How To Listen in a World of Noise

From AI to endless algorithmic loops, the music industry is oversaturated. But what happens if audio can be more than a product sold to us – what new sonic worlds might we discover? In a richly textured dialogue between sound and words, musician, curator, theorist and former Somerset House Studios resident DeForrest Brown Jr. reflects on how we can reimagine making and listening to music.

From alternative modes of listening to live performance as a form of time travel, the Black political economy of music and the platform conditions of distribution, musician, curator, theorist and former Somerset House Studios resident DeForrest Brown Jr. wants to discover new ways of relating to audio. In a world of noise and an oversaturated music industry, what new worlds might we discover if we reimagine how we make and listen to music?

In this sonic essay for The Process, DeForrest reveals some of the ideas generated from his one-month residency at Somerset House Studios in 2025. Drawing on his research project, Rhythmanalytics, where he explores electronic music at the end of the music industry, DeForrest gives insight into his multi-media project, Synoptic Audio.

In a richly textured dialogue between sound and words, DeForrest shares his experience of returning to Somerset House Studios to perform live as part of Assembly 2026 programme.

The Process is an artist-led podcast series, developed by Somerset House, which explores the new ideas, big questions and surprising tangents which emerge from the artistic process.

Drawing on the creative community both on site at Somerset House and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows artists as they explore one idea they’re currently pursuing, to see where it ends up. From financial astrology to the black renaissance, quantum listening to the transformative powers of cute, along the way we hear from a cross-section of thinkers who have inspired them to help shape where it might go next.