Some songs are created with a story already in mind. Others discover their story as the music takes shape. For Andrew Shabazz, “Happy Flight (Slowed)” belongs to the second kind.
What started as an attempt to create a funky, old-school soul instrumental gradually became connected to one of the most meaningful chapters of his life. Inspired by the journey to meet his wife during a long-distance relationship and the flight that eventually brought her home to stay, the track carries a personal story of love, change, anticipation and faith. Yet Shabazz did not begin the song intending to write a love song. The meaning developed naturally as his life began influencing the music.
That organic approach is central to how he creates. Largely self-taught, Shabazz relies on his ear and his instincts, building compositions from elements such as chords, melodies and basslines before allowing the arrangement to grow. On “Happy Flight,” unconventional percussion and a swinging rhythm help move the song beyond a familiar 4/4 structure, creating the sense of movement that its title suggests.
His musical identity is also shaped by an openness to different sounds. Growing up around family members with varied musical tastes exposed him to rock, soul, funk, disco and country, while artists such as Roy Ayers, Gene Harris and Ronnie Laws have influenced the jazz-funk and soul sensibilities behind the track. Rather than staying inside one genre, Shabazz uses different styles as opportunities to experiment and understand how each sound works.
That willingness to explore extends into his production process at Sharpshooter Soundworks. From his home studio, he handles much of the songwriting, composition and production himself, while recognizing that creativity sometimes requires stepping away from the technical details. For him, music is not something to rush. It is something to allow to develop.
At its heart, “Happy Flight (Slowed)” is an invitation to let go of fear and experience the moment. Beginning with soft chords, sparse drums and bass before opening into horns and a fuller swinging rhythm, the instrumental takes the listener on a gradual musical journey.
Through the story behind the song and the creative philosophy that shaped it, Andrew Shabazz offers a simple message: sometimes the best way forward is to trust the journey and enjoy the flight.
Since I’m not formally trained it’s always been by ear and by feeling for me. I was in band and choir on and off during school when I was a kid but I’ve all but forgotten any formal music knowledge. I know theory to a degree and how to write in key and scale (mostly with the help of digital tools in my DAW) but beyond that I can’t sight-read music and play that way or anything.
The lyric “Won’t you take a ride? come on board my happy flight…” gives the listener an invitation before the musical journey really begins. What did you want listeners to imagine when they hear those words, and did you see yourself speaking directly to your wife, to your younger self, or to anyone who has experienced that feeling of waiting for someone to finally come home?
Those lyrics haven’t actually been recorded yet, I’m still working on the vocal version of the song, for now this is fully instrumental. I think these words are for anyone hearing the song (when that version releases) I tried to write in the style of the old jazz funk and soul artists like Roy Ayers, Gene Harris and Ronnie Laws. Songs like “Losalamitoslatinfunklovesong” (Gene Harris), “Everybody Loves the Sunshine” (Roy Ayers), or “Friends and Strangers” (Ronnie Laws) really inspire me. My dream is to make even just one song that matches one of those.
“Happy Flight” is described as jazz-infused, but your work through Sharpshooter Soundworks is not confined to one genre. How has your willingness to explore different styles shaped your musical identity, and do you think working across genres has made it easier for you to follow an idea without worrying about whether it fits a particular category?
The music that I write reflects the music that I enjoy at the end of the day. I am a fan of all kinds of music, I can find beauty and inspiration in most any genre and I like to challenge myself by writing in diverse styles I like to try and understand how a drum groove would be played in this style or that, or what effects are needed to match this or that guitar tone. I grew up with a family that had diverse tastes as well and that shaped me for sure. I would be with my uncles and they’d be listening to rock or with my dad listening to old soul music or funk and disco and my mom would listen to country. So I got a really wide variety naturally and I took to it. I think that little by little this has helped me to shape a unique sound in my own music because I’m open to experimentation.
Because you handle songwriting, composition and production yourself from your home studio, there is a very personal connection between the original idea and the finished recording. How does being responsible for so much of the creative process affect the way you make decisions, and are there times when you deliberately step away from the technical side and simply let yourself experience the music?
I think there comes a point where you really do have to step away from the technical side after a certain point there can be times where you spend days or weeks making small tweaks to a song that the average listener won’t notice or care about just out of a sense of perfectionism. Most of the time, before a track is released I’ve already listened to it to the point of exhaustion and moved on to a new composition. I’ve learned it’s ok to sit on an idea and come back to it later, don’t try to rush creativity or finish a thing before it’s time. This is art not construction.
Your approach seems strongly connected to experimentation and learning through practice. Can you take us inside your creative process when you are working on something new? What usually comes first for you, an emotion, a melody, a rhythm, a sound, an image, or something else entirely?
Many times the inspiration to write is the first step in the process for me, there may be months where I don’t even want to look at my keyboard but then others where I can write 4 songs in a day. I would say the main things that I usually start with first are either the melody, chords, or bass line. For example, I’ll be there improvising a bass line and when I’ve gotten a sound I like, I record it and then add more elements on top and make them fit the sound and rhythm.
There is a natural sense of movement in “Happy Flight,” not only because of its subject but also because of the way the instrumentation builds and carries the listener forward. How important is the idea of creating a musical journey to your songwriting, and what do you want a listener to feel as the track progresses from its opening moments to its conclusion?
I think the musical journey is the most important part of my writing especially as an artist that almost exclusively writes instrumental works. In the opening of the song it starts with only a soft and unassuming set of chords over sparse drum hits and a bass it then opens up to horns and a swinging drum rhythm. I want the listener to feel the experience of being carefree about wherever they are in life and for the short duration of the song to come with me on the happy flight. From the solo, to the crescendo, to the outro.
After more than a decade of making music and continuing to teach yourself through experimentation, what has changed most about the way you hear and create music today? Looking ahead with Sharpshooter Soundworks, what areas of your artistry are you still curious enough to explore?
One of the things about writing music is that it really trains your ear to hear things that the average listener won’t notice. Most people when they listen to a song just hear it in it’s full context and can’t really zero in on a specific harmony part or instrument, that was the way that I listened to music myself before. I’ve found since writing and mixing and mastering for so long that I can now pick out each instrument in a mix separately in my mind and get an idea of how it was played. This has helped me a lot in my process.
I would say the things that I’m still always curious about are sound design ( I create almost all of my own drums and sometimes even my own synth patches) and just learning to play better and write better.
CONNECT
