Art-P was born in Zimbabwe, Harare 19 May 1997 and is currently studying Social Work at the University Of Newcastle in Australia, his love for music was evident from the age of five. Him and his cousins would always get together and work on dance routines, where he fell in love with the art of movement with rhythm.
When he was seven years old he began to freestyle and that is where he and hip hop merged together. His brother was in to Jay-Z, DMX, 50 Cent and just learning from them, his interest in the culture of hip hop increased day by day, the excitement and wit used during battle rap intrigued him as each word was rhyming and the intensity of the rappers made it that much better.
Everything Art does today is with passion whether it ’s dancing, rapping or singing because that is the only way he can express himself fully, growing up in a single parent household never phased him, it was just how much people under estimated him and thought that his opinion was not that valuable, gives him the fuel every time he performs in the studio or on stage because it’s the one time he feels free.
The man is now looking to take the music world by storm, having found his own sound and confidence, there is no limit to what the world can witness, watch out for the name Art-P.
What is your background? tell us where you grew up and some information about your upbringing/experiences as a youth:
I was born and raised in Zimbabwe, I went to a private school where for the first few years there, it was just a handful of black kids and at that age I did not see how much it affected me but it made me neglect some of my customs, just being around different cultures and having an open mind at a young age, which I am making up for now. In the second grade I started freestyling whilst ditching classes looking back, I don’t know why I did that, I was not a bad kid or anything, I guess anything to do with music could draw me from anything .I was raised by both my parents until they split up when I was around 12 years old, my mother raised me on her own and we moved to a smaller town, where I had to adjust to everyone knowing everyone’s business, compared to living in the city where everyone minds their own business, a lot of people want to blame the absence of a father for a child’s trouble but I feel that is disrespectful to all the single mothers out there who have to nature and bring the bread, because through my experiences when I started drinking and smoking at a young age, it was mostly because the people I was surrounded by growing up where into that type of thing, and being an impressionable youth, I wanted to do that or be like them, with nothing to do during the holidays of course I was going to try it out and enjoy my fair share of women, but that came with its consequences like disappointing my mother, nights I’d come home drunk and high all in the name of fun, was it all worth it? no, I could have done things differently in hindsight, I’m only 19 but just being in a single parent household and being underestimated by a lot of people, just pushes me more each day because, being the youngest by 11 and 12 years, you’re going to be the baby of your family, so everyday you’re trying to prove you’re old enough, but not with music, with music, I just wanted to feel the emotions, after every school performance the question I’d ask my best friend is if he felt it because feeling is the most important thing.
At what moment did you know that music was part of your life and what feelings did you have towards making an active impact with your music?
Growing up around my cousins we loved to dance, I love dancing till today, every Christmas we’d perform in front of the family, which was the best feeling ever, then as we got older, bit by bit we stopped, which got me more into rapping and writing, I could not write at first because all I did was freestyle and I liked it that way, I felt like Eminem, Jay-Z, Lil Wayne because the art of freestyle is not as appreciated, in high school I got popularity by my first one because I could freestyle, but when I began to write there was something about it, you have to think about it, make it link together, then the construction of a song, it was interesting to me, just learning how to be creative. Writing for me is free styling at a slower pace. I owe a lot to Kanye’s rants, speeches and music because he dared me to be different and embrace it. The day I knew I was meant to be an artist is when I made a song called Sense and Technique, I had to use different voices and find my style in that song at 18 I was finally different, at 15 I said in 5 years I’d be signed to a record label and each year I developed and getting involved in production, this taught me the art of music, how important feeling is. I’m involved in everything now, and my big vision is to fuse rap with my dancing, like Missy Elliott.
What artists inspired/influences you and if you could collaborate with any artist (alive or passed) who would it be and why?
Eminem, 50 Cent, LL Cool J, Jay-Z, Nas, Tupac, Adele, James Brown, Beyonce, Lorde, Sia, Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole Dido and most importantly Michael Jackson, my main influences have to be MJ, Beyonce, James Brown, Eminem mainly because I’m a performer first and I love watching people dance and sing, its the full package and that’s what I want to do, make people forget about their problems, people are dying, people are sick, I just want people to have a second to forget when they come to a show and Eminem never bit his tongue, I respect that, and his clarity is something I want to have, I’d collaborate with Michael Jackson because he is one of the greatest entertainers ever, he helped create so many sounds, like the album Dangerous, that was hip hop and people don’t even know it, and it won’t even be that singer chorus and rapper verse, I picture we’d figure something cool out and have a dance off in the video.
What do you think about the current state of hip hop/mainstream music?
I think people exaggerate when they say music is not good anymore because there are only a few true artists, its always been like that, it’s just that people pick from1950-2000 and act like it was a short time span in this decade alone, we have active artists like Kendrick, J. Cole, Lorde, Sia, Adele, Beyonce who inspire me a lot, but at the same time you have to understand not everyone is doing it for the love of music, some people are just out there to feed their family
Currently, what projects do you have in the works that you are most excited about?
I’m currently working on an LP which will be on iTunes, Apple Music, Tidal, Spotify, I have two singles out so far which are on those streaming services including Soundcloud, I might release two more singles early next year but one at least, I just want each song to stand on its own, no B-Side tracks, each one should stand alone and sound different, I want fans to hear something different each time, I don’t want to sound like someone, including myself, DaVinci didn’t paint Mona Lisa twice, I am not the same Art-P everyday and I won’t always feel the same but one thing I can guarantee is that, a lot of work, authenticity and quality will be felt.
What are your short term career goals within the next 6-10 months?
My short term career goal is to develop a fan base, release my LP, which will have a documentary and one of the singles will have a video, with this I hope to get a record deal, so that I can do what I love which is performing in front of huge numbers of people and spend sleepless nights in the studio
What are your long term career goals within the next 2-5 years?
In 2-5 Years my goal is to be touring, touring the world, and having released my first studio album. It’s just two things but that is what’s important to me, of course it would be nice to have money, be a household name, win some awards, but that comes later, I do desire those things but music drives me and when I perform at pubs, I get to see people’s faces light up, that makes e so happy and being able to light up people’s face all over the world would be a dream come true
If you had one song out of the catalogue you have created to show a person what song would it be and why?
I would show them Dance Floor which is available on iTunes, Apple Music, Tidal and Spotify because the meaning behind it is key, I was watching Inside The NBA and Shaq said I miss the days where if people had a problem they’d settle it on the court or on the dance floor, when I heard that I was like, man there are too many people fighting and killing each other, what if I make a song where dancing is the solution to conflict but in the song I put it across in such an interesting way
To the person who had never heard of you what is it about your music and story that you would tell them to entice them to be a supporter?
If you love music, you and I have something in common, it’s all about the feeling and vibrations created by the sound, to bring people together, this is a God given talent and the best one could do with it, is build bridges, it’s the one time you get to forget your problems and realise that, your impact is valuable to society, they just don’t want to let you know that you don’t need wings to fly, you need heart.
If your music could be described in five words what would those five words be?
Refreshing, Intense, Beautiful, Groovy, Simple
What do you bring to the game that is unique and different?
I’m here to fuse rap with jazz, soul, rock, funk basically something you can dance to and create dance routines too, yet it can still make you cry, smile and laugh at the same time and if you need that verse where you need someone to kill a mic, you may find it.
To the aspiring artist who is considering a career as a musician what lessons or advice would you give them to inspire them or to uplift them in the journey?
You have to be strong, not everyone is right about your ability, be your worst critique and do not be afraid to try something new, one thing I live by is if they can’t feel the emotions, it’s not good, because we listen to music to feel
What are your social media profiles and where can people purchase/download your music?
Facebook Art Phiri
Twitter @art_phiri
instagram @art_phiri
Itunes, Spotify, Apple Music Tidal; ArtP
What are your final words you would like to say to people that you have left out?
Believe and work on your dreams everyday, despite what people may say, because when things do not work out for you, they are not to blame, they just voiced their opinion and you chose to take it. The only thing we have left is rhythm and melodies, don’t let them destroy that.
