Laas, who hails from the North-West, made the decision to quit teaching during the world pandemic after he found his feet firmly planted in the local live music scene, proving that a career in the arts is possible to pursue in South Africa.
FORMER high school teacher Basson Laas took the plunge and quit his day job to follow a full-time career in music, and he says it’s the best decision he could have made.
Laas, who hails from the North-West, made the decision to quit teaching during the world pandemic after he found his feet firmly planted in the local live music scene, proving that a career in the arts is possible to pursue in South Africa.
Laas recently released his debut EP, “Good Morning Dreamer“.
Check out the music video for his single ‘Tightly Bound’, in which the singer reminisces about his childhood.
The singer-songwriter’s dream of becoming a musician began when he started playing the violin as a minor. Piano lessons came next and this helped to solidify his music theory knowledge.
But Basson always preferred to play by ear. After a few years, Laas fell in-love with the guitar and started writing his own songs to accompany the tunes he played.
His newly released EP boasts four songs produced and written over the last decade. The songs are all based on personal experiences Laas had as a child and the dreams he carried over the years.
After his brief stint of teaching, Laas dusted off his equipment and, in early 2022, he took the plunge and became a full-time musician.
He found his home on the road touring, singing his truth and using his music to inspire others to follow their dreams. It was here that he finally decided to record something more permanent and a little more tangible.
He explained: “I’ve always wanted to start recording as to be able to share my songs with the world. But we selected these first four songs for the EP to create a good balance between emotions and to take the listener on a unique sonic and lyrical journey from start to finish.”
He describes his EP as “Melodically rich”.
He said: “Being a vivid dreamer, it seemed like a nice combo to smash the two together for my first ever EP title. To me, it sounds like the sunrise to a very special journey, the beginning to a hopefully long and prosperous music career.”
In July, Laas released his his debut single, “Tightly Bound”, a precursor to the EP and released to critical acclaim.
The song has already been play-listed on various radio stations across the country and was followed by a telling music video, which shares sentiments of his childhood.
Labelled as adult contemporary with a dash of alternative folk, each song on the EP was written with a particular idea in mind but Laas really wants his listeners to interpret it in a way that makes sense to them.
He explained: “In each song, there is something for every listener. But an audience who likes laid back and melancholic tunes that are rich in melody and building percussion will favour these songs.”
He concluded: “I am nervous because it’s the first time I’m releasing something that is so very personal to me. As an independent artist, it was a massive learning curve.
“Since this is my first body of work as a full-time musician, I realise that I have to be realistic in my expectation of its reach. I’ve done the best I can and I’m excited for what the future holds.”
