Rhys Rich: Self-Made

Rhys Rich, born Connor Henare Dion, is an independent multi-genre music artist from New Zealand who isn’t afraid of trying different genres to fit the message of each song that he wants to communicate with his listeners. Some of the genres that he typically borrows musical elements from include pop, electronic, indie, RnB, Soul, and Hip Hop, with the last three being his major genres.

In addition to being a singer and songwriter, he’s a self-made music producer. That skill is perhaps what led him to have such an in-depth understanding of various genres, which he then uses to enhance the quality of his music based on what he wants to express in his creative medium.

While Rhys Rich was born in Australia, he eventually moved to the neighboring country, settling in Wellington, New Zealand. It was after the move that he started to create his unique melodies and string them together to create original compositions that have managed to grab listeners’ attention not only in the Australian region but around the world, with a relatively large audience in the United States.

So, while he did have a considerable following for an independent and self-made artist already during the years since he started, it was the release of his single No Confetti that helped boost his popularity. The song was released in 2020, and since then, it has garnered a total number of over 350,000 plays on Spotify alone at the time this article was published. This track is the highest-played song on this platform, and it’s also the last song we’ve heard from him since then. That said, despite not releasing new material in nearly two years, he has still managed to retain over 17,700 monthly listeners on this platform.

One of the reasons why this song took off was because it offered a vibe that was enjoyable to a lot of different types of people. The song has a chill vibe that’s common to find in a fun house party that can listeners grooving. So, while you can enjoy dancing to it, you can also relax in it with a bunch of friends. If we try to break down why the song creates this vibe is its arrangement. There is a lack of hard-hitting beats with deep lows that is common in dance music. Instead, it’s more of a low-fi vibe with a minimalistic groove with a snare sound that’s like a clap or a cross-stick on an acoustic set. The subtle hi-hats on the offbeat also create that groovy feeling.

In addition to that, he’s coupled the groove with a fun and even rhythm to his melody that listeners can sing along to with ease. Of course, the great use of the synths also completes the overall composition.

In a nutshell, this song is exemplary of how Rhys Rich is an incredible songwriter, singer, and producer. He has used his knowledge of beats to create a fun and groovy composition that surely more of us listeners want to experience in the future.