Bearden senior ‘Housecat’ Thompson drops third album

Quemoni Thompson is not your everyday rapper. Clad in a button-down shirt and hip shoes, the upcoming artist and BHS senior puts his own spin on hip-hop in his new album, Housecat.

Thompson, who makes chill, jazzy hip-hop under the name Housecat, released his self-titled album earlier this month. It is his third release to date.

The 13-song album features tracks like “4th Life,” “Somewhere in the 70’s,” and “Everything Is Okay” that delve into the artist’s mind. While the music is mainly a mix of jazz and hip-hop, it features some electronic, psychedelic twists.

“I don’t really pick favorite songs,” Thompson said. “I like them all, and they’re all meaningful to me.”

Thompson’s friend and fan, junior Kylen Bailey gives the perfect description of Housecat.

“It sounds a lot like the new underground rap scene, which sounds like this [hip-hop group] called Madvillian,” Bailey said. “It’s got real instruments in the background. Not like synthetic instruments [where] it’s all on a loop. The rap is not very obscene, which I like.”

Thompson, 17, has been interested in music his entire life, but it wasn’t until his sophomore year of high school that he really got serious about it.

The artist has performed one gig at Market Square restaurant/venue Latitude 35 and is eager to perform more often. He wants to pursue music as a career.

Thompson generally makes his own beats from apps like Garage Band, but sometimes producers send him sounds via websites like SoundCloud.

His first album, Vertigo, was released in February of 2013, and Soul CompleX followed in November. These two albums share Housecat’s laid-back, soulful vibe.

Thompson produced part of Housecat by himself but collaborated with friends like senior Aeon Scott, Dream Maker, and JENKEM on many of the songs.

He and Scott co-produced 4 songs – “Housecat”, “On & On”, “Creating”, and “Tensors Interlude.” He says the two often sit down at Scott’s piano and play around until they find something they like. Then they repeat it, record it, and add some other twists.

Scott’s favorite song on the album is “Early Morning”, which Thompson made by himself.

“I’m really happy with [the album],” Scott said. “I honestly thought I would only like the tracks that I made or that he and I made or that he made, but I like all of the tracks. The ones that we made together I can listen to over and over.”

Scott and Thompson have been friends since 6th grade, and Scott has been playing his own music for about that long.

Some of Thompson’s inspirations include books, movies, and other artists.

“Gil Scott Heron, and a lot of old jazz musicians like Thelonius Monk and John Coltrane are big inspirations,” Thompson said.

He is also heavily influenced by spirituality. The stage name Housecat comes from Thompson’s belief in reincarnation.

“I feel like I was maybe a housecat in a past life,” Thompson said.

The rapper has acquired a following from people at school and others who enjoy his mellow tunes.

“I think it’s admirable that he’s actually doing something with his talent,” Bailey said.

A fourth album is currently in the works, but it is in the early stages of development, so Thompson is not sure when it will be released. He is also working on a few jazz albums with a band he put together called The Nine Life Theory, another allusion to feline reincarnation.

Thompson sells and streams his music predominantly through Bandcamp. All three of his albums can be downloaded at thelo-que.bandcamp.com for $5 or $1 per song or streamed for free. He is also selling physical copies of Housecat around school.