I’m Not a Look, I’m a Feeling
The Shiloh Enigma
Tell me why I’m waiting for someone that couldn’t give a f*ck about me. A vexing Shiloh lyric and a sentiment that many fans probably share for an entirely different reason. The artist hasn’t released new music since August 2016, and that’s only if you consider 30 second snippets on Instagram “new music”. Who is Shiloh Dynasty? Where did they go? And perhaps more importantly – do they give a fuck about us?
Just over three years ago, Shiloh began posting videos on Vine under the username ShilohDynasty. The clips were no more than 6 seconds of angelic vocals paired with soothing guitar strums. Irresistible in nature, especially within the bite-sized world of Vine content.
It didn’t take long for these infectious loops to go viral. The universe agreed 6 seconds wasn’t enough; we wanted full versions of these songs. But we wouldn’t get them.
In 2015, Shiloh Dynasty created an Instagram page where they could showcase longer versions of original work. Typically posted without a caption, these enchanting sound bites still only served as an appetizer for our insatiable Shiloh hunger. We wanted full versions of these songs. Again, we wouldn’t get them.
If you’re learning about Shiloh Dynasty right now for the first time, you don’t have much catching up to do. Even those who have been fans since their emergence on Vine in 2014 still have no idea who they are or where they went. In fact, I’m using the pronouns “they/them” as pure speculation. There is no verified information anywhere. To the public, Shiloh is merely a beautiful voice behind a fraction of a face.
With a dead Vine account and a deleted Twitter, Shiloh checked out from social media on September 13th 2016, posting one last mirror selfie on Instagram. The photo currently serves as a forum for conspiracy theories, expressions of admiration, and gender debates. So why does it feel like Shiloh Dynasty is still active? Why is that delicate voice still buzzing through my head? We wanted full versions of the songs; if Shiloh wasn’t going to deliver, other artists would.
On SoundCloud, it’s common culture for artists to sample each other’s work, layering modest beats behind catchy harmonies. The process isn’t overly complex and yet it often creates a captivating sound. I classify this music under the Lo-Fi genre, but someone snobbier than I may disagree. For junior producers who experiment with sound mixing and VSTs (Virtual Sound Tech), finding a compelling voice to accompany their work isn’t easy. Enter Shiloh, a voice that fell from heaven and essentially landed in public domain. They became a staple in the sampling community with hundreds of artists layering Shiloh’s voice on top of their own dreamy lo-fi tracks. One of which is Timmies, a rising producer who first discovered Shiloh through the web of SoundCloud. He considers himself an “in the box producer” because he doesn’t use outboard equipment to make music. His album Passion & Confusion features Shiloh’s voice throughout each of the 5 songs and is perhaps the cleanest mix out there, allowing the vocals to remain the star of the show.
Timmies reveals to me his simple formula for identifying special music – “when I can listen to it on repeat for several days straight, it’s good shit”. Fair enough. Repetition without exhaustion is typically a good indication of exceptional art. It’s why songs like Happy by Pharrell hit you like ecstasy at first, but after the tenth play you want to stick your head in a microwave. Despite having no full length songs, Shiloh offers something more. “I feel a great deal of emotion in Shiloh’s performance” Timmies admits. Maybe that’s the key ingredient. Emotion. In May 2015, Shiloh posted text on Instagram stating “I’m not a look, I’m a feeling”. It’s some of the only non-lyrical language they have put out into the world. Perhaps a small reminder to drop the boy/girl discourse and focus on how the music makes you feel. For artists with a passion to create but no story to tell, adding Shiloh samples injects real emotion into their tracks. Even tortured artists with endless stories to tell can’t help but gravitate to Shiloh. Most notably is alternative rapper, XXXTENTACION, whose death left the hip-hop world stunned.
On August 25th of 2017, XXXTENTACION (or X, as his fans refer to him) released his breakout album 17. He samples Shiloh vocals on 3 tracks, including the album’s highest charted song, Jocelyn Flores. The sampled vocals are old sound bites from Vine and Instagram, suggesting Shiloh didn’t collaborate with X on this project. Depression is the album’s overall theme (and it quickly became X’s entire persona); however, the link between the two has led many conspiracists to spread the idea that Shiloh’s absence is suicide related. Absence aside, it’s a claim that has no real evidence. These theories seem to stem from our fixation with the unknown and our unwillingness to accept it. We would rather fabricate an explanation than admit there isn’t one. With Shiloh, maybe there isn’t one.
“A voice that fell from heaven
and essentially landed in public domain”
For most artists, accumulating over 28 million loops on Vine is a paved path to stardom. For most artists, gathering over 300 thousand followers on Instagram would be enough to, at the very least, post a sponsored ad or two. And for most artists, being prominently featured on XXXTENTACION’s breakout album would be the opportunity of a lifetime. But that’s just most artists. Even after X’s tragic death, Shiloh fans anxiously awaited some form of acknowledgement – a statement, a post, even a simple frown emoji would at least assure the public they are alive and well. Alas, none of this temptation could lure Shiloh Dynasty into the limelight.
Unfortunately, I can’t conclude with any answers. So instead I will try to makes sense of something that seemingly has no interest in being sensical. Maybe we need to take a step backwards and ask ourselves – what are we searching for when we turn to music? Well for listeners, it’s often used as a bridge from one emotion to another. It’s that I want to feel something else right now escapism. But for an artist, it’s a little more complex. Shiloh released art into the world and one of two things happened: they found what they were looking for… or realized they never would. Either way, we have no choice but to reconcile with the decision.
For now, we continue to adore the echoes of her past and hold faith that if Shiloh truly gives a f*ck about us, they’ll one day resurface.
*2023 update – still nothing.