PurP
“Being human means being hypocritical...””
While music is forever, every sound has an origin, a mastermind, an artist. In this Artist Spotlight we take a look at PurP. This rising artist from Rosedale, U.S.A. draws inspiration from a wide range of cultures to produce his one of a kind sound.
“My purpose of being royalty makes me the most exotic thing out…”
A short while ago we had the opportunity to interview Purp, a young artist from Rosedale, U.S.A. He told us the story of how he got his name, how he fell in love with music, described his influences and more. In my experience doing this interview I learned a lot about the rapper. I’ve come to understand the origin of his unique style and where the passion and depth of his music stems from. We at Pour L’ame appreciate PurP for taking the time to talk to us fluidly and honestly.
How have you been dealing with this extra time through this pandemic?
Purp: I started out making hoodies and making songs… trying to keep my creativity going. That energy kind of burnt out because you can’t really go outside for new inspiration. But I’m seeing things differently, I want to handle my relationships differently, I need everybody on the same page.
The first thing people learn about you is your name, what’s the story behind PurP?
PurP: : My pops is the “Purple Giant” so I was originally the “Little Purple Giant” but that didn’t really fit my character at the time. That led me to go through a lot of names, Buggs Bunny, Ancient scrolls, being a couple. Then I learned about the color purple and its history. Purple is the color of royalty in ancient African civilization… its extravagant. And then I also smoke a lot, when I first started smoking Purple Haze was the most exotic strand available. So I crafted the name to fit me. So my purpose of being royalty makes me the most exotic thing out. And my favorite color is purple so it works.
What was the genisis of your relationship with music?
Purp: From about 3rd grade I knew I wanted to be a rapper. The moment in school my teacher said we were staring poetry I went crazy. Literally every single day I brought another poem in to my teacher. Also my mother is Hispanic so you already know, Sunday mornings when you hear Hector Lavoe playing loud as possible everyone was cleaning but I was so young I got to just dance. And then I would go to my dad’s crib and there was always music playing. KRS, Dana Dane, etc. he would rap every word in my face.
Do you feel like music was a part of bonding between you and your family?
PurP: Most definitely it shaped the elements of music that I like now. My mom would bump a lot of Nora Jones and Sade so when I listen to those things now it brings me peace. My brother would bump bare Lil Wayne, bare Jadakiss so I just had a bunch of different angles and perspectives on music. Soulful R&B, I listen to when I want to add a certain emotion to my music. If I had to name 6 people I’d say Lauryn Hill, Nora Jones, Stevie Wonder, Pharrell, Kanye, and 3k as my biggest musical influences.
So of all those genres what made you choose Hip Hop?
PurP: It was always the most relatable. And then in middle school we used to rap but I felt alone. Then got to High School, Freshman Year and that’s when I got around people who could really rap and that made me focus on honing my craft. At the time Bada$$’ 1999 was out and that shaped High school for me. It carries a NY feel, it encourages freestyle rap and since I didn’t have a booth that was pretty much all I could do. We’d record videos of us rapping at home, after school, skipping class in the bathrooms and lunchroom. It was a culture and that provided the necessary support I needed. Then I discovered “type beats” and nothing was the same after.
You named a lot of boom bap artist and a freestyle culture tell me about how we got this PurP today sonically.
PurP: One day something clicked and I realized knowing how to rap like that is great but that’s not the type of music I really want to make. I started focusing on melodies. Then I dove in to Travis. I dove into Kanye, Pharrell, Prince, etc. because in those artists live the real melodies. I can’t solely rely on hip hop.
“I still love her but it has to be from a distance because that’s the only healthy way...”
My personal introduction to your music was Dawn, what were the things that lead you to putting that song together?
PurP: It was a weird time for me. I was about to go in for surgery, I had just gotten out of a crazy relationship, and I needed my life to change. When I recorded it I felt something was missing so I used an app on my phone to add some things in post-production and that gave it the emotion everyone said they felt. Sometimes I have a difficult time listening to it because I want to move on from it.
You recently released a mixtape entitled What it feels like to be alone, just me and my phone. Where did that project come from emotionally?
Purp: I wrote all of those songs in Harlem in back to back days except for the conclusion. I pretty much wrote a song for how I was feeling each day. Pain’s Interlude was originally a full song but I shortened it because I felt like the full version didn’t convey the emotion I needed it to, I shortened it to get the feeling I wanted. a song for you. is a song directed to a specific person explaining that I still love her but it has to be from a distance because that’s the only healthy way. The song was the only way to express such raw emotion. I recorded all the songs the day before I released it, recorded and engineered it myself on my phone to show there’s no excuse to not create content.
After somebody goes through your catalog and listens to your music, how do you want them to feel?
PurP: Honestly I don’t want them to feel anything specific. In all my songs there’s a lot of different emotions. There are certain parts of each song different people will relate to more than others. Being human means being hypocritical so a lot of times I contradict myself and I just want people to recognize the contradiction in themselves.
