One of the many seismic shifts in culture caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has been a growing focus on mental health awareness. Layoffs, illness, canceled life plans, isolation, all contributed to a public discussion about depression and what is really means to find fulfillment. Now, instead of layoffs, people are quitting their jobs in record numbers to find themselves, a trend that seems inevitable after months of being locked in our homes with ample time for self-reflection.
Rapper Clay Hodges’ excellent new album, "B Good 2 U," was the result of a two-year soul searching/production process that began when he moved to the West Coast.
“I started the project in California,” said Hodges. “That’s where I got the inspiration from and where I started working on some of the earlier tracks. Moving to Atlanta and then coming back to Savannah definitely helped me solidify it.”
Although, Hodges has been a popular, in-demand rapper in Savannah for years, he felt like he needed a change of scene to grow as an artist.
“I’m doing my thing in Savannah and it felt like I hit a ceiling,” Hodges explained. “Here I made myself a name and I’m a local celebrity, people know who I am, but I’m still working a job I hate. I figured if I move to California I’ll have a better opportunity of getting contacts and opportunities that will help me do music for a living.
“I definitely made connections and I met people, but I realized that the actual, actual reason why I went to Californian was to find myself, in hindsight. You move away from home and you get to be whoever you want. I chose to double down and figure out who I was for real. While I was in California I got the opportunity to be me without the distractions of people’s opinions of who I am, what I’m supposed to be doing, and all that other stuff. Not only did it help me be a better artist, it helped me be a better man.”
Although "B Good 2 U" began in California, it is ultimately rooted heavily in Savannah with song titles like “C Port Princess” and “Savannah Made,” as well as a phonebook’s worth of local featured artists and producers. It was his experience in California that inspired Hodges to return home and invite his Savannah friends to collaborate.
“When I was out there, I saw all these Silicon Valley companies,” recalled Hodges. “They started with people they went to school with or grew up with, they came together and they did it. If we did that in Savannah we could move mountains. There is so much talent, so I wanted to purposefully put together a project and put together a bunch of features from people I think are dope and just see what happens. It’s been received really well.”
Featured artists include LaScrilla, Quanna MC, Jcorlett, Kiera Songbird, Calvin J. Ford, SiMaya, Aspen Martin, Jake Menendez, and Halftyme Humble.
Hodges is a charming, charismatic and versatile performer, so on "B Good 2 U," he worked with many of Savannah and Atlanta’s top producers like Swank, Ramon, Victor “me-Psiah” Wilkerson, and many others to highlight every aspect of his personality.
Credit: Photo provided
Credit: Photo provided
“Sonically, I wanted to give everybody something,” said Hodges. “The bigger theme of the project is me learning to embrace myself. If I’m truly embracing myself, I’m embracing the different aspects of myself. I love R&B, I love trap, I love traditional hip hop, I love bars. Why not find a project and a creative way to incorporate all of that into one piece of work.”
“I can get on a trap record and still sound like Clay. I can get on an R&B record and still sound like Clay. No matter what element I’m in, I still want to be me.”
The title of the album came from an expression Hodges’ Uncle Ricky used to say to him as a send-off, “Be good to you.” It took Hodges a long time to understand what his uncle meant, but when he did it inspired the main themes of the album.
“My uncle is one of those spiritual guys that came up in the 60s,” said Hodges. “Peace, love, positivity — that’s what he’s all about. My uncle has been a great spiritual influence on me and my life. He always would say little things here and there that would inspire me.”
Hodges had just ended a relationship when his uncle’s expression finally resonated with him.
“Be good to you — it sounds so simple, but it’s so powerful,” said Hodges. “It goes in so many different directions and goes with so many situations that I feel like everybody can relate to being good to themselves, because everyone’s definition is different, so for me and my pursuit to learn how to be good to me, one of the first things I figured was the idea of having a passion for myself. I never thought about having compassion for myself or even a knowledge of my feelings.
Credit: Photo provided
Credit: Photo provided
“As a man, it wasn’t always necessary, acceptable, or encouraged for us to express ourselves or be in our emotions. It was always seen as a sign of weakness. I’ve come up my whole life holding on to this pain and it’s doing nothing but destroying me from the inside out. For the first time in my life, the first thing I started practicing when I started embracing the philosophy of being good to me was having compassion for myself. Just that little step I made opened up a whole door of other things.”
Hodges now goes to therapy and has spiritual advisors, all of which has helped him become a better human being and a more balanced person. Therapy tends to be a private act between the patient and therapist, but on "B Good 2 U," Hodges made it the overall theme and invites listeners into his sessions. The album is narratively held together by candid dialogues co-written by Hodges’ therapist Clayton Hunt and performed by Clay James Nesmith.
“I brought the world in on the therapy sessions because I want to give people a taste of what it’s like for real,” said Hodges. “A lot of them are still slow to do it, because the concept is so new, but they’re more open to it now. The influence of me practicing being good to me is definitely making an impact on the people around me.”
Credit: Photo provided
Credit: Photo provided
Besides music, Hodges, who has been plant-based for nine years, is focused on his food blog/television show, "Phat Vegan," where he travels the country highlighting different vegan restaurants. The pilot episode featured a celebrity appearance from Atlanta rapper Lil Scrappy. Hodges also plans to continue growing D.O.E Nation, the music collective he co-founded with Halftyme Humble.
To celebrate the release of "B Good 2 U," Hodges held a silent headphone vision board listening party. Sitting in their own listening bubbles, attendees used poster board, magazines, fake money, and other materials to create aspirational vision boards.
“You essentially create the life you want on the board,” said Hodges. “You look at it, you set your goals on it, and six months from now you go back and say, ‘Oh I did that, or ‘I need to work on that’. I have one in my room right now that says, ‘Over 1 million records sold’ and ‘Platinum.’ A year from now I’ll go back and see what happens.”
Clay Hodges’ "B Good 2 U" is available on all streaming platforms.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah rapper Clay Hodges learns how to be good to himself on new album, 'B Good 2 U'
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