Van Hunt (born March 8, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-inst… Read Full Bio ↴Van Hunt (born March 8, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He released his debut album, Van Hunt, in 2004, and a follow-up, On the Jungle Floor, in 2006, both on Capitol Records. He won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for appearing on the tribute version of the Sly & the Family Stone song, "Family Affair", in 2007. He transitioned to Blue Note Records where his 2008 album, Popular, was shelved and never released. He self-released the compilation album Use In Case of Emergency in 2009.

Early life
Hunt was born in Dayton, Ohio and raised by his single mother. His father, Van Hunt, Sr., was a factory worker and part-time painter, who was a friend of Ohio Players drummer Jimmy "Diamond" Williams. Hunt took up the drums at age 7, and saxophone at the age of 8, later adding bass and keyboards. Guitar was the last instrument he learned to play; he played guitar in a rock band called Royalty. Hunt moved to Texas for a short time before relocating to Atlanta, Georgia in 1996 to attend Morehouse College, where he studied English, but soon dropped out. In Atlanta, he started producing a few hip-hop demos for Atlanta rappers in order to pay bills. Hunt met up-and-coming record producers and artists like Dallas Austin, Jermaine Dupri and TLC through his work on demos.

Career

Early career
Hunt wrote and co-produced the song "Hopeless" for singer Dionne Farris, formerly of Arrested Development, and joined her band on guitar and keyboards. "Hopeless" appeared on the soundtrack for the film Love Jones (1997). Hunt co-wrote several songs with Rahsaan Patterson on his album Love in Stereo (1999), and co-wrote with Cree Summer, including the song "Mean Sleep", for her album Street Faërie (1999), produced by Lenny Kravitz. He also collaborated with Joi on the single "Missing You" (2002). Through Dionne Farris, Hunt met A&R person Randy Jackson (who later went on to be a judge on Fox's American Idol). Jackson would become Hunt's manager in 2002.

Capitol Records
Hunt recorded much of the material from his debut album in 2000. Producer Dallas Austin took Hunt's recording to Capitol Records, leading him to sign with the label in 2001. Hunt's first album, Van Hunt, was released in February 2004. The album included the singles "Down Here in Hell (With You)", "Dust", and "Seconds of Pleasure", and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance. Hunt's second album, On the Jungle Floor, was released in 2006. The album featured the single, "Character," a revisited "Mean Sleep", as a duet with Nikka Costa, and a cover of "No Sense of Crime" by The Stooges. The album was co-produced by Bill Bottrell. Hunt has toured and appeared with Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, Boney James, The Roots, Seal, Angie Stone, Coldplay, The Brand New Heavies, the Dave Matthews Band, and Kanye West.
In 2006, Hunt appeared with Nikka Costa on the Sam Moore album, Overnight Sensational, on the song "If I Had No Loot". Hunt was also featured on "Half the Fun", a track on the Count Bass D album, Act Your Waist Size, released on Fat Beats Records.
in 2007, Hunt won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, along with John Legend and Joss Stone, for their cover of the Sly & the Family Stone song, "Family Affair", which appeared on the 2006 tribute album Different Strokes By Different Folks. Hunt described winning the award as "one of the bigger pleasures I've had" to The Athens Blur Magazine in 2009.

Blue Note
Hunt released the 4 track digital EP, The Popular Machine, on August 7, 2007. Hunt announced a full length album, Popular, to be released on Blue Note Records on January 15, 2008. Hunt moved from Atlanta to Los Angeles in 2007 while the album was nearing completion. Blue Note had taken over Hunt’s recording contract after corporate restructuring at Blue Note and Capitol's parent company, EMI. In December 2007, Blue Note announced that they would not be releasing the album, and that Hunt and the label mutually agreed to part ways. Hunt wrote on his MySpace blog in January 2008, that he couldn't promise that Popular would ever be officially released. Blue Note owns the master recordings and opted not to sell it back to him at an affordable price. Hunt commented that he "didn't think that they had enough money" to promote the album properly. LA Weekly called the album an "appealingly trippy fusion of funk grooves, punk guitar and soul vocals", and "a left-field stunner". Hunt told the Atlanta alternative weekly newspaper Creative Loafing that he was "devastated" when the label decided not to release the album.

Independent
As of June 2008, Hunt was recording a fourth album, which he plans to release himself and market using the Internet. Hunt has blogged about his new approach on his MySpace page. Hunt toured the U.S. in July and August 2008. He released Use In Case Of Emergency, a compilation of demos, remixes and B-sides recorded between 1997 and 2005, through his Web site in May 2009. Hunt has also been working on autobiographical book of short stories titled Tales of Friction. In July 2009, Hunt told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he plans to release one more album and tour once more, but doesn't know what his plans are after that. Hunt performed at the National Black Arts Festival's tribute to Curtis Mayfield at Atlanta Symphony Hall on July 16, 2010.

Influences

David Bowie
Serge Gainsbourg
The Isley Brothers
Curtis Mayfield
Thelonious Monk
The Ohio Players
Iggy Pop
Prince
Richard Pryor
Sly Stone
Neil Young

Discography

Albums
Van Hunt (2004), Capitol
On the Jungle Floor (2006), Capitol
Popular (2008) - unreleased studio album

Compilations
Use In Case of Emergency (2009), self-released - collection of outtakes

EPs
Acoustic E.P. (2004), Capitol - digital EP
Napster Sessions (2004), Capitol - digital EP
Connect Set (2006), Capitol - digital EP
The Popular Machine (2007), Blue Note - digital EP

Singles
"Down Here in Hell (With You)" (2004), Capitol
"Dust" (2004), Capitol
"Seconds of Pleasure" (2004), Capitol
"Character" (2006), Capitol
"Being A Girl" (2006), Capitol

Awards and nominations

2005 Grammy Award nomination for Best Urban/Alternative Performance for "Dust."
2006 Grammy Award win for Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for "Family Affair"

Precious
Van Hunt Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Tonight, you have no worries with me here
Mt time is as free as your tears
Let them rise with the wind and fall
On me tonight
You have no worries
No worries tonight
Remember the woman who locked herself into a lonely room
'Cause she thought that she had no one to

Make her feel like nothing less than a precious jewel
(But you know that you are)

[Chorus]
Precious as the morning sun
Precious as the deep blue sea
Baby you know you're the one
Most precious to me

You are the one I'd bet my love on
For my faith I have nothing to show
But a wonderful taste in my mouth from loving you

Remember the man who selfishly gave to a chosen few
'Cause he thought the world owed him something too
To make him feel like something more than a simple fool
(And you made me feel)

[Chorus]

Overall Meaning

In Van Hunt's song "Precious", the singer tells their love interest that they have no worries while they're together. The singer's time is just as free as their love interest's tears, which they urge them to let rise and fall on them tonight. The song goes on to reference a woman who locked herself in a lonely room because she felt like no one valued her as a precious jewel. The singer then declares that their love interest is indeed precious and compares them to the morning sun and the deep blue sea. The chorus continues by stating that the love interest is the one that the singer would bet their love on because they have nothing to show for their faith but a wonderful taste in their mouth from loving them. The singer then references a man who selfishly gave to a chosen few and felt like the world owed him something, but their love interest makes them feel like something more than a simple fool.

At first listen, the song seems to be a simple love song that compares the love interest to precious jewels and the beauty of nature. However, upon closer inspection, it could also be interpreted as a celebration of the power of love to validate and uplift individuals who may feel overlooked or undervalued. The song encourages the listener to embrace their worth and recognize that there is someone out there who sees and appreciates their value.

Line by Line Meaning

Tonight, you have no worries with me here
You don't have to worry about anything tonight because I'll be here with you.

My time is as free as your tears
I have all the time in the world to comfort you and let you express yourself freely.

Let them rise with the wind and fall on me tonight
Let your tears flow freely and I'll be here to catch them and comfort you.

You have no worries, no worries tonight
You can relax and not be burdened by anything tonight.

Remember the woman who locked herself into a lonely room 'cause she thought that she had no one to make her feel like nothing less than a precious jewel
Think about the woman who isolated herself because she felt worthless, but you don't have to feel that way because I cherish and treasure you like a precious gem.

(But you know that you are)
You are aware of your worth and value, despite feeling low at times.

[Chorus]
The following lyrics describe how precious you are to me.

Precious as the morning sun
You shine as precious and as bright as the morning sun.

Precious as the deep blue sea
You are as valuable as the vast, beautiful, and awe-inspiring deep blue sea.

Baby, you know you're the one most precious to me
You are my most valued and cherished person, and I want you to always remember that.

You are the one I'd bet my love on
I have complete faith and trust in our love for each other.

For my faith, I have nothing to show but a wonderful taste in my mouth from loving you
I don't need to prove my love for you because it feels so incredible and fulfilling to love you.

Remember the man who selfishly gave to a chosen few 'cause he thought the world owed him something too, to make him feel like something more than a simple fool
Recall the man who only gave to those who he thought deserved it, but you make me feel important and valuable despite not receiving anything in return.

(And you made me feel)
You have a profound impact on how I feel about myself and how I view the world around me.

[Chorus]
Reiterating how much you mean to me.

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: VAN HUNT

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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