South London's INFAMOUSIZAK is pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a rapper; ranging from a variety of slick beats whilst delivering a stylistic flow.

With a mix of fast hip hop and melodic vocals, an aspiring basketball player turned musician has arrived as one of the biggest young talents coming from South London.

 

From studying Sports Science at the University of Worcester, INFAMOUSIZAK eventually found himself writing bars and jumping on beats upon entering a friend’s room who was making music at the time, and following the encouragement of another friend to try it out. This turned out to be all the motivation he needed to discover his new calling in life. The man and the music simply clicked, and he never looked back.

 

As a self-taught producer and mixer, INFAMOUSIZAK takes charge of every aspect of his musical creations. His rising popularity came from releasing music on SoundCloud, after learning his craft by adding his own spin on a Xavier Wulf & Skepta song, “Check It Out (Remix)”, titled “EAT In”. From there, it was only a matter of time before he mastered his technique and found his own unique sound.

 

After a number of singles, including “Awks”, “HOMEOWNER” and “NO L”, INFAMOUSIZAK’s first project ‘DEEP THE NIGHT’ makes you feel spaced out – like you’re floating in a zero-gravity spaceship. All your senses take a break as you glide through time and space, coming out the other end feeling ten times lighter than before you entered. A combination of upbeat vibes, banging bass and meaningful lyrical content, it is a free-flowing journey like no other.

 

With a strong discography already under his belt, it is only a sign of what is to come as the burgeoning creator seems destined to propel himself into the stratosphere.

INFAMOUSIZAK
INFAMOUSIZAK

Would you describe yourself as a lyrical rapper? Or do you focus on the all-round music process?

I wouldn’t consider myself a lyrical rapper although I do think lyricism plays a part in what I do musically. I think me being lyrical at times has just become the default to me as an artist. My focus, for the most part, is trying to provide an experience or a feeling as a whole when listening to my music, I don’t always put too much focus on the lyrics, I just kind of lets the music guide me and do what’s needed.
Where do you draw inspiration from? Is there any source that may surprise people?

I draw my inspiration from all types of places, it could be conversations I have with my friends, hearing a beat that catches my ear. I think an interesting one though would be movies. I enjoy watching films at the cinema and sometimes film-scores catch my ear, it makes me think of ways I could incorporate new sounds into my own music.

On the topic of your album, ‘DEEP THE NIGHT’, you have stated “the night time is when the more real side of you comes out”. Do you write lyrics late at night to get the best out of yourself?

I can write lyrics at any time of the day. I usually write at least a line or two every day to use as a reference point later, but I do feel like inspiration hits a little different at night time. think it’s a good time to be alone with your thoughts and it gives you a chance to see things from a different perspective. I just feel like people are more relaxed at night as a whole so there are fewer guards up, that might have something to do with it.
INFAMOUSIZAK
INFAMOUSIZAK

You started off sharing your music on SoundCloud – is there a certain stereotype around SoundCloud rappers that needs to be broken down? And perhaps you can play a part in making that point with your music?

Yeah, Soundcloud was a good avenue to release because you could put stuff out a bit more spontaneously and kind of get an instant reaction to your music. It was also good for development in terms of trying to create something good enough to put out into the world. I think for a period of time there was a stigma around the whole Soundcloud rapper but I don’t really think it’s a thing so much these days – but if it still exists, good music will always speak for itself no matter where it’s released.

Was it originally a nervy experience putting your music – and thereby yourself – out there? Or were you always confident you would succeed?

Yeah it was deffo a nervy experience because it opens you up to criticism from all sorts of people but eventually, you get used to it. It’s also a learning experience because the feedback you do receive helps you grow as an artist. I guess its the natural curve of development. I remember my first time putting out something on Soundcloud, I thought I was gonna blow overnight. I probably got like 10 plays in a week. I wasn’t discouraged though, I was gassed that some people had actually listened.

Your dream was to play basketball professionally before you got into music, do you still play?

Yeah, I deffo still play. I went through a period of time where I wasn’t playing so regularly and I missed it. I think just the physicality of it helps me as a person. I always feel better after playing, and that for me helps the music in a way. At this point, it’s just a part of what I do, it goes hand in hand.
INFAMOUSIZAK

What’s your favourite rap album of all time and why?

My favourite rap album of all time is ‘Good Kid Mad City’ by Kendrick Lamar. For me, that was the first album that spoke to me. It was one of the first projects that really made me feel as though someone else had gone through similar life experiences and painted vivid pictures of stories that made a lot of sense to me. Also, the instrumentation and the level of detail that went into both the lyrics and the soundscape of the album is a large part of what originally inspired me to start creating myself. I just felt as if it was a perfect summary of what young Black males growing up in the inner city around the world goes through and it stuck with me.

You taught yourself how to produce beats, what was that process like? And is there a beat you made when starting off that you’re particularly proud of?

At first, it was tough cause my biggest issue was figuring out how to makes things sound how I wanted them to but I just stuck with it and kept trying to emulate things I liked. I think that’s one of the biggest challenges though, sticking with it because it’s easy to rip a beat of YouTube. But I just trusted that over time I’d get better and kept being a student of the game. There are a few beats I’m proud of but there is one I made early on that made me feel as if I was really doing something, it’s still a good beat, to be honest, but the way I structured it makes it really difficult to go back and fix it. At the time my knowledge on time signatures wasn’t all there so its a cold beat but the timing’s all mad.

Stormzy has declared himself a fan of yours through his Instagram, what did it feel like receiving that sort of recognition from somebody who is very influential in the music scene?

It was really cool. I’m not a person who often looks for validation from too many people but it was cool to see that. Makes you feel like you’re doing something right.

What are your hopes and dreams for the next few years?

The plan over the next few years is to continue to develop as an artist and producer, just to keep evolving and making the best art possible. I wanna continue to promote ownership and independence as an artist. Hopefully, create something that touches people and stands the test of time. That’s the ultimate goal. As for short term, I’m releasing an EP called ‘Fracture’ that’ll be out in November.

Listen to INFAMOUSIZAK's music below::

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