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Anthemic and totally meaningful!
Rising jazz pianist and songwriter Alan Chang has released his new single, “Love As A Weapon,”
an anthem about the complications that come with partnerships. Relationships are complicated matters, and when a friendship has both professional and personal stakes, there can be conflicts of interest that result in a break. This separation is precisely where musician Alan Chang, musical director for Michael Bublé, got the inspiration for his new single “Love As A Weapon.”
The lyrics of “Love As A Weapon” encapsulate the emotional frustration that’s been bottled up for an indefinite period of time. Lines like “my quiet’s turned to anger” and the chorus “don’t let me use your love as a weapon…now I put your trust into question” definitively highlight the process behind Chang’s battle as both a friend and coworker of Michael Bublé.
When elaborating on this ordeal, Chang stated:“‘Love As A Weapon’ was written a few days after telling Michael Bublé that I no longer wanted to tour with him after 19 years. Though he and I are close friends, and he’s given me so much, it was tough to ignore some negative feelings that came up, whether they were justified or not.”
Besides the lyrical inspiration, the song itself is reminiscent of pop music in the 2000s and has a distinctly jazzy feel. The lighthearted piano motif that repeats itself, the walking pace of the drums, and the layered vocals in the chorus all contribute to making this track an easy earworm and paint a rather serious topic in a very colorful, vibrant light. Produced by Ryan Lerman (Scary Pockets, Lizzy McAlpine) and mixed by Russell Elevado (D’Angelo, The Roots, Roy Hargrove), Alan Chang has packed his newly anticipated album with a variety of talent.
Start streaming “Love as a Weapon” here:
Alan Chang began playing piano at age six with a push from his mother and curated his talent as a musician from a young age. At 13, he became infatuated with jazz music; Alan cites jazz pianist Erroll Garner (specifically his ‘block chord right-hand’ style of playing), rock trio Ben Folds Five, and Elliott Smith as the greatest musical influences in his life.
His interest in jazz led him to pursue jazz studies as a major while studying at the University of Southern California, and he continued to stay in LA after his collegiate career. Shortly after graduating, Alan Chang was hired as a musical director and pianist for Michael Bublé, where he was responsible for helping write and produce much of Bublé’s discography from 2003 to 2022.
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