Artist Spotlight: Pyschs
There seems to be a constant stream of young, thirsty talent diving the UK rap scene. Not everyone will stay afloat, but Pyschs stands as good a chance as any.
The Croydon prodigy has been a name of the lips of many for a few years now. Despite only being 20 years old, he has already produced a diverse repertoire of content, displaying the necessary craft, intellect and vitality needed to succeed within the rap world. His ’20 cut Spreadin’ (Coronavirus) saw him state his case to the mainstream, with the video racking up over 1.6 million streams on YouTube, whilst cuts like Trapanese and most recent single Targets Met have seen the young rapper flaunt his versatility, proving himself impossible to box into any given sub-genre.
I chopped it up with Pyschs about his most recent release, his ever improving craft, and refusing to be boxed into a sound.
Who’s been influencing you?
If we’re talking music, there is a lot of names to mention but out of the bunch I can pick out two names that stand out , M1llionz and Benny Banks. I just feel like they do what they do at the highest level it can be done, so there’s a lot to take away from them every time I listen to a project from them.
How long have you been making music and why did you first start?
I’ve been making music for 10 years as I started writing my own music since age 10 and I’m 20 years of age now. My inspiration for starting predominantly comes down to my enjoyment for music and the fact I had a story to tell. Experiencing problems with my mental health as a kid definitely added to my substance.
For such a young age, your sound and approach is really mature. How have you worked on improving your craft?
Improving my craft came from listening to hours and hours of music. Now I didn’t sit there and say I’m going to listen to hours and hours of music, I just enjoy doing it anyway especially when I’m on the move. While listening to the likes of Potter and Cadet, who in my eyes are two of the most technically gifted in the scene with how they deliver their music, it made me go back to the drawing board for some of my own music especially in the early stages , and it really made me think about the message I was trying to get across, why I was getting it across, what I was trying to achieve by getting it across and the most effective way of doing it. Improving your craft takes time, putting those 10000+ hours in is crucial. RIP To The Rated Legend.
Do you see areas of your technique/sound that you think can improve on, and if so how do you plan to work on them?
There are always areas that can be worked on, for me it’s mainly stepping out of my comfort zone and doing things that I don’t necessarily like doing. With an area like this to improve on, it won’t be as difficult because my manager is always edging me on to hop on different beats and sounds anyway, it’s just a matter of me gaining the courage to do it as well.
‘Spreadin’ (Coronavirus)’ has been your breakout hit so far. How does it feel to have had over 1.5 millions streams on a piece of your art?
This is definitely one of my biggest achievements, but it’s always been a bit bittersweet one for me. I feel like when I hit the milestone of a milly i was feeling like “yes I’ve proved the haters wrong”, but at the same time the next time I hit a milestone like this I want it to be genuine happiness of the achievement and not the relief of a feeling I’ve been battling with.
How do you plan on standing out amongst an overcrowded drill scene?
Well, first things first, I’m not a drill artist, so this will not be a problem for me at all. If we’re talking about standing out in the scene in general, the plan will most definitely come down to how me and my manager line up our releases, in terms of the songs that make sense to be heard at each specific time of the year.
What do you think of the direction that the UK drill scene is heading in?
This question is always a tricky one and if I’m being honest I don’t really have an answer for it. What I would say is, with so many different sub genres of drill , how you think the scene is moving depends on your favourite type of drill to listen to. For example, if you like lofi drill in comparison to ‘Plugged In’ type of drill and the scene is full of lofi drill you’ll feel the scene is moving in the right direction.
One thing I can definitely see getting rinsed is samples on drill. I see people sampling because of the appeal and not putting heart into the music in relation to the sample and it shows because you can hear the things being said in comparison to the sample.
This is no shade being thrown at anyone as my view is completely subjective, but for example I heard a Jocelyn Flores drill sample and the stuff I was hearing in comparison to the sample just didn’t compliment the sample at all.
Jocelyn Flores is about a girl called Jocelyn Flores who took her own life due to depression. You can’t sample something like that and start talking about cheffings and shootings it frustrates me, like… talk about suttin real and respect the sample and where it comes from. Not every sample is as deep as that one so from time to time you can get away with substance that doesn’t relate back to the sample, but when you take a meaningful sample, make the song meaningful too.
Do you see yourself moving beyond a fixed genre at some point?
I’ve already moved past a fixed genre, it’s just a matter of me dropping all the music I’ve been sitting on to take away this stigma that I only belong to one genre.
You’ve been endorsed by and performed with some influential names already. How does it feel to have the backing of fellow artists?
It’s always a good thing to get along with people around you in general, I just happened to be surrounded by brothers of mine who also do music the same way I do and we just help each other where we’re able to.
I love the energy in your delivery, how did you develop that charisma?
I think at first the charisma and energy was too make up for lack of delivery , but as I developed as an artist I was learning that the right words can have the same affect as the emotion you intend to say it with. I started to work with a ‘tell me don’t show me’ mindset in order to execute the substance side of things in my music.
How do you choose the beats that you opt for?
In all honesty it’s just a matter of the beat making sense and speaking to me in the right way. Whether I hop on a beat also depends on my ability to resonate with it emotionally. There are certain beats I’ll receive at a certain moment in time and I’ll overlook it but then I’ll come back to it at a certain point with a different emotion and start to write a madness.
Talk me through the themes of your most recent single ‘Targets Met’
The main theme is linked with grinding through the struggle, and getting what you want to achieve by hitting goals and targets that you’ve set yourself to hit. What triggered me to make the song was a situation my older brother Major was in triggered the mindset I was in when writing the song.
Any insight into when your next release is set to land?
I’m not sure as of yet but it shouldn’t be too long till we get the ball rolling this year.
Who would you love to collaborate with?
There are so many great artists in this scene I would love to collaborate with such as the likes of Wretch, Knucks, Sun Silva (band), Joyner Lucas and the list stretches to be honest, I’m willing to collaborate with anyone as there isn’t too many politics that get in the way so as long as we make good music.
If you were introducing yourself to a new listener who’d never heard of you before, what track would you play them?
I would recommend them my One Mic on GRM Daily. For me my one mic is the best display of showing my versatility as an artist and my ability to hop on different beats and tempos without losing substance and still maintaining a high level of delivery .
What is to come from you in 2022?
High levels of consistency and good music, nothing more, nothing less… well there might be something more but for now we’ll wait and see what the year has in store for me and the team.