Soundcloud can be a hit or miss platform.
Mixed into its diverse multitude of creators are professional producers, podcast hosts, underground superstars, kids in their garages, high school choirs, artists who are unsigned for a reason, and artists who are unsigned because they don’t need a label—they’re good enough on their own.
Fortunately for Cautious Clay, a 25-year-old singer/songwriter/producer with a new single called “Call Me,” he falls into the last category.
I must admit, I’ve never been one for electronic R&B styles of music. But there was something about “Call Me” that I found uniquely captivating. He opens the song with the lines:
You only want to hear the good news
You and I never play by the same rules
I took a look inside the pantry
Close enough to know a bagel understands me.
What could this be? A poetic take on how one relates the emptiness of their inner self to that of a bagel’s hole, desired for their rich and plentiful exterior but left with nothingness at their core?
Perhaps it’s an ode to stress-eating, a habit that follows us all in the trail of disappointment?
Or maybe it’s just a joke, a humorous aside about one’s flippancy to begin what soon ends up being a song about one’s rise to success and their I-don’t-give-a-d*** attitude.
Whichever way, the line shows Cautious Clay’s got personality unlike any other and gets you hooked—I had to keep listening to figure out what this guy was talking about.
In the chorus, he sings:
Call me by name
Call me a sinner
Fell for the fame
It’s alright, it’s okay
He’s unapologetic without putting listeners off. We get the picture of an artist whose life has changed with success, who might have people around them judging them because of their newfound fame, but who doesn’t care.
In fact, at one point he makes the bold claim:
Never walk through my entrance
You can follow my lead
The artist depicted in the song recognizes his success, and while that may come off as pretentious “sinning,” he’d rather be his honest self than follow someone else’s rules. He’s content to just do him. The story is one we’re all familiar with.
Cautious Clay isn’t the first to describe the duality between fame and expectation. We’ve seen everyone from Britney Spears to David Bowie to Taylor Swift cover the topic of what it means to totally lose one’s anonymity (I mean, the entire Reputation album is about Swift reclaiming her image after battling defamation).
But fame is an intriguing topic, especially to those of us who don’t know it. And Cautious Clay is in the unique position of being successful but not famous to the traditional pop icon degree. He gives us a glimpse into the in-between, a sector of the fame spectrum not often represented. Between his rich voice and liquid lyricism, he creates an organic perspective that rings true and interesting.
It’s as if he’s telling us, “I know exactly where I am.” And the resulting tune is pretty darn catchy.
Which is why it should come as no surprise that Cautious Clay is classically trained in music, having taken flute lessons as a youngster and also having studied saxophone. His music, and “Call Me” in particular, with its funk-meets-pop-meets-stoner chill sound, showcases an understanding far beyond what a typical Soundcloud “vibey” artist demonstrates.
It’s simple, but it’s not empty. Repetitive, but not annoying. Personal, but not to the point of being exclusionary. Listeners are invited into Cautious Clay’s funky, innovative, bagel-obsessed mind. It might not always make sense, but it’s refreshing. The juxtaposition of a groovy bass line with his breathy vocals and light-weight flute ornamentations creates a totally new atmosphere. One where classical, Motown, and electronic music can all live in harmony.
