Two-Tone
Audio Feed Summer Music Series
State House Square
Hartford
Aug. 5, 2025
The dog days of summer are here, which means it’s a great time to check in with the Audio Feed summer music series before the August heat gives way to falling leaves. Tuesday’s performer was Two-Tone, a memorable young man whose name comes from not only his black and red hair, but also the nature of his life.
“I feel like there's two sides to every story,” he said. “There's two sides of life, and I feel like I live by that. I have two different households between my mom and my dad, completely different lifestyles you know? Everything in my life has been two-sided, like I'm a twin, one half of a whole.”
Two-Tone (real name Shawn Baskerville) is a young man with an old sound. At the age of 21, he’s already been singing for four years. He said that his genre is "alternative R&B." When I asked him to describe it, he said that it's R&B that's not afraid to be vulnerable in all fields. He counts Michael Jackson amongst his inspirations, while he also looks to more recent artists such as Daniel Caesar and Brent.
By “old sound,” I mean traditional R&B. Grown men crying on the track-style of R&B, not the sing-rap that dominates the airwaves today. I have nothing against the current generation of musical talent, but sometimes you want a throwback to the sounds you remember from growing up.
That’s exactly what Two-Tone brought to his performance. “Miss-Communication” was a modern take on the old-school R&B ballad, with Two-Tone pleading for his partner to make a choice between him and another lover. It was a tale as old as time; Two-Tone kept it fresh and upbeat with a hip-hop beat undergirding his powerful voice. Best of all, he wasn’t afraid to move up and down the musical register, while many of his contemporaries play it safe with their range of sound.
Just because Two-Tone has the old sound down doesn’t mean he can’t do the new stuff. He’s a talented rapper as well. He switched gears into his lyrical mode towards the end of the performance. I was surprised to learn that this was Two-Tone’s first performance in front of an audience. He was poised and confident, and it was a great start to a promising career.
At the end of the day, Two-Tone said that he’s from Hartford, and he’s about being part of the musical scene in the city.
“Community is my big thing,” he said. “I'm trying to branch out and connect with people, so if anybody is trying to work together, let me know.”
There’s your APB Hartford. A new young talent is on the rise.
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