Braille "Kept Safe Collection" (Radiant Sun Vinyl - 100 Copies)

Limited To 100 Copies Pressed on Transparent Orange Vinyl.

Portland, Oregon’s Bryan “Braille” Winchester has poured out his life in nearly every facet of hip-hop music.  With 13 albums under his belt as a vocalist and countless more as a producer, engineer, and A&R - he was highly prolific for the first 15 years of the 2000s.  Braille’s lyrics have always been personal and vulnerable while imparting his knowledge and relatability to the listener.  This can be heard on his solo albums, as well as the albums he made as a member of two groups, Lightheaded and Beautiful Eulogy.  As we approach 2025, Braille has compiled a “Best Of” collection, distilling from his catalog the essence of his sound and the central theme he’s written about: persevering through hardship by God’s grace.

Backstory: Braille grew up with parents who gave him the freedom to pursue his interests, and while this began with sports and other hobbies, in high school, he immersed himself in hip-hop music.  His “all-or-nothing” personality caused him to dive headfirst - absorbing all the different eras and sounds he could get his hands on.  After self-releasing his first tracks on cassette, his official debut album “Lifefirst: Half the Battle” came out in 1999.  “Music became an outlet,” Braille explains.  “Not holding in my thoughts and feelings but finding ways to express them.”  And that’s what he did, finding ways to match pathos-driven lyrics over diverse soundscapes through the various seasons of life.

When all is said and done, Braille wants the listener to walk away with a sense of understanding, “One of my goals in writing songs is to help someone feel understood or to help them understand,” Braille says.  “Whether describing an emotion or experience, relating with God or exalting Christ, I make music from the heart to help the mind understand.”  This statement resonates passionately throughout his discography, which includes collaborations with Lecrae, Kings Kaleidoscope, Jackie Hill Perry, !llmind, 9th Wonder, and many more, and performing as the opening act for legacy artists such as James Brown and De La Soul.  As we head deeper into 2025, Braille is set to release the “Kept Safe Collection” (best of), encapsulating over 20 years of prolific, soul-stirring work that serves as both a re-introduction to new listeners and a celebration for those who have walked on this journey with the Portland artist.  With all of this also comes the announcement that Braille has even more NEW MUSIC on the way.

Bryan currently lives in Milwaukie, OR, with his wife Deva and their 3 children, and has spent the last 7 years serving as a pastor to Saving Grace Church.