Chicago-based artist Maxwell Planes creates his unique style of R&B/Soul with what he describes as “a fusion of soul, rap and country with a layer of smooth R&B guitar licks.” Listening through his current catalogue of singles, you can feel a common connection between them; optimism. “I try my best to be an optimistic person, so when I create I feel like that translates through my guitar licks and sometimes lyrically. Also, I’m heavily inspired by gospel music which I feel like can have the most optimistic sound in the arrangements and lyrics.”
His current single, “Runnin,’” was written about the struggles he faces and the emotions that come along with it, mainly anxiety. As the world is well over a year into a pandemic, anxiety is at an all-time high. “Like a lot of people, I have been dealing with bad anxiety for a long time and the way I cope is by running. In a way, anxiety had control of my life and it seemed no matter what I did, or where I went, it would follow me. It still follows me till this day.”
The “Runnin’” music video highlights Maxwell jogging through various Chicago neighborhoods. It’s a city that equally inspires him and challenges him. “These are streets that I am walking, running, or driving down on a daily basis,” notes Maxwell. “I don’t really like to fabricate anything. I like every last detail to be genuine.”
“The city of Chicago has so much beauty within it and so much sorrow as well,” he says. “The city breathes emotion. If you are a conscious person who lives in Chicago, this has a powerful effect on you. Also, the amount of great musicians in the city that I’ve had to hold my own with forced me to achieve a level of musicianship that is up to par with the ‘Chicago standard.’”
It’s easy to understand just how authentic Maxwell Planes is after listening to his music. A transparent example of this is his previous single, “Remember Me.” He says the inspiration to write the song was sparked from an extremely difficult experience: “A few years back, I had a girlfriend who ended up getting pregnant. I was going on the road and I had to balance my focus on the tour and her, which was difficult. Unfortunately, the story ended with a tragic miscarriage. It was quite the emotional rollercoaster and this song is an expression of that time in my life.”
Maxwell began releasing music during the 2020 pandemic though he’s been writing music since 2013. “I never felt the music was at its full potential, so I never released any of it,” he says. “I have been blessed to be able to tour with Ric Wilson for the past few years; being able to see and work with the musicians he works with. We recently went on tour with Cory Henry as well as spending time in the studio recording an EP with Terrace Martin. After seeing how they create, and learning from them, I finally felt the confidence to start releasing my new work.” Prior to his work with Ric Wilson, Maxwell was the DJ/Producer for popular Chicago duo, Sicko Mobb under SONY/ATV music publishing.
Maxwell will continue to release new, meaningful music, through 2021.
