) and would rather hear any of them anytime rather than me!” - Axl Rose (Rolling Stone, 2014.)

Johnny Cash was an American singer / songwriter most notable for his outlaw-like antics, low register vocal timbre and legendary songs such as 'Ring of Fire' and 'I Walk the Line'. He also famously covered one of my favorite songs by the band Nine Inch Nails, titled 'Hurt'.

Both Cash and Rose were well known for their off-stage antics just as much as their contributions:

Rose's infamous behavior led many to believe he was certified insane at the height of his career: "From being late to show for numerous concerts to strangely including the sounds of real sex on one of the band’s songs, Axl Rose has continued his attempts to shock the music industry throughout his career. For a long time, he was the most obvious manifestation of the traditional idea of a rockstar, with his life utterly startling in numerous junctures. Alas, he emerged in an era when outlandish behaviour was still expected from prominent musicians-." (Starkey, 2023.)

Similarly, Johnny Cash was labeled "Music's most famous outlaw, a man who built a career around rebellious antics on and off the stage." (Johnny Cash Trail, 2023.) It is well known that he: "- had a history of clashing with law enforcement. He was arrested seven times for various charges, most of which involved intoxication, drugs, or actions taken while under the influence." (Johnny Cash Trail, 2023.)

Both artists had a seemingly deep interest in pushing the envelope so to speak, and built a 'bad boy' reputation that only seemed to propel their respective successes due to the building of mystique and, in turn, public interest in the product they had to offer.

Amy Winehouse was an English singer / songwriter most notable for her expressive, low register vocals and classic pin-up girl aesthetic. She is known for her capability in an array of genres such as soul, jazz and blues. Her most notable songs are 'Back To Black' and 'Rehab', however I attached my personal favorite: 'Tears Dry On Their Own'.

I personally believe one of the most unique qualities of Lana Del Rey and her music is the aesthetic that is seemingly paired with the experience of listening to her. It is common information that Lana was deeply inspired by Amy Winehouse's visual aesthetic - which makes sense to me. Both artists required you to be wholly invested in their world to properly comprehend and appreciate their music; like a stage show or cinematic experience you are invited to each time you play their music.

As part of Lana's interview for the Summer 2013 cover of Fashion Magazine she was questioned on women she admires, she responded:
“I believe in Amy Winehouse. I know she’s not with us anymore but I believe she was who she was and in that way she got it right. I would say an actress like Lauren Bacall also got it right. She never let anyone [persuade] her to be something she wasn’t. She was strong. She always looked like she knew what she was doing.” - Lana Del Rey (Fashion, 2013.)

Jeff Buckley was an American singer / musician most notable for his ethereal and androgynous vocal style. He trail blazed a melancholic soft rock genre of his own with his most notable contributions including his cover of 'Hallelujah' as well as his original music such as: 'Lover, You Should've Come Over' and 'Grace'.

Buckley's extremely unique vocal techniques; such as a fast oscillating vocal trill he would pepper his diction with has pioneered an entire generation of ethereal and psychedelic sounding vocalists; Lana Del Rey being a perfect example of one of them. As noted in an excerpt from 'Far Out', a music website: "Buckley’s influence is evident in Del Rey’s sound, particularly on her soft-rock album Ultraviolence, which features a rendition of Simone’s ‘The Other Woman’, which Buckley also covered. Discussing the late musician, who she called a “big inspiration,” she said, adding: “We talk about these people like we know them. They’re a part of our relationship. We always say, ‘All our friends are dead and they never knew us.'” (Ferrier, 2022.)

Lou Reed was an American musician / songwriter most notable for his solo works as well as his guitar / vocal contributions to his band The Velvet Underground. He is most notable five decade spanning career that included hits such as: 'Perfect Day' and 'Pale Blue Eyes'.

Reed also had deep lyrical undercurrents of Epicureanism; a philosophy that advocates a simple life. Similar to Lana, he wrote of everyday, menial life in such a manner that made it attractive to the working class America - his primary demographic.

It is also worth noting that they were set to collaborate on one of Lana's early tracks (a song very audibly inspired by Lou's melancholic songwriting approach), 'Brooklyn Baby', but Lou had died the very day they were supposed to meet: "In a new Guardian profile, Lana Del Rey says that the late Lou Reed was supposed to appear on her Ultraviolence track "Brooklyn Baby". Unfortunately, he passed away right as they were set to meet. "I took the red eye, touched down at 7am … and two minutes later he died," she says." (Pitchfork, 2014.)