ABSTRACT SEKAI
Q1. Would you please provide some background on yourself for readers who may not be familiar with you—where you’re from, when you started making music, your sound, etc.?
First of all, thank you for having me Jacob, I appreciate you giving me the platform to allow me to introduce myself and my sound to those less familiar with my exploits, and with that said I go by the name Abstract Sekai, a rapper / producer from a small mining town called Chingola in Zambia. The name basically translates to Abstract World, and is really what I’ve built my sound on, abstract, non-concrete ideas, so I also can’t really say I can pin down my sound to a specific genre. If I could try and explain it I’d say some kind of atmospheric, electronic, trip hop fusion, lol. I am relatively new to music making, my memory doesn’t go as far back as most, actually I only picked up a DAW about 6 years ago with no prior background to any form of music making. The journey itself has been surreal and every day is an experience to learn and grow.
Q2. What got you into music and what made you want to pursue making it?
I guess the environment I grew up in defined me, I come from a family of avid music listeners, literally everyone who helped raise me left a bit of an imprint of their musical tastes, My Mom was a huge 90s RnB and Hip-Hop fan, my Dad leaned more towards the reggae side of things and my first taste of soul was from my Grandpa, so I’d say family got me into music. Funny enough none of them pursued actually making it, for me that came from the curiosity of how my favorite songs were made.
Q3. Who are some of your primary influences?
A lot of my production influence stems from Dj Krush, he’s someone who’s ability to craft their own unique sound amazes me. Lyrical I’d say The Iapetus Records roster, the likes of Yugen Blakrok and Hymphatic Thabs and their general approach to Rap, listening to them and being a Sci-fi fanatic myself made me feel more in my element with my choice of words. Honorable mentions to Method Man, MF Doom and Kool Keith.
Q4. Is there an over-arching vision for or a headspace you try to evoke with your music?
I wouldn’t say there is, I’m very unintentional with my music and at the end of it all it comes down to whether I really like what I’ve made or not.
Q5. Talk to us a little about your writing process and what goes in to crafting your songs.
Well, a whole lot of reading, a whole lot of Sci-fi movies and a whole lot of patience, lol. There’s a lot of association with what I read and watch with what I experience on a daily basis, I speak out through these vague associations so sometimes building that bridge to connect a scene from my favorite read or watch to a real life event takes some time. The information I take in comes to me at different paces and so does the inspiration. I don’t like to force myself, I let most of it come naturally so I’m admittedly a slow writer to some extent.
Q6. How would you say your sound has evolved from the beginning until now?
It’s hard to say, it’s more of a feeling, I feel I’m a whole lot more experimental with my sound than I was in the beginning and I’d say that has set me apart from what others around me and where I’m from are doing. I see that deviation as grow and the greater gab the better I guess.
Q7. Who are some of your favorite contemporary artists?
These will come as a bit of a shock to most, I’d say Metric and Florence & The Machine because I’m a huge fan of the song writing abilities of Emily Haines and Florence Welch, Solange, The 1975 as well…I could go on.
Q8. What are some of your future plans or things we should be looking out for from you in the future?
Well more music for sure, I’ve been in my lab experimenting over the last year or so, definitely more music.