Tony Rich plays seven instruments; guitar, bass, piano, cello, harmonica, drums and his personal favorite, the female body. “That’s one of the best instruments in the world,” the singer/producer/
songwriter grins, semi-
jokingly. “Start plucking them strings and they get to singing.”

When he emerged on the scene in 1996 with his hit single, “Nobody Knows” people recognized his talent as a singer-songwriter, but by and large, lumped him into a category with other soft-voiced crooners like Babyface. But no more. Rich’s newest release on Hidden Beach, Exist, defies any former preconceptions people may have had about him. Darker and richer than any of his previous releases, the album reveals a stripped-down version of Rich, and it works brilliantly for him.

“I think with every artist, what happens is [that] once you establish a certain sound, it creates an expectation,” he says. He mentions that he discovered the direction the album would take when he wrote the silky, “Is It a Sin,” a standout track on the album. “But I think that people who support what you do always leave room for change and evolution. I based my record off of a particular type of inspiration.”

That inspiration is life and women, and the way that they inevitably intertwine. “When I see women period, I’m looking at them as potential,” he says. “Like, I wonder how many songs I could get out of that situation. Women are a very powerful incentive.”

Rich has learned a lot about himself and the industry in the years since he released his debut in 1996. Exist is about relaying the lessons that he’s learned musically, while stretching himself creatively. “If you had 24 hours to live, what would you do? You’d come up with all of these fascinating things that you would do in 24 hours,” he says. “So my question to you would be, why not live like that everyday? Exist is about living passionately.”

Recorded mostly in Atlanta over a two year period, the Detroit native is excited about the possibilities that the album has afforded him. Musically, he’s at his zenith, melding his songwriting, producing and vocal ability into a sound that he hopes will capture the imaginations of listeners. “I’ve always been a person that has a lot of courage when it comes to creativity, so I’m not necessarily attracted to what everyone else is doing,” he says, frowning at the monotonous state of urban radio and R&B/soul music. “I allowed the music to breathe more.”

Shaking off industry pressures and standards, Rich is allowing himself to exist in the moment, and embrace the creativity that comes with it. So where is he going with the next album? He shrugs and then releases another grin. “That depends on the woman,” he says.
–jacinta howard

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