Yaves: Bringing The Sound Of The Seasons To Your Ears

Some of his songs have had tremendous impact on people. The two songs that have impacted people the most are “55 Summers” and “Butterflies (Let Me Live),” both of which are from his 2013 album, Favor Over Fury.

Before the album came out, he performed “Butterflies (Let Me Live)” at a few shows; a song talking about abortion and what the life of a person who was aborted could have been like. One time after a show a woman told him that she had planned to get an abortion the next week, but after hearing the song she decided not to and also said that she was going to name her son Yaves.

That was probably one of the greatest moments in my music career in terms of somebody who was impacted, somebody who said ‘man, what you said changed the way I think about life’ or ‘the way I was going to move forward.’

Every time I go into the prisons, I see people who tell me ‘man, your music helped me get through the day’ or that ‘your songs are helping me do my time a lot easier.’

His song “55 Summers” is made to encourage people who have long prison sentences. “They gave him 55 summers, even at 19 them is lifelong numbers. They gave him 29 summers, even at 17 them is lifelong numbers,” Yaves says in the song referencing the long prison sentences of two people who are close to him.

When I go to the prisons and I do ‘55 Summers’ the inmates really zone out, and it seems like they are not in the building; they have gone outside the gates and the walls. The messages and letters I get from the inmates encourage me tremendously.