Tag: Conscious

Slippery Trashmouf – What the Fuck [Interview]

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  • Describe your sound in three words

From The Underpasses

  • Existential nihilism, drug dependency. Is rap one of the best forms of self therapy?

Nah, honestly the best form of therapy for me has been various meditative/mental exercises? Rap has been a very good way to vent my problems and i suppose elements of it like gigs and making music with friends are very therapuetic. Honestly i’m still tryna find a therapist/get some medication and im still chain smoking spliffs, though i will say it definitely helped me stop doing psychedelics at every available opportunity. Life’s becoming a bit of a trip innit.

  • How do you relate to the Scotland music scene?

It’s a love/hate relationship honestly.
There’s a lot of garbage, there’s a lot of people who think that because they’ve had a rough background they deserve more attention despite not having the skills/actual mindset to achieve it.
I think that focusing too much on the ‘scottish’ element can really stop your reach, my second largest listener base according to spotify artists is london. Its less about relating to the scene and more about finding individuals that you relate to/relate with you I guess.

  • Favorite hip hop album of the past decade?

Uuuhh damn okay that’s a hard one tbh.
The livi boy in me says LIV 3 by LIV (check it on bandcamp its a love letter to Scotland’s rap scene) cause it was the first tape i was ever on that wasn’t mine and my first time really working properly with other artists, Spawn Zero and Barz Fury (whos last solo albums both also could have taken that spot)

On a non hometeam vibe, Babau by Tzusan, or maybe idk CLBRKS last double tape? Sniff also just dropped a banger? I don’t really listen to a lot of music tbh aha.

  • Do you have an artist that you would describe as a hidden gem that we should know about?

Okay i’m definitely cheating but Sleep’s Cousin and Spacepope kinda sound the same vocally so i have a theory they’re the same person. Kaput by Sleep’s Cousin pulls me outta panic attacks, Celladwella by Spacepope makes me wanna cause em to other people.

  • This is your first E.P. Any future plans?

Goddamn do I?

Nah I do aha, lots actually:Postulated Substance Abuse is my next tape, just waiting on final masters from Barz who’s also featuring along with Spawn and entirely produced by Hypnokid (its kinda lofi kinda meditative kinda acidrap)
Theres a collab tape with Dimwitted and Franky coming together, follow @speaksleazy on Instagram cause i cant really say much right now its all in beta phases but we are working on something that will hopefully help bridge the gap between ‘scottish hiphop’ and the ‘uk hiphop scene’ cause somebody bloody has to.

Other than that I’ve just dropped three singles and a feature on Mackenzies last album and one on Spacepope’s last e.p. too, Spawn says i did a feature for his next tape but apparently i was out my face cause i cant remember recording it at all but he says its good and i trust him.

  • Favorite music related film?

Uuuuhhh… I don’t really watch films tbh.
Can I just say the What The Fuck music video on youtube cause all i have in my noggin as far as films go is The Bad Batch and Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas and i was waaaay too baked to remember the soundtracks (except white rabbit in the bath obvs)

Thank you!

Follow Slippery Trashmouf
Facebook/Instagram



Israel Nke – Dream State [Interview]

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  • Describe your sound in three words

Soulful, storytelling, rap.

  • Is there a happy memory from your prison experience you would like to share with us?

The fact that i was able to do an exam( A Level Maths) and got an A grade, I was stoked because i put the work in then got the results.

  • What are the top three things that need to change in prison?

The food, more intense Education and More visiting time.

  • Best Hip Hop album ever?

Get rich or die trying

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer?

Kendrick Lamar, Jcole and am not sure

  • Do you have an artist that you would describe as a hidden gem that we should know about?

Sorry not sure

  • What would you change in the music industry?

Sexualisation and racism.

  • Any future plans? 

My future plan is to use my sound to wave.

Follow Israel Nke
Website/Instagram/Facebook/Twitter


Samad Savage – Don’t [Interview]

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  • Please Introduce yourself

SKOODWIDIT, I’m Samad Savage, repping Montclair, Jersey.

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Impactful, thought-provoking and energetic

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

Lupe Fiasco, Big Pun and Chuck Sutton

  • Best Hip Hop album ever

The Cool

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist

Rapsody

  • Future plans

I plan on changing the world or sparking the mind that does

Follow Samad Savage
Instagram

Kontent – Peach Flavored Vodka [Interview]

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Describe your sound in three words

Refreshing, innovative, fusion

As a bass player, would it be safe to assume that your tracks start always with the bass line? Tell us a few things about your creative process.

No, I unfortunately left my bass back home in Italy, therefore here in LA I can’t do that yet. Usually my tracks start more with keys, since that is my main instrument but it can also start with drums or with any exciting sample. “Peach Flavored Vodka” is actually the first song I started with a bassline but I’ll definitely do that more in the future.

Since I’m a producer, I love to start producing and writing at the same time. The distinction between the two often blurs for me, since production gives me endless possibilities of where a song can go. Other times I write piano songs and then turn those into hip hop beats. All the first songs I wrote were mainly piano songs.

Your video describes your 15-year-old past self. What advice would you give to your younger self?

Enjoy every moment while it lastsand embrace your age.

Favorite rapper, lyricist and producer?

Kanye West (both)

Moving from South Tyrol to Berlin and then to LA, which are the main differences between these places and what do they have in common?

South Tyrol stands basically for small town / countryside vibes. It is very quiet, peaceful, people are very friendly but there’s not really an artistic open-mindedness. The mountains, even though they’re beautiful, unfortunately block people’s horizon.Berlin and LA, on the other hand, are major cities where you can be whoever you want to be. Berlin just has the downside that its music business is still limited in its variety and you won’t find enough support to sustain your career in every genre you’d like to create.In LA you have the wholemusic business and that’s why it became my current home.Aside from artistic freedom, it is also the center of the music industry, which inspires you to keep pushing because you know there arepossibilities forsustaining your career.

Do you have an artist that you would describe as a hidden gem that we should know about?

Audrey Nuna

Favorite music related film?

Inside Llewyn Davis

Any future plans?

Becoming successful in the industry, either as an artist or as a producer.

Thank you!

Follow Kontent
Website/Facebook/Instagram

T H R O N E x Infatuation – Checks Like Degrassi [Interview]

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  • Please Introduce yourself

We are T H R O N E. Hip Hop duo and real life couple of YVHIKV and Hayatheus.

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Freeform. Thoughtful. Genre-bent.

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

Hayatheus: Certainly MF DOOM and Madlib.

YVHIKV: Noname was probably the latest addition to my favorite rapper list.

  • Best Hip Hop album ever

Hayatheus: Probably Good Kid, M.A.A.D City by Kendrick

YVHIKV: Channel Orange by Frank Ocean.

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist

Hayatheus: Right now for me it’s Adé Hakim. His music is incredible.

YVHIKV: Kaiit from Australia. She’s jazz and soul. 

  • Future plans

Keep developing our craft, keep releasing, get as good as we can and then get better. Oh and move to Japan and do shows in little local shops. 

T H R O N E Instagram
Infatuation Instagram

Slow Pineapple – Mosh Pit [Interview]

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  • Please introduce yourself

We are Tyler Beans and Rob Higgins of Slow Pineapple. Here to blow speakers and cause noise complaints

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Against The Grain

  • You incorporate hip hop elements in your music. What is your creative process like?

Turn on the speakers and amps and start making noise! Let it come naturally!

  • Favorite album ever?

Nomeansno – The Peoples Choice
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Blood Sugar Sex Magik

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist?

The Hip-Hop Duo, RoeShamBeaux. We are honored to have their vocalist jaythehomie on our track ‘Mosh Pit’

  • What is your favorite fruit?

Pineapple

  • What is the best music related film you’ve ever seen?

Definitely NOT “Yesterday” They just shat on a great premise. Disappointment!

  • Any future plans you want to share with us?

A new Slow Pineapple single coming everything month!

Follow Slow Pineapple
Instagram/Soundcloud

Shogun x B O Ḵ Ë – Culture [Interview]

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  • Please Introduce yourself

Im a Music Producer from Fife, Scotland. born Scott Russell Wilson Jr. & Been operating musically under the Alias B O Ḵ Ë since late 2018. Music has been a beautiful way for me too convey my emotions over the years and I look too continue my work on into the foreseeable future & I have faith someday it will give me a big enough platform too really impact humanity in positive way and push us back in the right direction as a species.

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Pushing The Boundaries.

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

Favourite Rapper right now has to be Slowthai. That man is seriously on a whole other level! Even though he’s only dropped one official album at this point I can feel the levels of evolution & introspection going on and I honestly live for that shit.

Favourite Lyricist right now has to be Shogun. The way he attacks a beat with his own unique approach will be remembered for years to come, especially up here in Scotland. Props to him for all he’s doing for the Scottish scene right now too. It’s been a blessings being a part of it & I look forward to the future endeavours with Sho.

Favourite Producer is Moby. These where all really tough to just pick one for each but I feel like Moby’s been there since the very start of my love for music & even still too this day his album releases never fail to leave me in awe. It’s honestly probably where my love for making full length albums rather than singles came from & his music also pushed me more in the direction of trying to portray some sort of emotion or deep routed message rather than just go with whatever’s currently poppin’ – so I’m forever in debt to Moby for that reason & many more.

  • Best Hip Hop album ever

Again, It’s hard to choose the best hip-hop album of all time really but for me personally the one I’m most attached to on a spiritual level would have to be ‘Ready To Die’ by The Notorious B.I.G – The whole album is just complete raw realness to it’s core right from the get go & I love that. All the beats are legendary, the hooks are timeless, all the menacing bars & flows throughout just take me to another realm and have done since a young age. I always looked up to the rappers like Pac, BIG & any other rapper coming with something uniquely theirs & real.

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist

Honestly any hidden gem Artists I come across I take down the names & add them to the bucket-list of talented artists I would love to work with in near the future and in recent times I’ve been fortunate enough to mark off some of them names.

I would say a definite Hidden Gem Artist to watch would be MONROE (MONRO£ on Spotify) from Telford, England (UK). Bubbling up a lot of hype round his ends & for good reason, he comes with it every time and his bars & melodies just seem to be getting better & better. 100% someone to watch in the UK scene and I look forward to sharing some of the music We’ve got coming.

  • Future plans

As far as the future goes, I’m not entirely sure even where to start. Basically I have an Album I’ve been working on all year & In the process of getting this as good as it deserves to be I’ve ended up with way more music than I can even release.

So for now let’s just keep it one big exciting moment in time then we’ll focus on what’s next when it gets here.

‘Natures Memories’ Drops before the year is done. (2020)

In my mind it’s the Biggest album coming out of Scotland in 2020 so I genuinely cannot wait too share it with you guys, then move forward onto the next one like it’s nothing.

Plenty more to come that’s for sure – I just need to Stay Ready & Trust the process.

  • Thank you!

Follow B O Ḵ Ë
Facebook/Instagram/Twitter

Blaze Trackz – Gang Gang [Interview]

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  • Please Introduce yourself

My name is David Jordan Larkins. A lot of my friends call me Davi Jordan, and musically, I go by Blaze Trackz. I am a hip hop artist, composer, producer and engineer. I was raised in Newburgh, NY (a suburb outside of NYC), and currently reside in North Hollywood, California. I have had a hell of a life, and could talk about it for hours. Some good, some bad, but it has all helped me to find myself, and a path of living and thinking that I endorse and try to spread through the music I do. I consider the music that I do as “Virtue Rap”- a style that pushes forth support of fellow man, mutual respect, and a sense of responsibility in the community and household. Also, it has a turn toward fiscal awareness and responsibility. A brief of my life with highlights is that I dealt heavily in illegal activities at one point, have been married and divorced, have been homeless for a set of time, achieved a bachelor’s degree from a major university, and have found the Lord Jesus Christ and love in my current relationship with my fiance, Whitney. Wow. Listing that off was a journey for me in itself. Nonetheless, a lot has happened and I’m proud to say that it has helped me grow as a man. I try to push the idea of love and growth in my music.

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Three words to describe my sound are altruistic, poetic, and analytical.

Altruistic because, at the core of the music I do, I do put forward care about how I can affect those who listen to my music. Lyrically, I enter the songwriting process asking questions of who my audience is, what their needs are, and how I can relate. Music is a conversation, so without a 2 way street, there isn’t much connection.

Poetic because I love words. Finding the right ones to express the right thing, in the most concise manner. Sometimes I can be long-winded, so maybe cogency is not the strong point for me, but my aim is to cut through. Metaphors that nurture relatability are important for me.

Analytical because I am a producer and composer, too. I enter the engineering side of things thinking about tempo, tone, and mood so I can give my fans the best experience possible when listening. I have an upcoming record, FAITH. “Gang Gang” is a cut off of that project. I hope listeners can hear the story that I am trying to tell and how I intertwine the music together to try by best to draw on big picture.

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

Favorites are difficult, because art is so subjective. When naming a favorite, what can I base things on? As a rapper, if I base it off of passion, Tupac Shukar. but if I base it off of overall longevity and success, Jay-Z. Last, if I base it off of lyricism, I’d have to go with J. Cole. But there are so many great artists out there, I could go on for days on my influences and why each one is amazing. My favorite producer is Timbaland. He has always broken the mold, and I am very influenced by his sound when I produce.

  • Best Hip Hop album ever

For me, the best Hip Hop album ever is “Get Rich Or Die Trying”, by 50 Cent. The cohesivity of that project is breathtaking.

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist

One artist I love to listen to, a newer artist, is Reason off of the TDE imprint. That would be a Hidden Gem Artist, for sure. Lyrically, he’s dope. If you haven’t taken a listen, I would recommend,100%. That’s for rap. As a producer, and for any composers out there, if you make beats or sample or anything, listen to Labi Saffre, Donny Hathaway, and anything under the Jazz music genre. I promise it will add to your sound immensely.

  • Future plans

After releasing the “Gang Gang” record (dropping 11/1/20), which is sort of a commentary on the socioeconomic environment we live in today, I am planning on releasing my new record, “FAITH: For Anyone Interested To Hear”. Working through this now, but most of it is done. “FAITH” is around 14 tracks, not sure if it will stay that way, but it is fully produced, written and recorded by me. This project is and speaks to a slew of topics including personal relationships and how to navigate through insecurity and grow. It also speaks to my actual faith in Christianity, values as a man, and transformation into a more mature mindset. The content I would say is a bit conscious, but this is not a traditionally conscious rap record as the composition and feel is more mainstream.

I hope that following the entire COVID pandemic, when that is all over, I can get in some solid performances. I just really want my music to reach as many people as possible, so that is the goal. Pushing hard on connecting with my people via social media in the meantime, IG, Twitter, TikTok, all of it. Just trying to continue to connect and help others through their lives with my art.

Follow Blaze Trackz
Instagram/Website

Soundaze – phone me / vote.gov [Interview]

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  • Please Introduce yourself

Hello we’re ‘Soundaze’, an alternative experimental hip hop band based in Los Angeles California. Made up of three members, two vocalists (Daywu Xin and Love, Pax) and a producer (Redbeard). From Los Angeles to Toronto. We consistently collaborate with a flurry of artists in our creative family/network too. A wide net family of visual artists, musicians, designers and directors that we hold close. 

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Eclectic, Emotive, Vibey

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

Love, Pax:

My favorite rapper of all time is Murs. I love the way he’s able to weave such incredible storytelling into his verses, like a paintbrush on canvas, you can really “see” what he’s saying on the song. My favorite lyricist has gotta be DayWu though. One of the main reasons I wanted to start writing songs with him. And you can probably guess my personal favorite producer based on that too – Redbeard. I really like Greaf as a producer though as well.

Redbeard:

Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

-Gotta say Murs as well, grew up listening to him with pax. Rip mac miller as well. Lots of producers come to mind, but jake one has gotta be one of my favorites. 

DayWu Xin:

So many favorite mc’s but my go to answer is Nas. The elegance and brilliance in his rhyme schemes and his profound sense of clarity on the world’s issues. That mastery of social psychology is something that I strive to present in my work. Lyrically gotta throw love back at Love, Pax. There’s an education, cleverness and intelligence in his words that conjures up some serious original ideas. My list can go on but we only have so much time. Producer I love Kaytranada. Fellow Canadian but masterful in his range and I simply just get inspired by his instrumentation. Part of why I got back into music. 

  • Best Hip Hop album ever

Love, Pax: 

This is obviously one of the hardest questions ever to even attempt to answer, and truthfully I don’t have a favorite. I don’t want to cop out though so I’m gonna go with “The Infamous” by Mobb Deep. It was the first album that I learned the lyrics to front to back. 

Redbeard: 

Tough to choose, gonna go with stankonia by Outkast. The black album by Jay Z was one of the first albums my mom ever bought me so that ones high on my list.

DayWu Xin: 

Favorite hip hop album is Illmatic by Nas

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist

Love, Pax: Right now that’s between two female MC’s that I really love, Wynne and Biig Piig

Redbeard: Soundaze I think his name is, check that guy out.

Daywu Xin: There’s a mellow rock band based in Autralia called MTNS and they make great chill music. And those guys over at Soundaze are putting their hearts into some of the best music out there.

  • Future plans

We are dropping a 16 track project called ‘Love, Vote & Mutiny’ at the end of the month. Videos are also dropping. We plan to keep getting our music out there. A couple of us dabble in film and television too and we’ve got some exciting new movies and tv show appearances coming out. 

Follow Soundaze
Instagram/Soundcloud

Ratedare – Fare You Ready [Interview]

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  • Please Introduce yourself

My name is RATEDARE, I am a southern rapper/producer and sometimes singer located at Dallas. I’ve been producing for 5 years but been involved with music since I was 6. I love many genres of music. You can catch me bumping A7X, AC/DC, and Foo Fighters one day, then the next bumping Pac, Q-tip, and Freddie Gibbs.

  • Describe your sound in 3 words

Formless, creative, unique

  • Favourite rapper, lyricist and producer

Favorite rapper is Dylon(Dave Chappelle joke), but for real it’s Kendrick Lamar. He’s got too many flows. Favorite lyricist is Andre 3000. Favorite producer is J-Dilla. He’s crazy with samples!

  • Best Hip Hop album ever

3 way tie Kids See Ghost, To Pimp a Butterfly, and 17

  • Top Hidden Gem Artist

If not myself my homeboy XXPLICIT. He’s a cold killer on the mic.

  • Future plans

I’m working on a Project named FNORD. My new song Fare You Ready, (pronounced are you ready, the f is silent) is gonna be on the project. Besides that I’m trying build my legacy in this music industry. Anyone who listened to my music thank you. To all my fans stay tuned, love y’all!!

Follow Ratedare
Instagram/Youtube