Smile High & 6LACK & QUIN Share “Kinks” from Smile High’s Forthcoming LP ‘The Vibetape’
November 3, 2023 BY Bailey Vigliaturo
Today, Smile High, producer and keyboardist for internationally renowned funk/soul/rock band The Main Squeeze, shares new single “Kinks,” featuring R&B power couple 6LACK and QUIN. On the jazzy, carefree track, 6LACK & QUIN express that meaningful relationships require a thoughtful approach to conflict resolution.
“Kinks just echoes the idea of doing the necessary work to achieve satisfaction,” shares 6LACK, “and how you may think you’ve arrived, but that arriving is something that comes in every new phase of life.”
Adds QUIN: “You gotta work out the kinks if you wanna get to the love!”
The story of “Kinks” began on opposite sides of a fence in Los Angeles. After making the move from Chicago to LA as the pandemic began, Smile High (aka Ben “Smiley” Silverstein) and his Main Squeeze bandmates hunkered down in their shared residence, known as the Squeeze House, passing the time by returning to what they knew best; through jam sessions. To keep fans engaged without live shows, the band took to broadcasting these sessions on Instagram Live in their backyard.
“This backyard shared a fence with a neighbor that we wanted to be respectful of,” Smiley shares, “so I would always give them a heads up when we were filming and they were super nice about it. They always said they loved our music and we even heard them make music from their spot from time to time.”
The day before the Squeeze moved to a new house, Smiley went over to thank his neighbors for their cooperation, and he soon learned that 6LACK and QUIN had been occupying the house next door. After expressing a mutual appreciation for each other’s work, the three artists vowed to work on music together down the line. “Kinks” was the fulfillment of that promise; the beat was made at a jam session at 6LACK’s studio and 6LACK and QUIN added their verses in the coming months.
The Vibetape is a joint effort between Smiley—who got his nickname from his “resting smile face”—and The Main Squeeze, who he’s played keys with for over a decade. Each track on The Vibetape was recorded in a series of fun, low-pressure jam sessions at the Squeeze House. The five-piece jam band specifically curated the atmosphere as a contrast to the excessive seriousness entrenched in LA’s music scene.
“I’ve always found the most joy in collaborating with others and combining what I do best with what other people do best, and just being pleasantly surprised with the end result,” Smiley explains. “That’s always been the essence of what I’ve been doing, and The Vibetape is truly the culmination of that.”
With over a dozen featured artists including Abhi the Nomad, Chuck Inglish of The Cool Kids, Felly, and Tiffany Gouché, The Vibetape is driven by collaboration and experimentation, a fusion of hip-hop, funk and R&B that is reminiscent of a dinner party with friends.
Since the beginning of the rollout of The Vibetape, Smile High has nearly tripled his Spotify monthly listeners, with lead single “Real” (ft. Tiffany Gouché & Abhi the Nomad) landing on key Spotify editorials “R&B Weekly” (1M likes) and “Soul Coffee” (755K likes) playlists.
“Kinks” is available at digital retailers here: https://smilehigh.ffm.to/kinks.