SB19’s Josh Cullen talks vampires, haters and not ‘playing safe’ in solo debut ‘Wild Tonight’
SB19 member Josh Cullen has released his solo debut single, “Wild Tonight.”
Following the Filipino boy band’s first-ever global tour in late 2022, Cullen, whose full name is Josh Cullen Santos, started the new year by exploring his own personal style and vision.
Through his new EDM track released on Friday, the 29-year-old musician hopes to showcase his artistic range, from creating and producing the song to directing its choreography.
In an interview with NextShark, Cullen shares how the song is a “true reflection” of his own creative vision.
“As a solo artist, these are all my own personal style and creative vision,” he said. “I just want to reflect the things that happen in my life, whether it’s good or bad, and I want to create music that is authentic and meaningful.”
While the singer is known as SB19’s lead rapper and sub-vocalist, Cullen took the opportunity to embrace his individuality and explore different roles in his solo project.
I had a lot of fun. Working alone gave me the opportunity to showcase my true style and vision. I have been enhancing and refining my creativity from writing the lyrics, creating melodies, producing music and even directing the choreography. I’m also responsible for the creative direction of the music video, so basically just overseeing everything and making sure it aligns with the way I want it to be.
In “Wild Tonight,” Cullen took inspiration from his love for video games and from the mythical creatures that he says he is often compared to: vampires.
“I just took advantage of my name,” Cullen says, referring to the fictional vampire character Edward Cullen from Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight” book series.
“A lot of people say that I don’t age and that I look like a vampire. I made this song because I love vampires, video games, EDM, hip-hop and pop. I tried to incorporate everything while making the song and the music video.”
Cullen admits that the single is more “edgy” and “provocative” as compared to SB19’s typical music.
“I just wanted to showcase my true self,” he says. “I also don’t want to play safe, so I tried making something unique out of it.”
He also clarifies that his individuality and style in the new song is “not just some kind of gimmick.”
“I don’t want them to see this as an alter-ego,” Josh notes. “This is me embracing my own interest and style. I will keep on surprising the people.”
“I’ve been really trying to provoke my non-believers — the haters — basically. A lot of non-believers are trying to provoke me, but it’s not working for me, so they have to do better. So yeah, I made a song that’s dedicated to them.”
Although Cullen is singing to his haters, he says the EDM track is first and foremost meant to be enjoyed.
“I love having fun,” Josh says. “I feel like a lot of people are putting too much pressure on their lives when they can just have fun in whatever way you want.”
When asked how the artist likes to get “wild tonight,” he replies, “Most of the time, I like to get it wild. I like to party and dance. However, I feel the wildest for me is when I’m in the zone of what I do, like producing music, playing games and just having fun.”
See NextShark’s full interview with Josh below:
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