This was a labour of love. I initially wrote this song pre covid, however, with all that has happened in the past year, i felt like it was a message too strong not to complete.
ELMNT
The song was co-produced by Montreal’s Burton White & Nidal Eradi also known as Resort 46 in an apartment studio using live instruments.Scott Chancey of the Montreal Conservatory of Music added all the string arrangements to accompany the choir vocal stack in the chorus and outro, adding a much needed layer of somber soul to the song.Finally, Tatsuya Sato, mastered the song (The legend behind Kanye’s College Dropout, Jay-Z’s In My Lifetime).Sideways is available across all major platforms, powered by FREE.99 Records
You blend different genres in your music. Tell us a few things about your creative process.
I just like everything, i’m one of those people. I get excited by so many different types of sounds and emotions, I love all styles of music, everything has a place in my heart.
When I make a tune, i’m not thinking about fitting in a box or not, I just do what sounds good to me at the time, as cliche as that sounds.
How Important are political statements by music artists? Can music have an impact on politics?
Its important, but it doesn’t really have the same space as it once did, like in the 80s. That is because escapism dominates music, and people want to forget about their problems and enjoy it a lot of the time, fair enough really.
I think everything has its time and place, but we have been through so many cycles now, it’s easy to be another generic protest lyricist. Sometimes I just wanna rap about money and women.
Is Britain racist today?
Everywhere is racist at every time. Intolerance is another human trait, and crosses over a multitude of different scenarios. It’s not always so black and white, no pun intended.
What does hip hop symbolise in your opinion?
Im just that millennial old school rap head stuck in his ways. It means something real to me I guess. What it means now, depends on whos involved. Theres a lot of imposters out there selling an illusion to lost kids.
Do you have an artist that you would describe as a hidden gem that we should know about?
Make sure you check out Hak Baker, a real voice of the people.
One last thing we should know about you?
I really dont care anymore about success in music. I am doing things at my own pace and self funded it all and I am not bound to impressing anyone or any labels etc… and I finally feel artistically free.
Join the revolution guys, stop giving a fuck and enjoy making music like you did when you were young.
WTF is the head nodding feature single from St Christoph & Shaade’s brand new EP “Big Mood”. The Australian hip-hop duo features Melbourne electro-pop songstress Jade Alice in the moody, throwback hip hop tune that bolsters the sun-flecked, good-time vibes of the beginning of the collection; adding soul and their trademark funk to a relatable message. The track, featuring a hypnotic driving piano/ bassline and featuring a horn section that give an extra “exclamation”, explores the WTF moments from relationships that are better left in the rearview. It’s the kind of therapy that you can keep on replay.
You are heavily influenced by the American sound. But what makes UK Rap distinct?
Outside of the accent there’s actually not too much distinct about UK rap from American Rap. I would say maybe that your average UK Rap track is of a higher lyrical quality than the average American Rap track but otherwise there’s a lot of crossover between our music. That’s why these days we have Americans and Brits jumping on the same sorts of beats, especially in the Drill scene. That’s why UK Rap deserves more respect; it’s just as great as any other music out there in the top charts once you look past the accent.
What is the main topic of your lyrics?
It ALWAYS depends on what mood I’m in when I’m writing but I’d say at the moment my lyrics revolve a decent amount around bigging myself up. Being unapologetic about how dope I am and believing in my sauce. After all, how can I make others believe in me if I don’t believe in myself?!
What does hip hop symbolize in your opinion?
Hip Hop is far greater than just a genre of music, but a whole lifestyle and community across the entire the world. It’s a language we can communicate in, a tool of great expression, a method of release, a pleasure for our pain and a pain to our pleasure. Hip Hop is as deep as humanity itself and it symbolises exactly that: humanity.
Do you have an artist that you would describe as a hidden gem that we should know about?
Besides myself??? I would definitely have to recommend a singer called Kiing (@iamkiing). I was a legitimate fan of his before I reached out to him for a collab and thankfully he did it so we’ve got a song coming out soon that he absolutely DEMOLISHED! Nevertheless he’s got amazing music and I’m a real fan of his so definitely check his stuff out.
What would you change in the music industry?
Two things: being unafraid to show love/weakness and bringing back originality. In the UK especially it seems very rare for people to just show love to a dope artist, let alone artists bigging up other artists publicly. It’s also rare for artists to be vulnerable and let their emotions show so I wish people would do that more just like we did in Hip Hop back when we talked about the struggles we faced. Also these days so many artists share the same sound and it’s ANNOYING! Back in the day you could NEVER confuse 50 Cent, Fat Joe, Ludacris, Ja Rule, DMX, The Game, Jay-Z, Fabolous, Eminem, Busta Rhymes, etc because they had such iconic and identifiable sounds. Nowadays people find a sound and jump on the wave, which kills creativity and individual identity. Part of why I struggle to describe who I sound like or what my sound is like is because I sound like myself, and I love that about myself. I wish other artists would do the same.
One last thing we should know about you?
No matter what I just want to express how much love and gratitude I have for each and every person who genuinely likes me and my music. Of course I’ve got big dreams but it all starts from the ground up and I want everyone to know my appreciation runs deep for you if you take even a fraction of your time to come rock with me. From the bottom of my heart, thank you and I hope you look forward to this journey we’re going on.
MrZnote began his hip-hop career at the age of 16 in the suburbs of Philadelphia after his older brother passed away. He usedmusic as a way to cope with the loss of his brother. MrZnote has performed at small venues in and around the Philadelphia area including: The Fire, 5 Star, The Grape Street, RedSky, Coast to Coast Philadelphia, and The Pyramid Club in NYC. MrZnote has performed with DJ Q-Ball of the BloodhoundGang, and was on BKFC 10 (Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship) Pay Per View during Travis “The Animal” Thompson’s walkout and victory.
“I’m too damn handsome not to dance, but I’m too fast for romance. Drop the pants.”
New wave hip-hop artist Sophiegrophy follows her genre bending debut EP, “BOLD” with new single “Drehpehs”. Returning to her raw roots with a hand from producers Eric Boavida & Jia Lih, “Drehpehs” finds the Nigerian born, New Zealand raised artist hold court on a hard hitting banger that serves notice to fake culture warriors and those that would undermine the confidence in her own unique creative vision. The video shot inside Melbourne’s heritage listed Palais Theatre, centres on the concept of performer versus viewer in the digital age – Sophiegrophy playing the Phantom in her own Hip Hop Opera.
Far I just released The First Noble Truth, which is the first project of his quadrilogy called “The Four Noble Truths”.
It did not take Far I a long time to finish this project. Even though the man has 30 years of rhyming on beats, he has proven that it’s not quite the time to hang up the mic yet. While the world is struck with Rona, Far I has been abusing his pen. Teaming up with some of the hardest producers the net has to offer. This is how Far I built with “The First Noble Truth”.
The message on the album is quite clear; there is suffering! With years of experience in Buddhism and meditation, Far I has set out to convert the wisdom of Buddhism into Hip Hop music. In a very distinctive and original manner, the rapper speaks on painful subjects without hesitation. If the listener is sharp enough, you will pick up on ancient wisdom that’s been proven for millennia.
You blend different genres in your music. Tell us a few things about your creative process
(ZUU) Something interesting about our forthcoming E.P. is that three of the four tracks are written totally on an Electribe Sampler 2. Its a really janky & inexpensive piece of equipment. It has a lofi kind of vibe and often glitches quite a fair bit which makes the audio characterful. Anyone who owns one of these machines could recreate the sounds on our E.P. quite easily. I liked blending this sampler with my accoustic drum kit. I feel a lot of hiphop & pop is just pure samples these days. I prefer to use mics and actually capture something unique in a time and in a space. It might not have the ‘fidelity’ of some super produced drum kit out of Abbey Road but our music allows for the blend of the raw and polished sounds. We’re not looking to compete sonically with anyone.
Unsigned, unmanaged & completely independent, you managed to sync your music to a national TV advert. What advice would you give to young artists who want to follow your success path?
(ZUU) TALK TO EVERYONE. Its the key to life. Its said over and over in interviews to the point where it has become meaningless, but its true! Networking is a tried and tested means to success. The amount of opportunites which have opened up to Johnny and myself purely because we know a tonne of people in the music industry is insane. You have to emerse & surround yourself with people in all areas of music. Just enjoy connecting with people. Don’t go into these interactions focussing on how you might beneifit. That is disingenuous and people will see you coming from a mile away. Be genuine and take honest interest in what they are doing. If they are in the music industry conversing with them is your number one tool to moving your career forward.
Which is your most personal and honest lyric?
(JV) I haven’t written my most honest personal lyric yet.
What would you change in the music industry?
(ZUU) I would change the way streaming revenue works. I think blockchain technology is going to improve streaming income for artists in the future. I’ll give you an example… Spotify currently pays £0.0031 per stream. Say the average person streams 20 tracks per day. That equals around 500 streams per month. 500 x £0.0031 = £1.55
This means that per month, only £1.55 of your £9.99 subscription is going towards paying the artists. £8.44 is going directly to Spotify.
Imagine a streaming service where you only paid for the tracks you streamed? You could double the amount of streaming royalties artists would get & still give the end listener a 70% discount on their monthly bill. I think someone will build a decentralised music streaming service on one of the blockchains soon and this will become a reality. Who knows… maybe I’ll go and do it!
What is the most useless talent you have?
(JV) my most useless talent is doing nothing
One last thing we should know about you?
(JV) I’ve been in a house fire that burned up my first solo album back in 2005, I lost my 2nd solo album in a flood. Come hell and high water we are now bringing our your JV/ZUU project.
My lyrics usually are about overcoming a struggle, whether it be getting over an abusive relationship, poverty or police brutality.
How Important are political statements by music artists? Can music have an impact on politics?
Music is about expression and when an artist state their political preference, I feel its the same as the artist releasing new music. If you have the ability to vote, you should have the ability to speak on politics.
What would you change in the music industry?
I would change how playlists are regulated. I believe all playlists should be verified that no bots are responsible for plays and make it so just not anyone is not allow to have a public playlist.
Do you have an artist that you would describe as a hidden gem that we should know about?
Gold Frames On Brown Skin
What was the best film you have watched during the quarantine?
Godzilla Vs. Kong. I can’t wait for the new “Mortal Kombat” to come out.
One last thing we should know about you?
I love laughing and being happy. Anyone or anything that brings a smile to my face, I am in your debt.
HipHop Paranoia 