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Sebastian Mikael is ready to make his mark on 2020. The R&B singer has been making his rounds in the industry since 2013 with the release of his single, "Last Night." Since then, Mikael has taken time away from music to live life and has returned with a fresh perspective. Upon his return in 2018, he released ICUUCME Part I and then ICUUCME Part II shortly after with a focus on inspiring his fans by sharing his truth through his unique brand of soul music.

One of the coolest things he's done since returning to music is his "From Scratch" series where he builds a song from scratch with a live band. We recently caught up with Sebastian and talked to him about his new approach to music and his sources of inspiration. Read the full interview below and check out the latest edition of his "From Scratch" series.

Ones To Watch: The last time I saw you about 5 years ago, you were in a very different place.

Sebastian Mikael: Yeah. Right now it feels like I have a second chance at really doing what I want. It's that feeling you get when you walk into something fresh and new. And as I grow, I'm realizing that this whole process is about being myself. That’s all it is at the end of the day.

How has your musical journey over the past five years affected your real life?

I think it definitely gave me more substance. I feel like when I started writing about my life and things I was going through, It became clear to me that writing my truth was my forte. I wanted to write about things that were personal to me and I wanted to inspire people with my story. Music career aside, I think about the impact I want to have in people’s lives and how I can inspire them. That realization changed my outlook on being an artist.

Do you have any particular moments that reinforced that change in your approach to music?

There have been a few moments when people told me they were going through a rough breakup and that my music helped them get through it. Conversations like that have always been the most rewarding reminders for me.

Since you've focused more on writing about things that are personal, have you been a little more hesitant to write about things that are a bit more light-hearted?

Yeah. Lately, it’s been hard for me to write party songs. Right now I have too much on my mind that I want to get out there, you know what I mean? You get a different feeling when you write about things that are personal. It's almost like therapy because sometimes you don’t really have anybody you can talk to about certain things. So that’s always more meaningful to me.

Outside of your personal experiences, where do you draw inspiration from?

Life. I mean, if you want to go deeper than that, I think it's divine design. The things I go through inspire me. After you go through things and look back, you realize that a lot of things happen by coincidence. So when you start understanding that, you start feeling like there’s a purpose set up for you and you start walking into it.

What are you consuming outside of music?

A lot of art. Fashion. I just walked in the Pyer Moss show and it was beautiful. Being able to walk in it was incredible. I just started doing fashion week so that's becoming a new passion for me. Fashion is always something I've been doing but I was always around and couldn't get into anything. Now I'm looking forward to doing more in the fashion world.

What's next?

More music!

Watch the latest edition of Sebastian Mikael's "From Scratch" series below: