SILVABLACK | Interview
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Rapper SILVABLACK talks about his origins as a MC and the debut EP titled "HARDER•DARKER•FASTER" that showcases his passion for rap in a variety of styles.
How did Hip-Hop enter your life and what inspired you to start writing rhymes?
My best friend in high school introduced me to Cypress Hill and Redman. Went down well. I started writing when I was sent to a temporary boarding school for a while. The characters in there were so diverse yet so impressionable, myself included. Had time on my hands and that was a form of escape.
When would you say did "SilvaBlack" fully take form as the persona you inhabit when writing and performing and how much does it help creatively when you have an "amplified" version of yourself that you can visualise in different situations?
The name SILVABLACK came about through brainstorming sessions with my friend and team mate Garrett. I've been rapping for time under different names/groups but SILVABLACK evolved about 2 years ago. The fact I have a grey patch works. The closest resemblance to the word SILVABLACK was silvaback the gorilla; strong character. It does make expressing the writing easier being me and this artist - it flows perfectly.
If SilvaBlack is a vessel for you to express your character, thoughts and passions how would you sum up those three aspects of your personality and the way they influence your lyrics?
HARDER•DARKER•FASTER pretty much says it all. There is a harder darker element to my rapping and lyric-wise, my structure comes across a lot faster in the sense there a bit of urgency and a lot of angst in getting the words out. Your debut EP "HARDER•DARKER•FASTER" hits on a few levels; to me it came across as a party record and also as the voice of someone carving out a mark for themselves on the scene while dealing with the pressures of relationships and everyday life. Can you give us some direct insight into the main messages you want people to take away from this collection of songs?
This EP is an introduction. It’s all me - all passion and my truth put in the most basic way I can get across - my love for rap. And variety, I have a variety of tastes on the EP. The message is probably dark tangled and full of riddles but disguised as commercially hard raps! Many relationship and life fails turned into inspiration and I think has been a big influence on my work. Everyone has a story to tell, this is mine.
Production-wise each song fits the tempo of your flow perfectly and utilizes a wide range of influences that even includes Blues-Rock on the track "Tell Em What you Running From". How far does your love for music stretch across genres and is it a fun challenge to see with which ones you can draw inspiration from to put together the perfect beat? I don't have a specific direction of beat selection. If the first 15 seconds grab my attention, I pick up a pen and pad. Influence-wise, anything from Micheal Jackson to the Cure. The process of beat making is not my big passion - there are so many dope beat makers out there putting work out. I'm working with a few from Europe, the states but locally, there's so much freshness to feed off of right now. "Raps Rock & Roll" seems a worthy title seeing as I can go many directions with the flow of rapping and adapt to what I feel suits the instrumental. There is a strong artistic feeling in the way you present yourself visually. How did your path cross with Andre Badenhorst & Ross Maxwell and how much has their input helped you define what SilvaBlack should represent in photos and videos?
We were looking for photographers and Garret's lady is close with Andre who works with Ross on numerous projects. We set up a meeting and the fact that we weren't trying to do some run of the mill fancy car big house photoshoot helped as their ideas had the right blend of gritty. From there it's pretty much been work as much as we can together! Those 2 fellas are proper next level when it comes to their work behind the lens - we on the same team!
By the time this interview is published you will have performed at the Oppikoppi Festival. How much of a confidence booster was it to get that performance slot and are there any other shows you are looking forward to in the coming months?
Oppikoppi is the perfect booster on so many levels. The fact I'm doing it with the band, SILVABLACK-LIVE makes this show so powerful. We been working hard and the results speak for themselves. From there it's with a DJ as one of the support acts for Yelawolf at #ONICT! That's madness in itself… Summer is coming up, lots of gigs, the website will be up with all upcoming events so people can stay in the loop constantly. Hip-Hop is massive in South Africa and it has its superstars here but in an ever evolving genre like this there are always new MC’s waiting in the wings for the right opportunity to break out. How can those trying to climb to the top help each other more in your opinion and promote what local artists have to offer even better in the process?
Hip-Hop is the pop. There’s so much creative going on but at that same time to say much about is hard cause I don't listen to much besides what I'm working on. In saying that, YungstaCPT is explosive! Even if I'm not recording I have some instrumentals on repeat. I'm sure me being out there on the scene I'll be able to experience more of other artists’ craft. If you could put the best local Hip-Hop tour together to take across the country who would you like to feature on it?
Youngsta (KAAPSTADNAAIER), Tumi, Reasona and Gin-i Grimes (battle MC killer).
Final thoughts, advice or a message you would like to send out to your fans?
Get familiar, open your visual ears. Enjoy the show.
