By: Amy Diana Ramirez
Scotch Plains, New Jersey & Longmont, Colorado, (The Hollywood Times) 8/9/23 – It’s not every day that a Colorado-based journalist gets to interview the freshest talent representing the electronica /EDM genre of which she just so happens to be an avid concertgoer of. Now this American talent is so new that he has never left the country and he won’t be quite old enough to vote this November.
Turning eighteen years old in December of this year, the individual behind Night Acclaim is Thomas Barnes. [Note: The artist never goes by “Tom” or “Tommy” or any diminutive version of Thomas.] It was in the first grade that Barnes aka Night Acclaim started learning music with a guitar. He later moved on to greater versatility with the piano and then dabbling in drums (though he stated that the later instrument “really isn’t really his vibe” T.B. `23. Now nearly an adult, he has learned mixing equipment, making him the youngest DJ/multi-instrumentalist to ever capture my ears and quite possibly yours.
Drawing DJ inspiration from the genius of Kygo as well as lyrical inspiration from songstresses Katy Perry and Betty Who, Night Acclaim proudly pegs himself within the genre of Pop, with influence and style coming from the sounds of the 2000s. He describes his genre as “Electropop, Dance Pop, and Modern Pop all merged together.” Thomas Barnes, August 2023.
When it comes to writing songs, Night Acclaim places particular value on penning lyrics that display vulnerability. He discussed being impressed with, and impassioned by, other musical artists’ displays of vulnerability – Betty Who‘s work in particular. He gushes about Boo’s sincerity and his own heartfelt thanks have convinced me of his own authenticity and humility. He manages to utilize songwriting as an outlet for processing his own romantic experiences and their fallouts as well. It did not take long for me, as a psychotherapist, to recognize that this promising young man seems to have more emotional intelligence than most teenagers do.
The flipside to his serious songwriting comes into play with his carefree cover song – his latest release, Party in the USA. A “childhood favorite” song of his, he transforms the nostalgia from the 2010 song into a glittering new version of the 2009 Miley Cyrus hit. [The song was not written by Cyrus, but by Claude Kelly, Dr. Luke, and Jessie J.] Night Acclaim joined forces with the well-established songwriting/vocalist Myah Marie for the Party in the USA’s vocals. This is not his first song collaboration with Marie, but his third and they are gearing up for a fourth.
To circle back to the beginning of the interview, I asked Barnes why he chose the name Night Acclaim for himself. He happily shared that he specifically chose the name combination because he wanted something “unique” and “Googleable” – Thomas Barnes 2023. He chose the word ‘Night’ because he considers himself a “night owl; staying up until 4 AM doing God knows what.” [The word Acclaim just comes from his friends “hyping up his music” – Thomas Barnes, August 7, 2023.]
My prediction is that he will either become the next hot thing performing on the fire-breathing mutant art car Dusty Rhino at Burning Man 2024…or performing inside the London Aquarium, like Elderbrook. did, or maybe he will be making music from a hot air balloon like DJ/Producer Ben Böhmer, floating higher and higher…and perhaps he will eventually be playing at the epically picturesque Red Rocks Amphitheatre here in Colorado. Worst case scenario, this gifted young man will wind up as a celebrity psychologist, on call at all hours, utilizing and prescribing the therapeutic power of pen put to paper.
Whatever the case may be, he is on his way. Please help support his starry trajectory by checking out his beats on Spotify and by following him on Instagram.