Yellowstraps

Founded in Brussels by brothers Yvan and Alban Murenzi, YellowStraps has been shaping hybrid neo-soul for almost 10 years, caressing the senses and stirring perceptions, validated by the Belgian rap scene (Roméo Elvis, Le Motel, L’Or du Commun, etc.). Since tentacle, the duo has gone solo (Alban leaves, Yvan stays) and has expanded its horizons without denying its DNA. Powered by his song Slowdown (girl what’s up), Yvan is now moving into light speed.

Electric guitar loops, vocals and piano floating through reverb, UKG, 2Step and neo-soul infused drums: YellowStraps offers us hybrid art stretching the boundaries of genres.

Recently propelled by his track „Slowdown (girl what’s up)“ released in November 2023, which accumulated +12M on Spotify and +16M views on IG, Yvan reappropriates the garage atmosphere he loves so much and decides to reformulate it with his own codes, his electric ukulele and his clone, which he materializes in his handmade videos.

In early 2024, he remixed his own track „blue“ with Sofiane Pamart, confirming his mastery of this hybrid formula between soaring sounds and dry UK-style drums.

YellowStraps isn’t just about the hits that have introduced him to the general public. With an abundant and varied discography, he breaks away from academic structures and intersects with the sounds that inspire him. „The best compliment anyone can pay me is that my music is impossible to describe.“

He released the album tentacle in 2023, a combination of continuity and the desire to break new grounds. He took his exploration of vocals (both English and French) a step further, both in terms of vocal technique, which gives finesse and depth to his toplines, and in the manipulation of electronic effects (including autotune, previously rejected „for the wrong reasons“). Above all, he has returned intensively to production (which was the brother’s domain), alone or supported by a few close friends, including his manager Jad El Alam and bassist Victor Defoort: „I like working with a small team, because everyone can bring their own touch without jeopardizing my artistic direction. In my head, what I want is extremely precise“.

Among those creative guidelines is a desire for something ever increasingly hybrid (it’s been there since discovering King Krule at the very start of the band), blending-in Rock influences of his youth with tropisms of R&B, Neo-Soul and Electronica. It’s a quest for “indescribable emotions” that wanders through melodic writing and experimentation. “I’ve spent days working on certain sounds and structures that weren’t conventional, like a mad scientist in his lab. It was a way of marking my territory, redefining the boundaries of what YellowStraps was to me”. And so, powerful records (the single “headown”, all round elegantly pop but infectiously melancolic, but also “notice”, “flowin”, “champagne”, or the very emotional “writer’s block” featuring the Belgian artist Blu Samu) hang out with mutant shapes (the almost Ye-like “necklace” or “sorrysorrysorry”). “The best compliment that one could ever give me would be that my music is impossible to pin down.”

Everything changes, except for his favorite subject, love with a capital L, that who elevates and chokes, oftentimes in one motion. “My lyrics are about what touches me the deepest, what overwhelms me. I’ve always found it fascinating how relationships can take us far and induce extreme feelings.” It’s the only subject where Tentacle ties the knot on a trilogy. “The Blame EP was me opening the floodgates of hatred after my first long term relationship. Goldress was a more thoughtful reflection on a failed relationship. Tentacle embodies the acceptance phase. Love is always a mess, but I’m at peace with that.”

The new YellowStraps has arrived: ripe and confident fruit of an already dense career, but also a bud bursting with ardor and invention. The recognition he has gained through his recent hits has elevated him to a decisive position in which he is now able to disseminate his unique art to a large number of people.

He is also stepping up his live performances with an increasing number of concerts and a live band to accompany him now, affirming his desire to meet his growing community.