Producer and podcast host Anthony Church captures the Lo-Fi ambiance and conceptual intrigue of real humanity and honest music, with the highlight single Staring, and the associated longer project Grateful Is An Understatement.
We were blessed with the chance to interview Anthony Church about his journey, his creative process, and the power of collaboration in bring ideas to life in a unique and moving way. Here’s how it went.
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Hi Anthony – amazing to connect with you, my congrats for the stunning new release. To introduce things – you’ve been making music since 2016, you’re based in Ohio: what was your earliest inspiration?
I appreciate it! So my initial inspiration really came from different music producers I studied throughout the time I was in high school. People like Hit-Boy, Boi-1da and a lot of the individuals who created many of the tracks I was listening to at the time helped shape my love for the craft and eventually led to me picking it up after I graduated.
How much have your mindset and skillset evolved in the past ten years, and what does Staring represent for you as an artist?
Overall I feel like I’ve just gotten a lot better in every area of my work. From sound selection to song sequencing and even coming up with themes for all of my projects, I’ve been able to become more refined across the board and hope to keep improving and moving forward each and every day.
As for “Staring”, the track came from a beat I made a little later on in the process of putting the album together and the moment I created it I knew it needed to be on the project. To me once I heard what Chester added to it with his vocals it really represents embracing wherever life takes you, good, bad or in between. That is one of those topics that really is at the core of what ‘Grateful Is An Understatement” means in general.
The track is beautiful, lush production and a softly spoken series of reflective, vulnerable and poetic bars. Talk us through the creative process, and was this a one-take writing style or something edited over time?
So I wasn’t with Chester in person when he wrote and recorded it but all I know is he did it in one take and overnight while I was asleep. The next morning he sent the full song back and I was blown away. Not only with the lyrics and his signature delivery but also with the overall vocal production and layering he did to help make everything stand out. You can tell how much time and effort he puts into his work not only his music but in the realm of fashion, art and really anything he has a hand in. He’s an artist I listen to almost daily so it was a big honor having him involved.
The song is so ambient, immersive and lyrically gripping, yet it runs for less than two minutes. Always better to leave your audience wanting more, but was there a reason for the short outpouring artistically?
The beat was originally a little longer but with the way Chester creates he tends to make shorter songs in general. From being a fan of his work you can hear that going all the way back to his first project “Tin Wooki” in 2014 where alot of the songs are under 2 minutes. I really think it’s impressive the amount of ground he can cover in a short amount of time and still take listeners on a full journey. He really did that with this one too and I was still able to keep all parts of the beat intact that helped make it even more special.
The song is from the equally brilliant 2026 album Grateful is an Understatement – what was the inspiration for this title, and how long was this project in the making?
The title really is derived from my own personal self-growth and the progress I’ve seen over the years. It has made me have a much greater appreciation for life being able to see how far I’ve come and embrace who I am as an individual. With that in mind I felt this title would not only help represent how I feel but also something many others would be able to relate to. In total it took about 8 months from start to finish which was much quicker than I had thought initially. I think that’s how I knew it was meant to be with how seamless alot of the process went.
Everyone you work with, the many features, are these friends or broader industry connections, and how important is collaboration for you – what does it bring out in your artistry?
For this body of work I wanted a mix of past collaborators, people I was a fan of, and people I had always wanted to work with before. A few of them I had never spoken to before this. This album was all about collaboration and I think it fully displayed the way I enjoy collaborating most which is by working with the right people who match the goals I have creatively. You can work with anyone you want but that doesn’t always mean it will be the right fit. Over the years I really just have tried to work with the people I connect with the best and I feel that that’s on full display here.
Is live performance an important part of your plans?
I haven’t done any live performing but I have been brainstorming if it will ever be a possibility to do so and if it will make sense. So I guess I’d say stay tuned to see if that ever comes to fruition!
How easy is it to connect with real music fans in your area right now, and what’s your biggest ambition for this music?
Finding fans of the style I create locally is tough but I’ve had a lot more luck finding really awesome collaborators such as Elijah Rushin and GriMM Van Gogh, two of the artists on the album. It has been great to start getting out more and connecting with so many local talents and finding ways to work together to help push what we’re doing and the ideas we each bring to the table. My goal overall in music is to just keep putting out songs that resonate with me. If I keep doing that chances are they will start to resonate with other people as well.
You also host the Proven Knowledge Podcast – what’s that about, and how does this outlet compare to, connect with or impact your approach and perspective as an artist?
I started the podcast in 2020 just by asking some artists I knew if they’d be interested in being interviewed. Since then I’ve done over 300 episodes and spoken with so many amazing people each week. I never planned initially to have my own show but one thing led to another and I’m still doing it over 6 years later.
To me it’s a great way to get other creative perspectives and to also help one another out with any problems we might be facing. While doing that you’re also hopefully leaving an impact on the listener who is intended to also be some sort of creative looking to navigate this crazy landscape and world that we’re all in. It allows me to create with a clear mind alot of times knowing that my own doubts and struggles aren’t just something in my head, but instead something everyone experiences from time to time.
I feel honored to be able to have my own space to help inspire and give others a chance to do the same and I don’t take it for granted.
Is there anything else we should know?
Just be sure to have a listen to “Grateful Is An Understatement” and support it if you feel inclined by going to anthonychurch.bandcamp.com. More new music and other cool content will be coming very soon!
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