Artist Spotlight: Harvey Whyte
Hackney-based rapper Harvey Whyte is the essence of focus. A self-taught piano player and producer, the artist stands in his own category. Clear with his intention for his music, the rapper’s confidence is infectious as he carves out a personalized space in the industry with his self-defining sound, coining his trademark ‘piano rap’.
Collaborating with the likes of Footsie, Greentea Peng, FS&HG and KeepVibesNear, the artist has solidified himself in the industry as a unique force. However, combing through his archive, you see the rapper rejects the habitual uniformity of the current rap-landscape, where he seems unafraid to move away from the norm in his journey, to experiment with different sounds and styles.
Earlier this month dropping his debut self-produced EP East 2 West, featuring his single Gyally From West, the artist is reaching a steady stride in his work as he preps to travel for a quick Germany-based tour at the time of our chat.
The London-based rapper catches up with The Pit to talk about his journey with music, pioneering his signature ‘piano rap’ and what he’s got on his current playlist.
What are your current inspirations for making music?
Definitely my relationships with people, the things that happen around me, but mainly friendships and relationships
You’re so musically inclined, being a self-taught producer, as well as teaching yourself to play the piano. Was there something specific that compelled you to practice and study music so passionately?
I just really wanted to be good at piano. From a young age, I used to play around on the piano, and then around 18 - 19 I wanted to play it properly, but I didn't want to do lessons. I knew the only way I could make that happen, was to just do it. I’m not very good at sitting still and I’ve always just done what I wanted to do. So when it came to lessons and playing things I didn't want to - going through a process like that just seemed long to me. I learned by just playing want I wanted to play and just finding what sounds nice and felt good at the time. It was like a form of escapism as well. I am one of those people that like to zone into a task or a skill and I’m hyper-focused on it; I took piano as one of those things to escape from the outside world.
You’re born and raised in Hackney and still currently based there. Do you think your area influenced you, what is something you carry with you from your home in your music?
Massively. Hackney is a mad cultural melting pot, so many different people there from all over the world. So many different types of music and obviously the style of music people listened to around me has definitely influenced me, from making rap music to hip-hop. And I can say there is a lot of aggression in my music, but I grew up around a lot of that. Hackney was a very violent place back in the day, a lot of crime going on as well you know. But I wouldn't want to paint it as a negative place though. It made me what I am as well. I used to feel like there was a constant threat of violence when I was younger. It’s changed a lot now, it’s kind of separated, you’ve got the gentrified hipster side but then you’ve still got people beefin’ around that.
With so many new artists it can be hard to stand out, but since your debut in 2020, your career has been an impressive journey, to say the least. How did you start to forge space for yourself on the scene?
Really, I’ve been releasing music since 2013-2014, like on SoundCloud back then under different names. Even with my release in 2020, I think I made that material in 2018; you know. I took a break from rap, to produce for other people for a while. But there was definitely a point where I decided to just not care and be myself. And I am myself in all my music, like in all music videos that's really me. For me it was just about confidence, also musically I produce my own stuff. I combine piano and rap a lot and that’s a little different, not a lot of people are doing stuff like that. I hate making the same stuff as everyone else. I like to pioneer my own shit.
There are so many tools at our disposal, but it’s often a question of access, good planning and execution, and sometimes just luck. What do you think are some of the lessons you’ve learned through your path in music?
One thing I’ll say is, find your lane. That’s why I like ‘piano rap’. If I’m rapping over beats, my songs are going up against everybody else who does the same. Even though it’s not a competition, it’s like what stands out if everybody sounds the same. But if I'm doing my thing like rapping over piano, there's not many people next to me doing that. I think it’s important to just be in your own lane and stand out, but know that there's no real shortcut. Just work hard. If you don't have a strong reason for being an artist you’ll just fall off because you probably won’t make money straight away. But if you carry on and keep working hard, you’ll see something come of it. Maybe the only shortcut is TikTok. If you go viral on there you may bypass a lot of steps Haha!
You’ve just released your EP East 2 West again through your personal record label ‘studio117’, it's amazing to see young artists being so involved and well-rounded in producing and distributing their material. How has that journey been for you?
The record label was really just a place to put all the music I was making. When I started producing - doing a lot of R&B and stuff like that, I realized my friends and I didn't really have a place to help put out music. So I created the label as a platform for that. Also, just for the future as well to have that there. Luckily I’ve got a sick team around me who helped me set it all up. Running a label is not really for me, I’m more about making the music, and running a label is a lot of paperwork and logistics. But again I’ve got a good team with me, so it’s great to just focus on the musicality.
I think for a while in music it was very easy to pinpoint genre or stick to it, but recently with all the intersection of genre and style, it’s hard to deny that really music is too fluid for that. Can you tell us about your personal sound and pioneering your piano rap?
I play piano, I rap and did both a lot so naturally, I thought why not combine the two? Now I feel like I’ve got the sound right for it. I really appreciate acoustic music as well - a lot of acoustic R&B and stuff like that so for me it’s almost like my version of that in a way. I don't know, I just really like making songs like that.
Even now your music really spans several genres, do you have any other you would like to experiment with?
Yeah. I’m in this group called ‘Broken Hearts Club’ which I've had a part in, it’s like a pop/rap fusion. I just like fresh sounds you know. I work a lot with distorted guitars at the moment, or like screamer rap. I just take it as it comes, making new music every day and meeting new people every day. But I’ve got my own sound I just want to establish for now.
You’ve really been on a steady journey, working with artists like Footsie and Greentea Peng as well as more underground and emerging artists, is there anyone else you're looking forward to working with?
One of my favourite artists is Brent Faiyaz, maybe Don Toliver, 070 Shake. I don't know. These are just the people I listen to and just rate, so for that reason, I’d like to work with them. But I don't particularly have a dream collaboration. Probably Brent Faiyax to be honest.
Who's on your playlist right now?
I’ll go on it right now and tell you! I got Project Pat, 500raxx did a show with her in Paris, she’s from LA, she’s sick! Jim Legxcay, that ‘Stalker’ track by Nines, Brent Faiyaz, AirBorn Gav, Giveon.