There’s a certain kind of R&B record that doesn’t just play - it lingers like a late-night conversation or that a voice note you’ll never delete.
Artist Sing Steph (Stephan Gillis)’ “Songs About Her” delivers on that feeling. It’s a project rooted in real emotion, real relationships, and the complicated, unfiltered realities of modern-day love stories and vulnerability. At a time when people are navigating connection, identity, and emotional honesty in very public ways, Gillis saw space for deeper storytelling past the surface-level love songs.
His EP leans into the questions people are actually living through, making it feel less like a performance and more like documentation.
________
“Songs About Her” explores love, taboos, and vulnerability. What made now the right time to tell these stories?
People are experiencing these things in real time and I’ve yet to see anyone answer these questions. Honestly, these are conversation pieces that I’m writing about and these are topics that need to be explored.
You describe the sound of your EP as warm, sensual, and rich. How did you want this project to feel for listeners?
I want people to feel the way they felt when they heard “Brown Sugar [D’Angelo]” for the first time. I want them to feel how I felt when I heard “Who Is Jill Scott?” for the first time. I want this music to become a part of the soundtrack to people’s lives.
You said there are many “Hers” in the world - what does that idea mean to you creatively?
Creatively, the many “Hers” are a reflection of the past, present, and future women in my life. These women help make me the man that I am today. I honor and respect the ”Hers” in my life and there are many men and women that appreciate “Her” so I wanted to speak to those experiences.
How does this release reflect your growth as both an artist and a storyteller?
This release reflects the maturation of my pen and the vulnerability of collaboration. A lot of the time, writers write things for the hell of it. I wanted to write about my life experiences and take artistic privilege, not only as a writer, but as an audio author to bring these lyrics to life.
How have the environments you’ve been in shaped your sound, your storytelling, and your perspective on love?
I was born in Stanford, Connecticut, and raised in the 757 - Norfolk, Virginia, to be exact. I moved to the DMV in 2010 and have been here for 15 years. The sound of the DMV has shaped my ear and my pallet for musicianship in a major way. There’s no sound like the DMV sound, from go-go to jazz to rock and punk rock to gospel, the list goes on and on.
There’s something special about the time signature, the cadence, and the flow of music from the DMV. I would not be the artist that I am right now without the experience of being in a go-go band, without being a featured vocalist for international jazz artist Marcus Johnson, or working with Starmakers Productions. All of these experiences are different branches of the tree that I am, musically. I became a Grammy member here, I have done most of my travelling with artists from here. I owe the DMV a massive amount of gratitude and love for taking a boy from Virginia and allowing me to be a part of this community and share my story.
Is there one track that best represents the heart of this EP?
I would say… all of them! It’s so hard to choose. But if I had to pick one, it’d be “Getaway.” This song speaks to the times we’re currently living in. With all the confusion and chaos going on around us, we all want to escape the madness for a while. And what better way to “getaway” than to escape with the one you love.