“The Blackprint”: SiR gets candid about his musical journey and coming out triumphant after a tough run-in with addiction
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Sir Darryl Farris, better known as SiR, grew up on the southern side of Los Angeles and enjoyed the life his parents provided for him and his two brothers. Though he came from humble beginnings, he didn't notice it because of his harmonious upbringing. Religion and music were a fundamental part of his childhood — and the root of his destiny, too, since his mother was the minister of music at their church. She got him involved in the music ministry, and as time went on, SiR expanded his skills from just singing to songwriting and engineering.
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In 2015, the R&B and soul artist released his first solo project, Seven Sundays, through independent record label Fresh Selects, which catapulted his career. SiR eventually caught the attention of Top Dawg Entertainment, who instantly signed him. Since then, SiR has worked with recognized artists like Anderson .Paak, Tyrese, Warren G and Jill Scott, among many others. He has also put out solo projects like November, Chasing Summer, and 2024’s HEAVY, which he released after fighting through addiction in the last several years. He has also earned two Grammy nominations. The revered talent sat down with REVOLT CEO Detavio Samuels on “The Blackprint” to discuss the ebbs and flows of his career. See seven highlights from this season’s third episode, which you can watch here.
1. His mother’s love for music spearheaded the trajectory of his life
The Inglewood, California native’s talent developed at a young age, and his love of music was instilled by his mother, who served her church’s music department for 35 years. During his conversation with Samuels, SiR recalled being 5 years old at the time of one of his first singing performances in church. While he had no choice but to participate — his mother wanted all her children involved with music — he learned to love it and credited that moment as a critical time. It was the foundation of learning discipline as an entertainer.
“My mom would have us in front of the congregation singing something, even if it was just a holy night or something small, but we learned to love it and eventually, she kind of gave us free reign as teenagers,” the singer-songwriter told Samuels.
“My mother used to have us singing around the piano when we were little kids,” he later added.
2. Church is “everything” to him, as it’s part of his core values
Although SiR hasn’t been to church consistently in a long time, his Christianity has always remained with him no matter where he is. As someone who grew up in church and was heavily involved in the community, it’s an important component in his life, who he is and how he’s been able to remain steadfast during trials.
“Oh man, church is everything!” he said. “And I definitely talk about how much I want to go back to church as an adult, and I know I should. But church taught me fellowship, where two or more gathered in his name, so is he. You know what I mean? It taught me that I don't actually have to be in church to find church or to find God. And it definitely instilled a gift in me that I had to learn to nurture.”
3. SiR attempted to be a rapper one time but failed
After some time away from music, he tapped back in to see if he “still had it” and was curious to know where he stood. SiR decided to trade singing in for rapping but quickly realized it wasn’t his lane.
“I had tried my hand at rapping, and that didn't work out -- just with my friends,” the talent shared. “I always had studio equipment in my house because of my uncle, so I used to have friends come over and try to rap, and I tried to have fun with them. It was terrible, so that wasn't encouraging.”
4. Working with his brothers reignited his passion for music
His family’s life revolved around music, so in early adulthood, the Grammy Award winner stepped away from it to explore what else there was to do in the world. After the break and his failed attempt at rapping, he began making music with his brothers again, who were songwriters for Warner Bros. at the time. It was through this experience that he discovered things about himself as a musician and fell back in love with the art form.
“Once I started to work with my brothers — and my brother actually taught me the process of recording myself and just gave me an opportunity to experiment on my own with singing — I fell in love immediately,” he recalled. “And I give all the credit to my brother, Davion, because he's still an active artist. And I know without his guidance, I wouldn't be in the position that I'm in today. So, thank you, Davion.”
5. A business decision he made regarding H.E.R. taught him the importance of relationship building
In 2016, the “D’Evils” crooner released an EP titled HER and followed it up with Her Too the next year. Around that same time, the singer H.E.R. was slowly making waves in the industry and released two volumes of a self-titled EP. The “Focus” artist’s team reached out to SiR and asked if he could change the titles of his projects for the sake of keeping things between the two amicable. Her team reasoned that they were both up-and-coming artists, so having the same project titles could cause some tension. SiR ultimately went against the decision because he liked the idea he created. It didn’t initially go over well, and although he and H.E.R. are cool, it’s something that he regrets.
“They called us and asked me to change the name of the project. And I said, ‘No’ because I was standing on business. I thought about it and... I wish I would have been open to something,” he admitted. “We kind of just said, ‘No,’ you know what I mean? And [she and I] are cool. We've talked since and all that stuff. It wasn't that big a deal, but just another moment that I wish I could take back, but a learning moment. “
“I learned that sometimes a relationship is more important than the actual issue,” SiR added when Samuels asked what he learned.
6. Chasing Summer was the soundtrack to his pain
Until his latest offering, SiR believed he released his best project when Chasing Summer hit streaming platforms in 2019. Although he didn’t realize it at the time, the R&B singer put his heart into the album, revealing a lot about himself and how he was suffering. Due to his vulnerability, Chasing Summer was the project that put way more eyes on him.
“Something was wrong. I was fractured, I was broken, and it set me back a lot,” he shared. “And my pandemic was hard... But I think Chasing Summer taught me a lot about how to present my pain because I was going through something, and you can hear it in the songs. I didn't know I was going through what I was going through until after the album was out, and I kind of listened back like, ‘Oh, oh…I said that?’ and... ‘Oh, this is what it really meant?’”
“And that led me to rehab, changing my diet, changing my ways,” he added. “I got up to about 250 pounds, man. Yeah, I recently just started working out and just getting my life back together.”
7. Having an encouraging partner is one of SiR’s keys to success
The California native met his wife, Kelly-Ann Farris, when he was 15 years old, and they’ve been connected at the hip ever since. Already married by his early 20s, SiR sung her praises for being an uplifting source of positive reassurance throughout his life. In addition, the “YOU” singer is happy that he stayed with her all these years.
“She's very encouraging and she loves me different,” he said when describing Kelly-Ann. “She treats me different. She made me feel like something, as simple as that, baby. I got a good one.”
He continued, “I saw this [quote] today, and it really kind of turned my idea of finding love on its head. ‘It's not about finding love; it's about finding the best version of yourself, so you can be ready for love when it comes.’ So, it changes the way you look at it when you think about loving yourself first to find the love of your life, you know what I mean? And I know I was in love with myself when I was 15 — that’s when I met my wife... Both of us [were] confident, cocky almost, but our love blossomed from a place of innocence and truth.”
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