Q&A With New Orleans Rising Hip Hop Artist Somnэa
Somnэa! Much respect to being a fresh talented new MC in the Hip Hop game! We understand that “Telepathy” is your debut single! So how long have you be rapping and producing? Or rather how long have you been planning on rapping? How old are you?
I’ve been, rapping and producing for about a year, but I’ve only recently started releasing music. I never really planned on rapping because I was into metal music for the longest time, however rapping seemed to come naturally when I picked it up about a year ago. I’m turning 22 on the 9th.
Let us tell you, you have a long road ahead of you!!! Are you ready to commit to this Hip Hop business FULL-TIME, or is this somewhat of a part-time rapping career? Everyone has a different story, but what will yours be?
I’ve been committed to music since I was 9, so I think it’s safe to say I plan on sticking with this full-time. I feel like a life without music would be a dull one and I want to connect with people who feel the same.
Do you remember the exact day when you woke up and told yourself “I want to become an MC”?? What step did you take next soon after that thought?
I can’t say I remember the exact day I woke up and decided to do hip-hop, but about a year ago I decided I wasn’t making enough progress with metal and it was always so hard to depend on other people. I’ve never been one to depend on others if I can help it. I used to compose for my band, so I figured it couldn’t be too hard to produce for myself and just go solo. So I left my band since I thought I’d be going to Japan to study abroad. However, there were some complications so I ended up focusing on my solo career and pushing my hip-hop music. I kept posting on soundcloud then taking stuff down until I got my music sounding the way I wanted. Now I feel I’m ready to put out an album.
Please breakdown the creative process of your upcoming album? Are you good on leaking the title?, or are you going to surprise the world with it? You did mention that this new album coming is all self-produced right?
My album will have several diverse elements of different musical genres, from both production and lyrical aspects. From the production aspect I include, bass oriented EDM, trap, hip hop, and some R&B. When I was in a metal band I use to write about problems in society as they pertained to me, while as a hip hop artist I’ve done similarly. It serves as a way for me to metaphorically air out all of my problems. My creative process is really going all out, then stripping everything down to the basic components that stand out the most and sound the best, both lyrically and production wise. I usually inquire for some help on the mixing side, since I use ableton and most hip hop producers use logic or pro tools.
The creative process of my music is kinda unique. A lot of musicians feel the need to be in an altered state to get creative, but I feel I need to be myself. As myself, I trust my musical creativity and my intuition on what sounds good. When I was younger, all of my friends would look to me for good music to listen to, so it built confidence in my musical taste. When it comes to production, I usually sit down at a piano or pick up a guitar and improvise for about an hour. I’ll usually find something I like within that time frame. The production stage is where a lot of the excitement happens. I’ll envision what I want a segment to sound like, sit down for about two hours and play around with some sound design, then bam! Just like that, it sounds exactly as I’d imagined. I like to use arpeggios a lot, in choruses, with a smooth bass, like the kinds of bass found in the future bass genre. It’s always a toss-up with whether I want to make a track sound more electro or more trap because I like both a lot. When it comes to lyrics, that process requires a little more inspiration on my behalf because it’s difficult for me to write about just anything. I’m also particular about not coming off cheesy, or pretentious. I feel like the lyrics are the part that best depicts my intellect, and as such should be treated carefully. I am working with a two good friends and a marketing team to try to push the album in some creative ways. I’d rather not talk about those ways to keep them a surprise. One thing I don’t mind leaking is the title, Reign. I want this to be left to interpretation, until I release it, so that those who listen to the album could come up with some pretty interesting theories.
Rappers nowadays think by throwing up a few videos up on social media and pushing quick projects, they can blow up overnight! Give us your view on how over saturated the market is right now with so many MC’s/Producers but not to many quality music.
To be honest. I know a few artists, in general, that think that way. To me, it makes no sense. You can’t just keep putting out and saturating the market without some sort of plan. Honestly, the market sucks. With so much saturation, you have to take absurd measures to get attention. Another problem is the abundance of non quality music, but we make the best of the situation we’re in.
Following up with the last question, how are you going to be able to separate yourself from all the thousands of new MC’s being born by the day!..
I honestly think it’s easier to separate yourself from the horde if you make it about more than just your music and build a community. Personally I’ve been facing that challenge within my social group so I think I might try this method or a different one. I like to think that some analytical thinking combined with creativity can solve this problem.
Out the box type question, If it came down to 1 ALBUM only, what underground Hip Hop album would you consider THE BEST OF ALL TIME!!!???……One 1 album you can choose.
To be honest, I don’t know if I can pick a best album of all time. I feel like every album has a specific demographic it pertains to. However there ARE two recent albums I could relate to a little more than most. My bro Yung Abe released his album, Dorm Room Life, and it pertains to the college experience as we’ve experienced it. The second album is As Seen On the Internet ny Futuristic. I feel like that corresponds to the daily social issues of the younger generation and it’s extremely relatable to a person like me, with a old school upbringing.
Out the box type question, If it came down to 1 ALBUM only, what underground Hip Hop album would you consider THE BEST OF ALL TIME!!!???……One 1 album you can choose.
I’d define underground hip-hop as the unheard voice of the masses. It’s the voice that’s not prominent in mainstream music, where the messages are identical.
Where can people find you on the web? Drop all the vital links.
Social media:
Facebook
www.facebook.com/pg/somneamusic
Instagram
@somneamusic
Twitter
https://twitter.com/S0MN3A?s=09
Soundcloud
https://soundcloud.com/somnea
Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRGxk0fSFvHjPwtr8stH5KA
Lastly, and shout out?
I’d like to give a shout out to loyola’s music industry dept, My family & friends that have supported me, my friends at Full Tilt, as well as Yung-Abe one of my best friends and a phenomenal rapper. You guys know who you are, and I’m eternally grateful for the love you’ve shown me! Lastly, I’d like to thank you guys at Underground Hip-hop blog for this awesome opportunity!
