The Paradox is the moment. Reinvigorating the spirit of 2000s Pop-Punk, the band was recently named the latest Audacy LAUNCH artist, and stole the show at the Warped Tour in Long Beach over the weekend. Earlier this month, the group stopped by our studios in Los Angeles to talk about their rapid rise to success after only a year together, and their unique perspective on the scene and the culture as young Black artists.
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"Growing up, I think we all kind of went through the ridicule from people that look like us, like our own community kind of, for listening to that music and maybe the way we talk and things like that," says frontman Eric Dangerfield, whose love of blink-182, Green Day, Good Charlotte, and more sparked the formation of the band. "It was also trying to like give the world a different view of the African-American experience because we're not alone. Black kids do live in the suburbs and that experience exists."
"I feel like kind of what's mainstream for that is, you know, the hood experience, which is an aspect, but it's not all of it, you know what I mean? I think it can sometimes lead to, maybe negative stereotypes and stuff if you don't fit that mold then 'what's wrong with you? You're not Black,' and that's just not the case. So I think that was kind of our big thing was just trying to give a different experience in an authentic way, like just being true to ourselves."
Hear more from The Paradox in the full interview above, and hear them now on your favorite Audacy Alternative station as our latest LAUNCH artist.