Pitchfork Interview Series: Contour
Khari “Contour” Lucas is a multi-genre, multi-media artist hailing from Charleston, South Carolina. I started listening to him around the time the 2023 Pitchfork Fest lineup was announced. From my first listen, it was clear his name alone represented his artistic essence completely. The word contour itself is defined by shapes, lines and space and how movement changes those forms. To contour something is to add dimension, and that idea translates into Khari’s music. Inspired by the way song waveforms resemble a contour map, Contour took the name as his own. He forms beautiful soundscapes like a sculptor shapes a bust, like a painter creates a portrait.
Khari first started producing back in 2013, taking on the name Contour around 2015. He started in the electronic space, becoming more hip hop centered along the way. He is meticulous about sound and presentation, and has intention behind every note, lyric, or film sample. Repossess, one of my favorite videos of his, displays his passion for cinematography. I loved the grayscale aesthetic coupled with the Love Jones tone I felt in Contour and Semiratruth’s performances. He visually pulls inspiration from the L.A. Rebellion film movement to the creators of Black Audio Film Collective, as well as the sounds of 70’s psychedelic to Brazilian and African jazz. While his aesthetic has been uniquely tailored by him, he pulls from a lineage of black and brown artists and pays homage to their exceptional work.
During the afternoon of Day 1, Contour blessed the Pitchfork stage with his raw talent. We were able to catch up up with Khari post set, and talked about his first time in Chicago and his eclectic music and film influences:
How was your set?
Contour: It was a lot of fun. I felt really embodied and centered in my performance, which is the best thing that I can ask for when I perform. I felt very present. I felt like I gave a good performance. which I do not say after every performance. I get very nervous before I perform, especially since the pandemic. As i’m a couple years back into performing, I’m starting to really get back to feeling comfortable, but definitely a lot of nerves. And I think that’s why presence is such a big thing. Cause if I’m here, then I’m not fixated on thay
How do you like Chicago so far?
C: Yeah, I’ve only been here for one day. It’s too soon to say. This is my first time as an adult.
And your first time at Pitchfork too?
C: Yeah, it is. I’m definitely gonna stay around. I want to see King Krule, who I’ve never seen live. I want to check out The Smile later, who I actually already saw in Charleston a few weeks ago, but it was good that I want to see it again.
So how long have you been playing guitar?
C: I’ve only been playing for like two years. I don’t consider myself a guitarist. In the music that I’ll probably release in the near-ish future, I’ve been doing a lot more songwriting on guitar and starting songs that way. I think there’s a very spiritual connection, especially as a Southern black person, to the guitar for me. I just feel really connected to it in a metaphysical way.
Do you have any specific influences that differ between songwriting versus instrumentation?
C: This is a really good question. Someone who songwrites on guitar that I really like is Labi Siffre. He’s one of the few Black guitar singer-songwriters who was writing folk and psychedelic music in the 60s, early 70s. I feel like there are a lot of people I love on guitar who I probably don’t play like. All of the blues greats, like Lynyrd Hopkins, Bobby Bland, Mance Lipscomb. Yeah.
Do you have any influences when it comes to visual, visuals when it comes to like directing or kind of creative directing?
C: I’m a big film nerd. My biggest influences consistently are like the LA Rebellion. So like Charles Burnett, Julie Dash, Kathleen Collins, Bill Gunn. Then I also like the black film audio collective, people like John Akomfrah, Isaac Julien.
So who have you been listening to in 2023 that’s been inspiring you to create?
C: It really goes week to week, but the last three most recent serious fixations I’ve had are Abbey Lincoln… OK Orchestra, Kate Bush.
Originally published in Bridge Magazine
