TALK TO ME NICE: Hype

INTERVIEW INNOCENT? PHOTOGRAPH @SOANDSOFILMS

VALIDATED: Born in Cameroon, African and raised in Quebec, Canada, what’s your earliest memory of Hip Hop culture?

HYPE: My earliest memory of Hip Hop culture was when I was in Cameroon as a young boy and I remember hearing the song “Dilemma” by Nelly and Kelly Rowland. I also remember hearing that song later on in life and remembering that I had heard a song before and it was a pretty popular song where I was from and within that community and so that was my first vivid memory of Hip Hop culture. Then when I moved to Canada and I was growing up in that environment, there was more exposure to Hip Hop culture especially to the French rap scene through artists like Sefyu and others who were very big at the time in Canada. Then later on around 2009 and 2010 I began to get exposed to Drake and that was the first time that I found myself being fully interested and immersed in Hip Hop culture. I remember at that time the song “Over” by Drake had just come out and I had fully memorized that track and was rapping it almost every day. So by the time I got to the United States in July 2010 I can say that that was my first favorite Hip Hop song and I knew it word for word and I would rap it almost all the time, so for me, those two experiences were the earliest recollections that I have of being exposed to Hip Hop music, and Hip Hop culture.

VALIDATED: Prior to relocating to Georgia you lived in Africa and Canada, what influence have these different cultures had on you and the music you create?

HYPE: They’ve had very big influences on the music that I create, and how I approach music. I take a lot of influence from the traditional styles of music that come out of places like Cameroon and also Nigeria, which is a neighboring country. A lot of our traditional music is heavily based in drum rhythms, and I am a big fan of the drum rhythms that are used in Hip Hop music. To me, that is my favorite part of Hip Hop, the beats. I am very drawn to those rhythms, and also that percussion and the bass. So when I am creating my music, I take a lot of influence from the traditional African music that I grew up on, especially the drums and I incorporate that into how I produce my music or the type of instrumentals that I prefer to rap over. I think that living in Canada as well, exposed me to a variety of different cultures and people of all backgrounds and so for me that opened up my mind to being accepting of and willing to learn a lot of different things and things that may not be as familiar to me in a cultural setting. So, taking all of that in, I use that experience to be open to incorporating different sounds, different techniques and different kinds of cultural influences sample wise into the music that I create, especially as a producer. As far as the content of my music, I think that having such a rich experience with so many different cultural backgrounds and influences has given me a lot to write about, and has given me an interesting perspective that I could bring to the table and offer to Hip Hop.

VALIDATED: You’re a music producer and Hip Hop artist, which did you do first and how did one lead to you doing the other?

HYPE: So I was a Hip Hop artist first. My first love was always writing. I always enjoyed writing poetry, papers and stories, and once I fell in love with Hip Hop for me, that naturally transitioned into writing rap music. So when I started recording music at the age of 14, I was usually using YouTube beats at the time. And a lot of the selections I was making in instrumentals were influenced by the popular sound of music at the time, but I quickly found that that sound of music was not what felt natural to me, and did not feel genuine. So I wanted to create my own sound by first studying the music that I actually enjoyed listening to and then trying to not necessarily re-create but to try to emulate the vibe and the atmosphere that I got from the Hip Hop that I enjoyed, and to also make it feel natural and genuine to who I am as a person. So, at around the age of 16, I decided to make a change in the sound that I was creating, and in order to do that I felt the best way for me to move forward was to go ahead and start making my own beats. So the writing and the artist aspect came first and then I became a producer after that.

VALIDATED: If you had to choose, would you rather be a successful music producer or Hip Hop artist? 

HYPE: if I absolutely had to choose, I would have to say I want to be a successful music producer. And I say that, because although I really enjoy being an artist, I also really enjoy being the backbone of other artists' projects. I feel that I have more to offer as a producer to other artists, because I can create a type of input that I cannot do for myself. It is hard as an artist and a producer at the same time to have the most well-rounded input that you can have because you’re only seeing things from your perspective. So that is why I usually always allow multiple people to hear my music before it is released so that I can get a well rounded set of ears on my music and get different types of input so that people can maybe hear something that I don’t hear or can maybe offer up an idea that I may not have thought of. So I feel that as a producer, it gives me the opportunity to be outside of that artist bubble, and to be able to draw from many different sources of inspiration for someone else, and be able to push them or direct them in a way that I would not be able to do for myself. I also think that as a producer, you are able to create a bigger community for yourself, because you have more to offer to the artist than just a feature, for example. And if I was a producer, for other artists, I want to be more than just a beat maker, but I want to be fully involved from top to bottom in the process of creating the product that they are looking to release to the public so I want to be fully involved in a creative manner from beginning to end and not just be someone who supplies a beat and never gives input again from that point. I also think I would prefer to be a successful producer over an artist because I also love to work with different genres of artists such as R&B, and Soul, who I am very envious of because I do not have a singing voice, but I feel that I am a strong songwriter, and a strong producer who could contribute in a very productive way to these artists process and projects.

VALIDATED: Earlier this year you dropped your debut album “Talk To Me Nice”, how long was the creative process from start to finish? What’s been the response to the project?

HYPE: the creative process for the album from top to bottom was about three years. I started the album in 2019 and finished it in 2022. The album went through many different transformations just as I was going through many different things in real life. So I wanted the final product to reflect my personal transformation as much as realistically possible. So at the end the album was a journal of my journey through those three years of creating it and everything that I went through and all the self discovery that I made in that process. Overall, the response to the project has been positive and has created a lot of buzz around what I have coming next. I think that people were overall pleased and surprised, and also would say that I exceeded their expectations for what I had to offer with this debut album. So I have to say that I am pleased with the reception of the album, and that it has motivated me to continue to create and make even better projects in the future.

VALIDATED: What’s your favorite record of the project and why?

HYPE: My favorite record on the album is “Hey Ma“ because this record really forced me to not just be a lyricist, but to be a songwriter, and to be able to create a well rounded song that could still fit the overall vibe of the album and that stick out like a sore thumb. I also really love this record, because the production of the record which I did, is not my typical kind of production, and so this record was really where I pushed myself as an artist, and as a producer, to create a kind of record that I’ve always wanted to create, and was finally able to materialize it by proving to myself that I could do other styles and could really write and create and produce a song versus just a lyrically heavy rap record. I am also proud of this record because the hook is a singing hook which features my vocals, but also features vocals from Lu Alex, but the hook was written by me. So for me to be able to write that kind of hook even though I may not have the voice to perform. It also showed me how good of a songwriter I can be.

VALIDATED: A few months ago you dropped the Deluxe Edition of “Talk To Me Nice” with several new records, what made you release a deluxe edition? 

HYPE: I released a deluxe edition of the album, because I just felt like I had more to offer within that time. And did not want to release a whole separate project. The deluxe edition tracks were the result of ideas that I had floating around during the creation of the album, but didn’t make the final cut of the original for several different reasons. Even then, there are a few other tracks that still did not make the final cut of the original or the deluxe. So for me, this was just a way to add to the story of the album and to make it feel a little more complete. Although I would say the original version was complete enough, the deluxe was a continuation of the story. The deluxe begins with a soundbite of DJ Beanz talking about how she felt when she heard my album and I just felt that that was an important part of the story and it had to be added on to the album so that we can kind of tell that part of the story. So the deluxe was sort of like a director's cut or added scenes in a movie that you see later on after the movie has already come out and you kind of get to see the vision in a more complete and total form.

VALIDATED: The record label Audio Freebase, what can you tell us about it?

HYPE: Audio Freebase is an imprint that I created with my producer, DJ Soul Chemist, and we created this label for the purpose of being able to have a centralized platform to push our ideas and our initiatives as artists . Audio Freebase is not a typical record label in the sense that we don’t have a core set of artists, but rather we want to executive produce projects and or singles for artists who need that service. We really enjoyed the process of executive producing my album and seeing how good of a job we did, we are now wanting to take that and apply that to other artist, and with that we will be able to release these albums that we do under the Audio Freebase imprint but the artist still keeps ownership of the records. So this is more of an at service platform for artists who are looking to put out projects and want to have our talents be involved in that process and so we are willing to do that for artists, and still do that for ourselves.

VALIDATED: In an effort to support other independent artists and music producers such as yourself you’ve also launched Audio Freebase Radio. What’s it like being the interviewer instead of the interviewee? 

HYPE: It is an interesting experience, but I don’t necessarily consider myself an interviewer, but just someone who is looking to create a sense of centralized community with underground and independent artists, so that we know that we are out there, and we are supporting each other in our journeys. So we use the platform as a launchpad for fostering that sense of community with others, and letting them know that we are here for them, and are going to support them throughout their journey. We understand what that journey is like because we are artists ourselves so for us this is more of a support system that we are trying to create and trying to push forward because we feel like Hip Hop media is not doing a good job of at that and a lot of Hip Hop artist nowadays only care about themselves and not about the culture and the community at large. And we feel that there is an importance to foster community amongst Hip Hop artists, and other upcoming artists because that is how we are going to create the best environment for our art to thrive.

VALIDATED: What is success in Hip Hop to you? 

HYPE: For me, success in Hip Hop is being able to impact the culture in a timeless manner. For example, I take a look at artists like Nas, groups like Wu-Tang, producers like DJ Premier, and many other examples of pioneers, who have had a long lasting impact on Hip Hop, and on global culture, since they made their debut in the genre. So for me, it is not about sales or about charts, or even about streams, but about the impact that I can have on the fan base, the community, and the artists that love this culture, and this art as much as I do. You can look at artists like MF DOOM, who is not the most wealthy, or most chart topping Hip Hop artist but he is nonetheless one of the most influential Hip Hop artist ever. So for me, it is about looking past the mainstream definition of success in the music industry, and focusing more on the impact on community, and on the genre itself.

VALIDATED: What’s next for Hype?

HYPE: I have a lot of different projects in the works, but overall I am not sure what is next. I am just seeing where the road takes me and hopefully it is a path that will allow me to continue making the kind of music that I enjoy. But in the foreseeable future, you will definitely be getting another Hype album very soon as well as some interesting collaborations. 

VALIDATED: Where can the readers follow and support you?

HYPE: The readers can find me on all social media @da_insanehype. From there you will be able to find the links to all of my streaming profiles, as well as my YouTube and as well as everything Audio Freebase related.