After two years of work put into this project, Sincerely Collins finally ends the Destroyer Saga trilogy with its last chapter, Alien. Alien continues the Sincerely Collins’s storyline first laid out in Destroyer and Legend of the Phoenix, and focuses more on who Sincerely Collins is as a character. The Arizona artist uses a blend of styles and genres to create not just an album, but a narrative; one that allows you to get a deeper look into Sincerely Collins’s mind and to accompany him on his journey as he faces love, adversity, and triumphs. The 16-track album transcends beyond just being repetitive trap beats and heavy auto-tune and instead provides the listener with an auditory experience as no two songs sound the same, but still manage to work together to tell the story. While some songs do utilize auto-tune to provide an intergalactic setting and other songs use trap beats to build up Sincerely Collins’s strength, they contrast with the use of non-conventional instruments such as melodic guitars to show his dynamics, both as a character and as an artist. Overall, this album really gets me excited; I feel like creative pieces that feature interesting lyrics, stylistic choices, and production are difficult to come across. I can picture the whole story in my head as I listen to the album, providing me with a sensory overload as each track passes while transporting me to a different world far beyond the depths of planet earth. I got a chance to talk to Sincerely Collins about how he developed this character, as well as some of those decisions that he chose to make with this album, which can be read below.
Hello Sincerely Collins! I’m so excited to discuss your latest release in detail with you. I love everything about the approach you’ve taken with your music, from the storyline to the fashion to the chronology of your albums. So much thought has gone into it to piece all of the small details together and I think it’s really cool to watch it unfold. Let’s start this off by giving the readers a bit of insight into who you are as an artist. How long have you been making music? What pushed you to seriously pursue it?
Sincerely Collins: “15 plus years, I just knew it was what I wanted to do since the moment my cousin showed me how to rap.”
Are there any artists that have had a significant impact on your sound?
Sincerely Collins: “Nelly, Pharrell, Drake, Kanye, Jay-Z, Lupe Fiasco, Fun, Sublime just to name a few!”
Wow, I can definitely hear a few of those artists, but I can’t say I was expecting names like Sublime or Fun! I think that’s really cool. Now with that being said, who would you say you make music for?
Sincerely Collins: “I make music for anyone who needs it, I have a vibe for everyone depending on where you are in life.”
You recently released your new album, Alien, on March 12th. Congrats on that! Let’s dig into it a bit.
I understand that Sincerely Collins is a character that you’ve created and that Alien tells the final chapter of his story. Can you give the readers a bit of backstory into who Sincerely Collins is and what his name means?
Sincerely Collins: “My first album Destroyer was based around a vigilante character I created to represent the darkness I was expressing at the time. My second album The Legend of the Phoenix was that character’s rise out of that darkness. Alien would be the 3rd and final chapter of the Destroyer Saga but the story of Sincerely Collins is still writing itself!”
For those who haven’t heard the first two albums preceding Alien, can you give a bit of a synopsis about them? What does Alien add to the story?
Sincerely Collins: “My first album was very industrial and dark sounding. I was very inspired by My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Yeezus at the time, as well as watching a ton of films that inspired a darker sound bed. My second album was pure emotions and me telling my story, the inner child finding his way out of the darkness. This album is much more of a look into my immediate past and my now, as opposed to reaching back to tackle old traumas. Still very deep and introspective, but much more emphasis was placed on the listening experience overall, and not as much on the underlying principles.”
The story-telling aspect in both the production and lyrics in Alien is absolutely mind-boggling. Did you draw inspiration from any other works of art such as pieces of literature or movies when creating it?
Sincerely Collins: “Much appreciated! True ‘first person storytelling’ is something I hadn’t really done very often in my music. I always knew I could, but found myself offering more of a fictional or theatrical direction as opposed to the raw or clear cut “This is who, what and how it happened”. Dope you asked about literature because I am always telling my own version of The Alchemist in my music. I feel like the storytelling moments on Alien mirror the feeling I get when the character is displaying his awareness of the beauty in all moments and the real-time learning he is doing on his journey.”
Would you say that Sincerely Collins is a completely different person than who you are or an extension of a certain part of your personality?
Sincerely Collins: “Sincerely is definitely an extension of my heart and soul. My name is Kyle Collins so it’s pretty much just emphasizing authenticity in my true self by putting ‘Sincerely’ before my name.”
I think that also allows you to be more vulnerable, which is really cool. Definitely adds a new dimension of authenticity to Alien. If you could have any A-list actor portray Sincerely Collins in a movie, who do you think would do the character justice?
Sincerely Collins: “Donald Glover is my first pick who comes to mind. He’s been through similar circumstances and we both think in similar ways. We’re into the same things…Plus he is just a phenomenal actor.”
Now that you’ve finished the trilogy detailing Sincerely Collins’s background and story, what’s next for the character?
Sincerely Collins: “I’m looking forward to exploring freedom with my sound and what I choose to talk about. Everything has been so serious and tedious to this point, I’m looking forward to letting loose and having fun in projects to come.”
What would you say was the most difficult part of creating Alien?
Sincerely Collins: “The most difficult part was just getting out of my own way so that I could let the songs create themselves. A Virgo like me can very easily get caught up in making THE PERFECT EVERYTHING. The art of finding a successful path to executing a product is highly underrated.”
Do you have a personal favorite track off of the album?
Sincerely Collins: “I would have to say that the consensus favorite track from everyone who has heard the album would be ‘The Last Stylebender’ which is a song inspired by my favorite MMA fighter and UFC Champ (Hopefully Double Champ when this comes out), Israel Adesanya. He also goes by the name ‘The Last Stylebender’.”
Yeah, I actually think that may one of my favorites as well. Such a dope track. Were there any particular events that happened in 2020 that had a big impact on the album?
Sincerely Collins: “YES! The album cover has my vigilante mask that we made back in 2018 for an album that I never put out. So when covid happened, it was a perfect time to bring the mask back out like it was all according to our plan muahah muahahahahha.”
Haha isn’t it amazing how things fall into place like that? What do you want people to feel when they hear this album? What’s the biggest takeaway for you?
Sincerely Collins: “I just want them to really enjoy the songs and live with them and play them back because they connect with them. Whether it be on a deep level or just loving how well it sounds from the house we put into the post production and mixing over and over and over again.”
And lastly, what projects are you working on in 2021?
Sincerely Collins: “As of right now, I’m focused only on what’s right in front of me. Creating more and more content for this project and doing everything I can to raise awareness for Alien. When it does come time do start on more music, it will definitely be some more random spontaneous type ish.”
I love it! Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me. I really love this project and would love to see some visual aspects with this project because watching you channel Sincerely Collins is really fascinating. I’ll link all of Sincerely Collins’s social media handles below, so make sure to give him a follow and stream Alien everywhere!
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