‘I’ll Sleep When I’m Famous’ by Bhi Bhiman

Covid was an undeniably difficult period, punctuated with change and loss. To Bhi Bhiman life felt like a never ending stream of bad news, yet the St Louis native felt inspired. Whilst juggling the pandemic, looking after his dying father-in-law and his young daughter, Bhi would find the time to create music in his makeshift studio. Throughout all of the tumult of this time, Bhi managed to coax out something beautiful.

 

The result is Bhi Bhiman’s latest album ‘I’ll Sleep When I’m Famous’, where the singer invites us into his personal world whilst still leaning into that folk sensibility that captured the imagination of so many. The lyrics for “Up All Night” poured out of the singer and traces the period in time where Bhi would look after his daughter while his wife would care for her father. The last single from the album “It’s Only Just Begun” is a soul-baring letter to Bhi’s younger cousin who died by suicide.

 

Discussing the album, Bhi explains, ‘This collection of songs is meant to acknowledge the elephant in the room: the fact that in one way or another death is always a presence in life. Not in a dark and depressing way, but as a radical act of acceptance that life will always include loss, and that what we choose to do with that fact impacts the trajectory of our lives. Will we focus on what’s truly important – deep human connection, family, community – or be distracted by fleeting desires and weighed down by loss?’

 

Having worked with a myriad of talented creatives from comedian Keegan Michael-Key to rapper/ director Boots Riley, Bhi Bhiman’s horizons are ever-expanding. His latest project ‘I’ll Sleep When I’m Famous’ proves that something beautiful can come from hard times.