I have a deep passion and respect for his work and wanted to learn more about him and his approach, he has an ability to mix the emotional and comedic into an energy soup that spills on the ear napkins of the listener. This is the result of that question session.
JAG: Where do you find the inspiration to create?
PBA: I usually find inspiration in my surroundings and my relationships with people. A lot of my songs are about a specific girl or a specific moment of my life, but some of the songs I make are just the result of creating music for my enjoyment.
JAG: Is there a big dream that you have that sits in the back of your mind? If so what is it?
PBA: When I’m older, I really want to be a professor at a college. The salary is going to be low, but if I create everything that I want to make, I’ll be living off of my royalties and my business ventures. When I actually retire though, I want to get a house in the mountains.
JAG: What is your first musical memory?
PBA: My first musical memory is hearing “Country Grammar” by Nelly playing on the radio with my cousin. I think that was the first time I was like, “Yo, I love this and I want more like it.” My parents were never into rap music, so that was also my first exposure to hip-hop music as well.
JAG: Are you spiritual? If so what is your belief system?
PBA: Recently, I have become a lot more spiritual than I have been my whole life. I grew up Christian and as I got older, I started to realize that a lot of followers of the faith are fake and not what they seem to be. It definitely had me questioning my faith of a higher being for a while, but then when my mother passed away, I started to believe in one again. A lot of my beliefs now fall within Christianity, but I still oppose some of the ideas of the religion.
JAG: Do you think that race subconsciously affects your art? If so in what ways?
PBA: Maybe a little bit. I’ve tried to cut down saying the n-word in my songs because I don’t want white kids yelling it at future shows. Other than that, I really just make music that 15 year old me would like and I’m trying to appeal to kids who were like me at that age.
JAG: Who are 5 artists that you think everyone should experience?
PBA: Earl Sweatshirt, Post “In Search Of” N.E.R.D., 2010-2014 Childish Gambino, Mac Miller, and Outkast.
JAG: What are your feelings on how people experience music nowadays?
PBA: Personally, I believe people consume music too fast. Even though there are some artists that can last longer than a year or two, most artists nowadays are here for one semi-hit and then never heard of again. Also, I believe no one has cool rollouts anymore. Nothing will beat the overall experience of Childish Gambino’s “Because the Internet” rollout.
JAG: What is something you wish people knew about you?
PBA: I never planned on being a musician. Growing up, I was into graphic design and filmmaking and the only instrument experiences I had was through marching band. The only reason I started producing was so I could score my own films instead of using stock music, but then I fell in love with doing it.
JAG: What is your advice to creative people?
PBA: Keep creating and showcasing your art. You never know what will stick.
JAG: Do you have a story in which you failed but it led you to something interesting?
PBA: In 2015, my best friend and main musical collaborator, Trey a.k.a. BRUHNICEVIDEO, got in a fight over a show that didn’t end well. The show itself was good, but we ended up getting screwed over by some local rappers at the end of it. For some reason, the whole experience drove Trey and I’s relationship sour.
That summer, I rarely hung out with him or anyone else and I just stayed inside and worked on my own music. This “break” really helped me craft my sound and pushed me in the right direction with my personal music. After a few months, Trey and I became friends again and I learned that he worked on his craft during that time as well, so we both came back together as our own independent artists.
-JAG x
jakeagriffiths.com 