In this iconic interview with Frankie French, discover how his House, EDM anthem Feed Your Soul came about, a little bit about his creative process in the song's production, its international appeal and impact, and his building upon the House legacy as a Chicago-based artist.
Tadhi Coulter (TC): What is Feed Your Soul about? How did you come up with the idea?
Frankie French: Feed Your Soul is different from other songs I've created. The vocal itself is uplifting—an uplifting vocal. I've had uplifting music but not necessarily an uplifting vocal per se. I only have one official track released in the same genre. It's danceable—very clubby, that late-night, club vibe. I started doing tech house with Move it Low (Muevelo) in June 2022. I noticed that tech house is a popular genre. A lot of people are creating it. So, three months prior I dropped My House, Our World, which has a more classic house beat and sound.
I was going for a tech-house track with a Latin or Spanish vocal. I searched for a specific vocal under "Muevelo" ("Move It Low"). I wanted it to be an English vocal, but I also wanted to find a Spanish vocal and sound that in so many words said: M-O-V-E! Definitely, it's saying move your body on the dance floor. Mainly that song is being streamed. I want Feed Your Soul to introduce my tech-house sound to club promoters, event planners, and managers of clubs and venues around the world.
TC: Did you have a particular audience in mind when you created Feed Your Soul?
Frankie French: People who want to dance and have fun—nightclub, festival, party, TikTok... It makes for a great challenge, adding more soul to this crazy world. It's not saying anything about sadness, drugs, violence. Instead, it says: "Here's Frankie French with something to 'Feed Your Soul!'" When I heard it, I knew I needed it. Plus, it just made sense to release it during these uncertain times. In the car, at home, on the way to work. It's just one of those songs! It's a universal feel-good song due in part to its soulful vocals.
TC: What would you like the impact of Feed Your Soul to be?
Frankie French: Getting played by DJs is always great! I would like it to go viral, find its way into playlists and repeat-streaming on Spotify and other platforms. I believe in real people listening to my sh*t... not bots or fake streams. I want real-deal people listening to my music, to talk about it, and feature it in their personal stories on social media. 1M streams would be the sh*t too... primarily on Spotify. It's one of the most important streaming platforms. People will go to your account, listen to your music and check out your monthly listeners.
TC: What would you say about Feed Your Soul would garner the level of airplay or streams you desire?
Frankie French: I feel like it has a Chicago-House feel. Even just off the vocal alone, they'll like the song; the soulfulness of it. A lot of people want to feel good right now. When I first made it—there's actually two versions of it—I was thinking: "I need a tech house track that gives off a nightclub vibe and makes people feel like dancing. But I didn't want the song to be too dancey." I wanted it to have a classic house music vibe—piano! You know, classic house elements, real instruments... a soulful vocal... a rougher and rap vocal. The instruments—piano and organ—and the sounds that give drum kicks, open hats. It's more tech house than anything, with heavy bass and techno sounds. Everything else is more of a classic sound. It's really all about sound selection.
TC: There's no denying the similarity between the title and subject of Feed Your Soul and Beyoncé's Break My Soul released just short of a year from yours. Was your song inspired or influenced by hers?
Frankie French: No, it wasn't. I actually got the title from the vocal. But I do enjoy playing "Break My Soul," one of the hottest dance tracks at parties and the club scene. You gotta know your audience and what they enjoy, so definitely Beyoncé's song gets the crowd moving and hyped up, for sure!
TC: What would you say to another DJ to get them to spin Feed Your Soul along with their set or mix?
Frankie French: That's not a bad question. If they want to keep the party going—a house music party, for example—it's a great fit for a party where they're not even playing tech house. They could be playing classic, Chicago-style house. It would work at a regular party where they were going for a house set or experience. It also depends on the age range and demographic. If you can play Pitbull, you can play this! Reggaeton and House can be played together. It just depends on the crowd.
Recently, I played the song at a Pickleball tournament, a glow-in-the-dark tournament, and I just played '70s, '80s, '90s, early 2000s, and dance music from today. Feed My Soul could fit! David Guetta, Rihanna, 'Good Vibrations,' and Dua Lipa. I played a tech house song, and right after that I played a more feel-good song, and then I played my song, which was the last song of the night.
TC: On a personal note, what inspired you to think about creating Feed Your Soul?
Frankie French: I was thinking: "I wanna make a new tech-house, danceable song, and I want it to have a nightclub dance vibe." It was a little more organ, the kick sample, open, house... just different. When I first made it, it was too dancey... it gave me a 'Chicago Boys Town' feel. I didn't want it to sound like a dance track. I wanted it to sound more tech house, you know. The first version was good, don't get me wrong! But it wasn't as good as this one. The other one wasn't as controlled as the July 2023 release.
Honestly, that track is for everyone. A lot of times I get a picture, a color, or a thought... a kind of representation of something on how it makes me feel. I don't think you could say or tell, first off, that someone my color and background made it. You'd more than likely think and say, 'Someone from London made this joint!' At the same time, it has a Chicago feel to it, too. It taps into the Chicago feel while keeping the Chicago sound alive—giving it a more popular culture vibe by keeping it relevant to the sound of today.
TC: How important is keeping the Chicago sound alive to you?
Frankie French: Booking me would be getting the best of both worlds. House music was born here. It's actually the start of dance music—no progressive, tech, future, bass house. The sound is embedded in me; it's a part of me. I've lived here all my life, and have been listening to it. The history makes me wanna tap into it more. I'm that person bringing things to the forefront. When Juke music was dead, I was still creating it. Now it's back to being popular again in the city of Chicago right now. Young hip-hop artists are rapping to Juke beats!
My level of creativity is not determined by what genre of music is popular but by what I enjoy listening to and what I like. As a kid, I've always had my own mind. I've never been a follower, but I go for what makes me happy. I have my own take on things. When it comes to music, if it's something being played or streamed a lot, it doesn't mean that I'm going to like it.
TC: What would a Feed Your Soul set list look like?
Frankie French: A lot of tech house is a remix of other songs. This is a Frankie French Original. I don't know if I would spin them (a reference to Break My Soul) together. I don't think the song is really House music... not to me. It's house-(ish), but it's not really House to me.
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From Southeast Chicago, with 22+ years of working as a producer and DJ, Frankie French curates and produces sound recordings and iconic experiences, from Hip-hop, R&B, House, EDM, and their collaborative genres.
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