Every so often a new artist comes along with a sound so innovative, they are able to help reshape the barriers that confine mainstream music. Meet Outasight, the Yonkers, New York bred musician who brilliantly weaves together the cadenced sounds of popular hip-hop and indie rock with the poignant sensibility of classic pop and soul music to create a fresh, new sound that is all his own. “People are conditioned to see certain images for different genres of music,” says the 27 year-old songwriter. “So if something looks or sounds out of the norm, it’s more difficult to understand at first.”
Growing up an only child in the suburbs of New York City, Outasight’s parents encouraged his insatiable love for making music from a very young age. When he was 8 yearsold, he taught himself to write songs on a guitar passed down from his father. “I was surrounded by thousands of records as a kid,” says Outasight who grew up emulating the diverse sounds he was surrounded by all his life. “I listened to a lot of classic rock, and pop, like the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Who, and also soul artists like Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye. My friends and I would form bands and practice in someone’s basement and then I would go to school and write raps and spit raps on the playground. They were like duel personalities in a sense.”
During his junior year of high school, Outasight started venturing into the city, seeking out open mics where he was able to fine tune his own material in front of live audiences. “I used to perform a lot in Brooklyn at a place called Sputnik,” says Outasight. “It would be a very diverse crowd and I would rap and start singing and they would be like, what the hell is going on right now? Who is this White kid acting all crazy? But there were always people that liked it so I always took any type of acceptance as the fuel to go further.” After performing in the big city for a couple of years, the resourceful young artist started to gain confidence and create some extremely valuable music industry connections. He toyed with the idea of going to college but after taking classes on and off for close to five years, Outasight realized it was foolish not to capitalize on the name he had created for himself in the City’s burgeoning independent music scene.
In 2006, he decided to drop out of college for good and pursue music full time. The following year, he released a mixtape called Employee Of The Year with the help of his friend and business partner Dre Bond. The two started a new company to help promote Outasight appropriately named Daily Grind Music. After promoting the tape on Myspace and up and coming music blogs, Outasight and Daily Grind released his second project, Radio New York in June of ’08 which was featured on the Myspace Home page for three consecutive days—a tremendous feat for any new, unsigned artist. “The amount of people that I got exposed to was incredible,” says Outasight. “We were getting like 50 thousand plays a day! Dre and I made a video for one of the mixtape’s songs, ‘Good Evening’ that fall we got the video on MTV after winning the MTVU Freshman competition.”
In March of 2009, Outasight released his third mixtape, From There To Here, with world renowned hip-hop DJ Mick Boogie and a month later was asked to open for Ryan Leslie at NYC’s SOB’s. After winning over the packed house with his live show, Outasight’s manager, Norman “Storm” Bell of Purfek Storm Management, secured a meeting with Asylum Records CEO Todd Moscowitz who was instantly taken by the multi-talented MC’s growing body of work. That October, Outasight signed a deal with Asylum. Soon after his signing, Outasight released his latest mixtape Further. The project was sponsored by LRG clothing and was his most successful release to date, garnering over a hundred thousand downloads and counting. Due to its overwhelming popularity, Asylum is set to release Further as an EP exclusively on ITunes in March 2010 while Outasight continues to craft his first full length commercial release, the aptly titled, From Here to Eternity. “The concept behind my album is one person’s quest from the present moment to being timeless,” he says, “It’s something that lives way beyond me, it’s about the quest.”
On August 17th, 2010, Outasight released his latest mixtape, Never Say Never, again to much critical acclaim.
Nights Like These
Outasight Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For nights like these!
All our lives we're waiting, waiting, waiting
For nights like these!
Turn the lights down low
I don't wanna see the crowd cause I know
I made a bunch of calls tonight
What you think it's gonna happen?
Straight in the island of Manhattan
Couple struggling, standing there, clapping
Like who the hell is this rapping?
Fast forward years later
Jump right in without a life savior
Mind the details and... major
And I don't know what's next, but my mind seems made up
See what happens now
Is anyone care, so I'm asking around
And I'm starting from my... and I'm crashing down
And I'm on my own this time around
All our lives we're dreaming, dreaming, dreaming
Oh for nights like these!
All our lives we're waiting, waiting, waiting
For nights like these!
Turn our radio loud
I close my eyes now, I see the whole crowd
Open out and start looking now
Like damn, this is weird, what a hell I do know?
A long ways for the long days
Trained to the city, walk a long pro way
Back down a long hallway
Hum for myself another song like always!
Just a care from the... that got lost in
The lights in town just blurred
That's why I keep going and the fire still burning
I found something... now I move forward
See what happens now
Does anyone care, so I ask around
I'm starting from my... I'm crashing down
I'm on my own, I crash around!
All our lives we're dreaming, dreaming, dreaming
For nights like these!
All our lives we're waiting, waiting, waiting
For nights like these!
Oh, oh, oh, oh
For nights like these!
Oh, oh, oh, oh
For nights like these!
Oh, oh, oh, oh
The lyrics to Outasight's song "Nights Like These" depict the artist's pursuit of a life-changing night full of excitement, love, and inspiration. The song begins by emphasizing how everyone longs for those special moments in life, those moments that make life worth living. The artist then sets the scene of his present reality, standing alone on stage with his microphone in hand, anticipating a crowd that never showed up. Overwhelmed with disappointment, he still manages to perform and radiate his talent for those who happen to be in attendance.
The second half of the song reflects the artist's resilience and perseverance as he continues to chase his dreams despite the obstacles in his way. Outasight expresses his desire to keep moving forward, fueling his passions with the energy and positivity he finds in music. The chorus then repeats, highlighting the significance of those moments that make life worth living, those nights like these.
Line by Line Meaning
All our lives we're dreaming, dreaming, dreaming
Throughout our entire existence, we hope and visualize for the moments we experience today.
For nights like these!
These are the nights we wished for and are grateful for having.
All our lives we're waiting, waiting, waiting
Every passing moment of our life is something we imagine later on and dream of living in it in the future.
Turn the lights down low
Adjust the brightness to maximum, making sure that is dark enough to minimize the visibility of the people around.
I don't wanna see the crowd cause I know
I prefer seeing nobody because being alone makes me sing out of pleasure and enjoying the music.
I made a bunch of calls tonight
I called several people to be there for my performance.
To everyone I know, but no one could go.
But not a single one could have made it.
What you think it's gonna happen?
Do you have high hopes of what's coming or not?
Straight in the island of Manhattan
Skipping into the heart of the city that never sleeps.
Couple struggling, standing there, clapping
People holding hands, battling against the odds, applauding after each setback.
Like who the hell is this rapping?
Who in the name of God is this person singing the tunes?
Fast forward years later
Looking ahead in time after a couple of years with time travel.
Jump right in without a life savior
Taking the jump in blindly without a guarantee to see if there are risks that are associated.
Mind the details and... major
Looking for the specifics associated with the life incidents who triumph awesome success.
And I don't know what's next, but my mind seems made up
Unsure of what the future beholds, but the belief instills that you would do pretty well at it.
See what happens now
Let's observe what the future holds for us at this moment.
Is anyone care, so I'm asking around
Is there anyone who's ready to help or support me at the moment, so let me check with few.
And I'm starting from my... and I'm crashing down
The point from which I move on gets worse and worse in increments, causing a sudden and substantial downturn.
And I'm on my own this time around
I'm out there on my own this time.
Turn our radio loud
Increase the volume of the radio to make the sound better.
I close my eyes now, I see the whole crowd
I shut my eyes and can picture the crowd enjoying my music placed in front of me.
Open out and start looking now
Open your eyes and take another look at everything around you.
Like damn, this is weird, what a hell I do know?
Thinking how it's odd or surreal, but uncertain what to make of it.
A long ways for the long days
Far away from the lengthening days.
Trained to the city, walk a long pro way
Accustomed to the city, having walked through it many times.
Back down a long hallway
Going back the length of the corridor once more.
Hum for myself another song like always!
As usual, I hum pieces out of myself.
Just a care from the... that got lost in
Someone who might have gotten missing in the fuss of caring.
The lights in town just blurred
The sparkling lights surrounding me get foggy.
That's why I keep going and the fire still burning
And that's why I keep pushing forward, even when things are vague.
I found something... now I move forward
Perhaps I have found something linked to the ultimate life and can move forward.
Does anyone care, so I ask around
I inquire whether anyone is concerned and needs to be attentive.
I'm starting from my... I'm crashing down
I'm resuming from my previous destruction, and sadly, it's happening again.
I'm on my own, I crash around!
I try to restart on my own and still end up failing.
For nights like these!
For those memorable nights that make you feel alive and extraordinary.
Oh, oh, oh, oh
A catchy tag to influence and energize the chorus with.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: WILLIAM LOBBAN-BEAN, RICHARD ANDREW CONTE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind