Editor’s Note: It was awesome to reconnect with Trevor McNevan, who fronts the amazing band Thousand Foot Krutch. Since talking with him, Trevor seems rejuvenated and reignited about his new project entitled I Am The Storm. Fans will get to experience a hip-hop side to Trevor in I Am The Storm. The single “These Lines” was recently released and it showcases Trevor’s versatility as a performing artist. Fans can find Trevor McNevan at the following locations:
www.facebook.com/trevormcnevan
Madness To Creation: I just got done with a yoga class, do you do any yoga or exercises like that?
Trevor: I tried yoga for the first time officially, I tried it a couple of times here and there with a couple of friends, and there’s a place here in town which offers hot yoga, my wife is really big into that, so it was a really good experience, I think it’s good for staying healthy, and for so many years, I wasn’t stretching for any of the shows, that’s definitely the change that I’ve had in the last few years, I’m not well-versed in yoga, but I had a great experience with it.
Madness To Creation: What is part of your pre-concert ritual?
Trevor: I get my stretch on for sure, and I do some vocal warm-ups before every show, that’s part of my quiet time, part of the quiet before the storm so to speak.
Madness To Creation: Speaking of storms, you’ve released a new project called I Am The Storm, what conceptualized the idea?
Trevor: About a year ago, we took our first intentional break off the road in over 20 years with TFK, just to get back to our families and to stay committed, since that I happened, I got really inspired to do this project, hip-hop has always been a first love for me musically, and I actually did a hip-hop record when I was 13 and I started TFK when I was 17, so it’s always been a part of my musical DNA, so I’ve always been very inspired by it and love the art form. Growing up, I was just consumed by it, and when I had my job and when I was in my room, I would have my turntables and was just scratching, and listening to this music and listening to these rhymes and these flows, and listening to the different patterns, the bass line, I would have tens of thousands of records from collecting vinyl, I would go to different flea markets and find different samples and jazz samples, and just being musically creative and putting this together. So, I got really excited about doing this project on my own, and I heard it, and I brought in a couple of friends to help with the choruses, I’ve just had a blast working on this musically and vocally, it’s just been a fun challenge and being in different rooms that I haven’t been in in awhile, and that I really haven’t let other people into. I’m really excited about this record, each of the songs have a different dynamic, it’s been such a blast, I’ve had so much fun with this and can’t wait to share this with people.
Madness To Creation: What can fans of Thousand Foot Krutch expect from this project, is it a total departure or are there some influences, what does it look like for I Am The Storm?
Trevor: Musically, it is a full departure, but there’s always been hip-hop DNA and the grooves, with some of the stuff released on the Thousand Foot Krutch stuff, to me, it’s a hip-hop eclectic project, but it’s not just hip-hop, I think that non-hip-hop listeners will appreciate this just the same, and that’s just the response that I’ve been getting from people that don’t even listen to hip-hop, and that’s all that I can hope for, and I think people are going to appreciate it, I’m so blessed to have the fans walking this journey with us and TFK, I’m doing this 100% independent as well, so I definitely want to thank everybody in advance for walking this journey with me, and for the love and support. It’s been a blast and I can’t wait to share it with you.
Madness To Creation: You’ve released the lyric video for “These Lines”. Take us into the lyric video and song.
Trevor: “These Lines” was the first single released off of the EP, which was released in September. It’s called “Fight Music Vol. 1”, “These Lines” is about that classic battle that we all face in our life between the heart and the mind, when your heart is pulling you one way and your mind is saying “I don’t know, this doesn’t make sense to me”, it’s kind of that right and wrong sort of situation, those crossroads that we come to, and this song to me is about those struggles that we all have sometimes, and where we are often battling ourselves, but also with addiction and those strongholds in our lives, those chains that bind us, those things that we never wanted to be a part of in our story, but we ended up having them becoming our vices and our weaknesses, whether it’s self-medicating somehow or battling temptations, those kind of crossroads that we all come to in our day to day lives, where we are kind of torn between the heart and the mind.
Madness To Creation: Let’s say you’re struggling or going through a difficult time, what causes you to keep going?
Trevor: I’ve always found my hope and strength in Christ, and sometimes I feel like every day I am facing different battles, there isn’t a day that goes by where I can’t rely on my own strength, so I rely on His strength, my faith is a part of my journey, but I’ve never considered it to be a genre of music, I make music for everybody.
Madness To Creation: Fun question for you, who do you got: Eminem or Machine Gun Kelly?
Trevor: As a music fan, I can’t speak for their reasoning for either side to want to do this, but I’m going to have to side with Em on this one, he’s such a Jedi on the mic, and he has just proven himself over and over, there would be no Machine Gun Kelly without Eminem, with that said, it’s just respect all around and I’m not judging anyone, but Machine Gun Kelly has also done some great things musically, and he’s been fighting a long time and doing some incredible things, if we can just keep it between them, I don’t want to be a part of that, but as a music fan, Em has been a part of my journey for a long time, along with a lot of other people. This seems disrespectful, but to each their own, it’s the choices that they make as an artist, I’m just thankful that wasn’t mine to make. *laughs*
Madness To Creation: Anything else you would like to add?
Trevor: Yeah, we plan to have a music video for “These Lines” very soon, follow me on the socials @iats on Twitter and Instagram, and the website is www.iamthestorm.ninja, and I did want to mention real quick that there is a slogan where the name came from, it goes “the devil whispered in my ear, “you’re not strong enough to withstand the storm” and today I whispered in the devil’s ear, “I am the storm”, and that’s where the name comes from, and I just wanted to mention the heart of it because to me, it’s about speaking against the fears in our own lives, whether its our fears, our rejections, hurts, pain, issues and our doubts, all of that stuff, and if we can try to get to the center of our storm, and there’s supposed to be that absolute calm and peace, and look at those things and say “I Am The Storm”.
And there you have it! Follow I Am The Storm on his socials and his official website for updated news and information!
