PureVolume

Members: Tommy Raymond

Rather Red is Tommy Raymond, a 23-year-old musician based out of Los Angeles. Originally from Honolulu, Tommy attributes his ever-morphing style to his environment. "Both Hawaii and L.A. are very dynamic places with diverse populations. That open-minded way of life has shaped my musical interests to the point that I don't dwell on genre, or even medium." RR has always been a songwriter first and foremost. "I can remember writing little melodies and raps when I was 12 years old. When I got my first guitar when I was 14, I went crazy on it." Once Rather moved to LA for college, he realized that his music had more potential than he had thought. "My friends would always request specific songs of mine because they couldn't get it out of their head. Once I got a Mac, I was finally able to record my songs and give them to friends." With new technology came more opportunities to share and develop into other styles. "I had been writing a lot of rock and pop songs with my guitar, but I started writing more hip-hop and electronic tracks on my Mac. As my interests moved more in that direction, I learned how to DJ too." And the name 'Rather Red' is not just for alliteration's sake. "In 'The Matrix', the red pill is the pill that opens your mind, that challenges you and exposes you to both the terror and the hope of reality. In that same respect, I want to make music that can challenge the listener and expose them to something that they may have never heard before. I don't care what instrument is being played or what genre the song is, as long as I can reach the listener through the energy of the song, I'm happy."