Austin-Based Artist SaulPaul Celebrates New Children’s Album with Live Performances and Film Screening
Get to know the acclaimed musician and learn more about his upcoming projects, philanthropy and events happening around town this month
GRAMMY-nominated artist SaulPaul has been forging his unique musical path for over a decade. Based in Austin, Texas, he is a multi-talented singer-songwriter, producer, and performer known for blending genres like folk, pop, Afrobeat, R&B and hip-hop. His life story of overcoming adversity fuels his music and philanthropic efforts, including The SaulPaul Foundation, which empowers young people through music, education and community engagement. The foundation focuses on mentorship, scholarships, and music education for underserved youth.
SaulPaul has received numerous accolades, including the Austinite of the Year Award, the Creative Ambassador of Austin, and the Beacon of Hope award for the state of Texas. He’s performed at prestigious venues such as the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Austin City Limits, TEDx Talks, America’s Got Talent and SXSW.
SaulPaul continues to inspire with projects like his seventh studio album, “Speak Hope, Sing Joy: Change Maker Music for Kids,” which aims to spread hope and positivity. His Music Career Expo introduces students to various careers in the music industry through workshops and hands-on experiences. These ventures, combined with his music, highlight SaulPaul’s dedication to uplifting others and driving positive change.
We caught up with SaulPaul to learn more about his journey, chat about his upcoming album, find out what inspires him and get the details on the many events he’s involved with this month.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
SaulPaul: I consider myself a musician with a message. I have a simple goal which is to entertain, inspire and empower.
What does a typical day look like for you, balancing music, philanthropy, and personal life? How do you stay motivated and inspired in your personal and professional life?
SaulPaul: I see my life like a bonsai tree. You clip, and you prune so that the tree is clean and crisp. That’s how I’ve curated my life. I prune the things that don’t belong and tend to what remains. That leaves the art, creativity, business and philanthropy. I get energy from serving others, so there’s a lot of volunteerism in my world.
Who has been a beacon of hope and empowerment for you throughout your life?
SaulPaul: I was adopted when I was young. I was three years old when my mother passed away. I never knew my father, so I was placed in foster care. My grandmother chose to be the change in my life. She taught me that if you have something, you have something to share. That made an impact on me. I learned to share what I have freely and always think about how I can increase and share more, whether it’s a resource, talent, relationship, network or community.
She passed away before I graduated high school, but her legacy lives on through me. She never saw me graduate high school, go to the University of Texas in Austin, get nominated for a Grammy, be on America’s Got Talent, present my TED Talks, or impact hundreds of thousands of young people. But I’m her legacy, and she saw it by faith before it happened. I manifested it and walked into what she already saw… She didn’t have any resources, but she had a lot of love. She would walk around the house and speak hope and sing joy. That just happens to be the name of my most recent album.”
What messages do you hope listeners will take away from your new album “Speak Hope, Sing Joy: Change Maker Music for Kids”?
SaulPaul: I’m really excited about the dozen songs that are on an album. Each one is a different vibe. I hope that they recognize the power of their words. I think the album as a whole is about empathy—the capacity to feel someone else’s emotions. One of my favorite songs on the album is ‘Bounce Back,’ a drum-driven hip-hop track about resiliency, bouncing back from life’s challenges.
Can you tell us more about the mission and activities of the SaulPaul Foundation?
SaulPaul: I created a campaign called ‘Be the Change,’ where we went to 100 schools, 100 cities, 32 states, and saw 125,000 students. And I’m seeing all these people, all these communities and thought what unified action could I get them to take and came up with this moonshot goal of what if we all collectively volunteer 50,000 hours? The crazy thing is, that not only did we accomplish it, but we exceeded it. We’re currently at 80,000 hours, and all of these students got excited, and these communities got inspired.
For the next project, we are attempting to set a world record for the most voices in a virtual choir. The current Guinness World Record is 17,000, and our goal is 20,000. We already have more than 1,000 people who added their voices to the chorus. We want to accomplish this in November, National Adoption Month, to highlight foster youth and those waiting to be adopted.
How can someone participate and add their voice to the choir?
SaulPaul: They can go directly to saulpaul.com/choir and it’s simple to sign up. People can record at home on their phones. And if they want to join us in one of our city-wide sing-alongs, they can do that as well.
Why do you think organizations like yours are so important for empowering and supporting youth?
SaulPaul: Teamwork makes the dream work. When we all come together, we bring unique assets to the table. In a perfect world, a child is born and has a mom and dad who provide everything they need. But it doesn’t work out that way. It didn’t work out that way for me, and it was no fault of my own. I realized I was blessed and privileged because others came along and played parts. My grandmother was amazing. Mothers advocate for their children and go above and beyond, regardless of what they have. My grandmother would reach out to relatives to take me to the movies or an amusement park. She didn’t have the resources or energy to do that on her own, but she knew I still needed that life experience, so she got others to do it. That’s how I see what nonprofits and organizations do. There’s a community, and while it’d be great if family units did all these great things for youth, it doesn’t work out that way. Many times, organizations play the role that a parent, caretaker, or family would.
What do you hope your legacy will be as an artist and philanthropist?
SaulPaul: As an artist, I hope my legacy is that they recognized my craftsmanship, made good art and did the due diligence and work to present it the way I saw it, and it made a change. As a philanthropist, the art provided me the opportunity to create a platform to prosper. My legacy is to pay it forward, invest in others and communities, and create things that will leave a legacy that will still give back and do things once I’m gone. It’s not just based on me, but it’s like I scaled and lived on beyond me, like Dr. King. My last album, ‘Black Folk Music,’ was inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I recognize that I am his legacy, and I’m benefiting from his work.
Do you have any dreams you hope to achieve in the next decade?
SaulPaul: I look forward to taking my art and craft to the visual medium like an episodic series. I think the best platform for me is an episodic series like, ‘Everybody Hates Chris.’ With the season, you get 21 episodes and 21 opportunities to tell stories, share lessons, entertain, inspire and empower. So I look forward to developing an episodic series based on my life experiences and the numerous characters I’ve met along the way.
What advice would you give to young artists facing challenges similar to those you’ve overcome?
SaulPaul: Focus on economic empowerment. I had to figure out how to get paid. It was a benefit that I became an artist later in life and grew up in poverty. There’s this limiting belief that there’s pride in being a starving artist. I had already graduated college and had bills, so starving was not an option. Growing up in poverty made me determined to get away from it. It didn’t make sense to me to not get paid for my art and craft. I made good art, but I should be compensated just like an athlete. Don’t pay me in followers, pay me in finance. Focusing on the finances allowed me to make the art I wanted and see more success. That’s what I would tell young artists: focus on compensation because it allows you to make the art you want to make, and everything else follows.
SaulPaul celebrates new album with upcoming events:
SaulPaul will host the “Speak Hope Sing Joy” #BeTheChange Challenge Kickoff at the Paramount Theatre on Wednesday, Aug. 28. The event will feature a live performance with a local youth choir and aims to rally the community around the themes of his album, promoting volunteerism and positive change among young people.
On Friday, Aug. 30, the day of SaulPaul’s album release, AFS Cinema will screen the third part of his series, “Musician with a Message: Behind the Music,” followed by a live performance. RSVP here.
The final event for SaulPaul’s new album will be an album release weekend tour in downtown Austin on Sunday, Sept. 1. Presented by SaulPaul’s Change Water in partnership with Bboy City, this event will celebrate Olympians who represented the USA in the debut of breakdancing as an official Olympic sport.
For more information, visit SaulPaul’s official website at www.saulpaul.com.