Interview: Songwriter-Rapper Malcolm A
HELLO MALCOLM A! PLEASE TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF, WHAT IS YOUR MUSICAL BACKGROUND? DO YOU HAVE A MUSICAL FAMILY OR DID YOU JUST FALL INTO SONGWRITING ALL ON YOUR OWN?
I started off writing music for other artists, then transitioned into making my own music. I’m the only person in my immediate family that does music. I fell in love with R&B and Hip Hop as a kid. Once I got to college, it was something that I went to sleep and woke up thinking about. Music is a fire inside of me that can’t be put out.
WHAT INFLUENCED YOU TO BE A RAPPER-SONGWRITER?
Louisiana culture influenced me. We have so many different types of music in Louisiana. So much musical history came from Louisiana. Growing up in Louisiana, music is something that can’t be escaped.
WHO INSPIRES YOUR RAPPING STYLE? WHICH ARTISTS CAN WE REFER TO?
I have my own rapping style. I don’t think I sound like anyone else. I do listen to a lot of Lil Wayne, Drake, Ric Ross, TI, Tupac, and Jay Z. 4. WHAT IS YOUR TYPICAL SONGWRITING PROCESS? I have two different processes. When I’m writing for another artist, I keep everything structured and on a schedule. I listen to the beat and I let the beat give me the lyrics. When I’m writing for myself, I’m all over the place. I start writing one song, and in the middle of writing that song I find myself jumping to two more songs at the same time. I’ll write a hook for myself and that hook normally ends up in the verse.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR YOU TO WRITE A SONG? TELL US LITTLE ABOUT YOUR NEW SONG “I’M JUST SAYING?
The last song I wrote for an artist. It is an R&B song called “Showin Off”. It is for a super talented female artist Yuli Genes from New Jersey. It took me fifteen minutes to write that song. As far as “I’m Just Saying” it took me maybe a hour or so to write it. The concept of the song is deep. It’s about a relationship where the lady thought her was out doing God knows what, but he was actually out making moving trying to better their situation.
DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR ASPIRING SONGWRITERS?
Be authentic, don’t try to mimic someone’s style. My advice is to use your life’s experiences as your story for the song. It’s much easier to tell your story vs something not authentic.
WHERE CAN OUR READERS FIND YOU ONLINE?
You can catch me on Instagram @malcolm_a_music And see all of the upcoming videos I have coming out soon on YouTube www.youtube.com/user/MalcolmAMusic