The talented C4TRUTH joined us for a first convo as part of our Rising Interview series. C4TRUTH is an old-school real rap talent, posting popular freestyles on his INSTA. He is preparing for his first official release ‘Differences’.
I have been able to push myself out towards different audiences
This past year for many reasons surrounding the pandemic has been a challenge for many artists! How have you found this period of time? How have you been keeping?
I personally believe that this global pandemic has been a curse, but in some ways it has been a blessing at the same time. Unfortunately we have many people dying around us and bad things happening around the world, and its not even just the pandemic - it is other disasters as well. But for me, it has also given me more time to focus on my music. I have been able to grow as an artist, I have been able to push myself out towards different audiences and other people who really connect with what I do. It got the point where I was releasing a freestyle every week for around 9 weeks and that really helped me. I feel like me writing like that and growing like that has really helped me. I have developed my structure, word patterns, word-play, context - my lyrically has tremendously improved since 2019. So honestly, it has been both a blessing and a curse, but for me as an artist it has been an important process.
For those who haven't heard your music yet, how would you describe it?
The way I would describe my music to other people would be… it tells the story about myself, how I think, how I feel at different times etc. With my music, though I haven’t done any proper releases yet, I feel like people will understand me more and take me in - not just as a talented rapper but as an artist and someone with a lot of potential. I believe that looking at the scene and the way it is going, real rap is coming back into the scene slowly. I feel around 2024 it will make its return, so if I continue to express myself, I will build more of an audience and when the scene is ready for me, that is when people will take me in. So describing my music, it tells a story about me - it’s something to listen to when you are sad, it’s something you can listen to just in general, and it is enjoyable as well.
real rap is coming back into the scene
What is your personal story/background? Who is the person behind the music?
My personal story behind all my music is what I do and what I experience in day-to-day life. I’m 16 and from South London so my surroundings play a big role in what I write about - its what makes me who I am. I am somebody I feel who you can always talk to. Sometimes I get messages from people about lots of things, and I do my best to reply and try to support them. I believe everyone should have an equal chance and get to express what they believe in. That’s me really - I am a genuine, nice person and loyal as well.
What artists do you draw from for inspiration? If any?
I write things that occur to me in my lifestyle, so context-wise I don’t really take inspiration from other artists. However, one artist that did inspire me to keep on going, to keep on striving for what I want and to express myself and go deeper into my emotions was Santan Dave. I’ll be honest, I am not like others who used to listen to him, I had heard about him, but when I started listening to his old music - around 2016-2017 with his EP Six Paths, his Blackbox, Fire in the booth with Charlie Sloth (I know every single word!)…
What impact has he had on you and your music?
He was a catalyst that helped me improve what I say. He helped me improve my context - I felt more free to talk about things… I am not the only person going through things. I had more confidence because I knew there were other people around me, around the same age as me going through the same things… He is one of my biggest inspirations definitely. Hearing about how he was at college on the piano all the time and looking at his success now…
Are there any other artists with a similar impact on you?
Yeah, another artist would be Stormzy. Stormzy is more of a thing where, he used to go to my school - shows if you believe in what you do, you can make it, especially when there is someone who was on the same path as you and got so big. It really does show anything is possible. I have been listening to this guy’s music since I was in Year 4 or 5, and to see the growth is amazing. There are other artists I like listening to like Potter Payper, but these two have had the biggest impact on me.
He was a catalyst that helped me improve what I say. He helped me improve my context - I felt more free to talk about things…
What can we expect from you over the next few months? What is up next?
I have a new song called Differences that is dropping - it will probably be out before this article is out. After Differences, I want to drop another song and maybe my EP. I have been working on it for two years but cancelled it a few times because it wasn’t where I felt it should be. But now I feel I am making music which has repayable value, where people can listen to it over and over again and features for that… it’s looking good, very good. And whenever that is done, I will work my releases around it. Before that, I do have other plans, some collabs too, but I don’t really want to put out those until I have a few singles out first.
But with the EP, it might be something I don’t even put out this year because I want to build my name more for that release. With my writing process, it can take me a while to write in comparison to others. I wrote Differences around a year ago, and since then I have only completed two full songs. So… I have had a bit of a writer’s block, but now I am back in full effect and I am working, people are going to understand and will like what is up next. The future is very bright for me, and as long as I have the right people supporting me by my side, other people like what I do and I get the recognition at the end of the day, I can unlock my true potential.