Michael Syrrakos is Rest & Relaxation(R&R). Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1977, he was raised by his Jamaican mother and Greek father. As the result of such rich, diverse cultural upbringing, Michael was exposed to a wide variety of music. As growing up in the eighties was a time of excitement he, like so many witnessed the infancy and growth of the Hip Hop culture. "Bonita Applebum" changed his life.
The R&R sonic journey started in 1999 when Michael's musical taste became extremely curious. His musical world opened up to many different genres, such as Detroit Techno, Deep House, Disco, Down-tempo, Nu-Jazz, Neo-Soul, and Dub which eventually circled back to Hip Hop. A new decade began and technology advanced, making music production more accessible for the average person. So Michael began making songs with computer software and slowly progressed to mixing live and programmed elements.
Rest & Relaxation would like to continue the tradition of good feeling music. Michael credits the late, great J Dilla, Burt Bacharach and Herbie Hancock as his biggest influences. As the result of his music receiving similar praise from numerous listeners, he has now coined the Rest & Relaxation sound as, NeoEasyListening, which is described as a mix between NeoSoul and Easy Listening.
The Kick Up Dust EP is available on iTUNES and EMUSIC worldwide. Please stay tuned for many upcoming collaborations between Rest & Relaxation and artists from diverse backgrounds.
Enjoy my '07 NeoEasyListening iMix
Download the Free Rest & Relaxation MiniBeatTape '07
