Baker Boy has shared his first new song of 2021, releasing “Rise” following its official premiere on triple j’s Breakfast this morning.
An exuberant composition that showcases Baker Boy’s (born Danzal Baker) status as one of the country’s most consistent and prolific artists, “Rise” follows on from the release of 2020 singles “Move” and “Better Days”, with the latter featuring the talents of Dallas Woods and Sampa the Great.
“I wanted to make a song that could bring people together on the dance floor, no matter who they are or where they come from,” Baker explains of the track.
“I’m driven by the vision that I have of people coming together, visions of positivity and fun and telling stories that people can relate to. That’s the main message — just bringing people together, no matter what your background, or how you dance, let’s just get together and celebrate and I think that’s powerful. We need more of that.”
Working with producer Pip Norman, the song came about following a session with Woods and Yirrmal, who had previously featured on Baker’s 2017 single, “Marryuna”, and helped create the powerful chorus in “Ride”.
“I’m glad I got to collaborate with Baker Boy again and put that good Yolngu soul into ‘Ride’,” Yirrmal explains. “This song’s about friends having fun, having good times every weekend. I wrote ‘Ride’’s chorus about my mob back here and when they want to go out.
“We see negative stuff around here, a lot of fighting, but with ‘Ride’ it’s like come on, don’t be shy, come to the town and let’s dance. Let’s be part of the team, think about the positive things and not the negative things.”
Officially released today, “Ride” will also be accompanied by a music video, directed by Ryan Sauer, which sees Baker cruising down some of the most iconic streets in Melbourne and letting loose in a packed nightclub.
“The video brings the same excitement that the track does, it’s all about the journey to the club and bringing people together,” he explains. “It was incredible collaborating with Aurie Indianna on the creative direction again, with Ryan, Harry and the crew really bringing the vision to life!”
Baker Boy’s “Ride” is out now via Island Records Australia/Universal Music, while the official music video will premiere at 7pm AEDT on Thursday, March 25th via YouTube.
