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Sounds like:
Q-Tip,
Childish Gambino,
Pharrell
Why do we like this?
Knock, knock. A skinny, familiar looking dude opens the door and welcomes me to the sixth floor of a Manhattan walk-up apartment. We dap, and he leads the way into a sizable Upper West Side spread that holds the aftermath of last night's intense pre-game. Before I even sit down, he picks up an XBOX 360 controller, asking "You play Fifa?" He's finishing up the final minutes of some international play. Napoli vs. AC Roma. Any doubts I had of enjoying my time with Skizzy Mars today are completely dashed.
The 20-year-old New York City born and bred artist is the definition of up-and-coming. After a few moments of small talk, he tells me about the two West Coast shows he has next weekend. He's performing with popular Chicago-based Chance the Rapper at a school in Washington, then a show at Stanford. I ask how this type of lifestyle is going for him. "You know, I'm comfortable, and colleges pay well, man. Enough to live comfortably in the come up. As long as I can just have money in my pocket for weed and shit, I'm good," he replies.
On top of doing spot shows all over the country, Skizzy has been spending the past few months working diligently on his latest music project, titled Pace. The free-for-download release is the second of its kind in the past year, following up Skizzy's first full-length project Phases, the successful mixtape that has compiled over a million listens on SoundCloud.
"Phases was a little, not dark, but more low key stoner music. With Pace, it's more cohesive. It's more about vibes, and I wanted to make a groovy record. I don't want to replicate anything. I just want to make the type of shit I would listen to," he explains. Skizzy has been working almost solely with NYC producer Michael Keenan, who also happens to be his on-stage DJ. Mikey, as Skizzy refers to him, has been a supplier of nothing but dope beats that are built off samples from many different genres. Skizzy laces these tracks with his signature storytelling flow and auto-tuned melodies. From what I've been able to hear off of Pace so far, the collaboration is truly a recipe for success.
We crack open a bottle of Chimay, the heavy Belgian style beer. He grabs the experienced looking bong off of the coffee table and takes a rip. Staying high seems about as normal to Skizzy as staying hydrated is to most. NBA basketball is on the television. Clippers vs. Thunder. "What do you think about these short sleeve jerseys?" he asks. Skizzy, a lifelong NBA fan and previously a two-year starter on his high school's varsity team, is a basketball know-it-all. A big fan of sports personalities like Bill Simmons and Stephen A. Smith, he almost went down a very different path. There was a stint at a prestigious sports broadcaster camp, a gig writing for a very popular New York Knicks blog and covering the NBA draft. He went to college with a vision of sports journalism, but once he put "Douchebag" on the Internet in 2011, everything changed. I tell him I like the jerseys because I like change. He feels me, and responds, "It's all about progression."
There is an underlying theme of change and progression in our conversation, as there is in Skizzy's music. "I call it the post-Kanye generation. You know, I didn't grow up on Tupac and Biggie. I grew up on Cudi and Ye and Drake. I listened to The Killers, and Beirut, and shit like that. For me, it's just about being creative, working with other insanely creative people, and adding diversity to music," he says.
At only 20 years old, Skizzy is appreciative of what the last two to three years has brought, but he's nowhere near satisfied. With a growing fanbase and oversight of his brand Penthouse Records, he values being strategic, but there is a sense of urgency that radiates from his tone. "People say, 'how do you feel about being 20?' I'm like, dude, I'm old. I feel kind of insecure about being 20. There're so many kids out there now. It's sick. There're 17 year olds that are killing it."
He might be concerned about getting older in a game where youth thrives, but with that comes an understanding of the long run. It's a philosophy that could be the difference between a couple popular mixtapes and worldwide stardom. "Consistency and quality of music goes a long way. Momentum is everything. When people anticipate your new music, that's the most gratifying thing to me. Losing that? That fucking sucks. That's like the scariest thing in the world to me. I have some friends that have lost that momentum, and it's just the worst thing," he says.
Skizzy and I kick it for a while. We discuss music, girls, NYC nights, college, drugs, shows, video games, basketball, life. Before I leave, we run a quick match in Fifa. I'm England, he's France. It's a defensive battle, but I lose 1-0 to a Franck Ribery 45th-minute goal after a series of missed opportunities.
"It's hard to talk and play Fifa," he says. I agree.
This article is in conjunction with the exclusive Indie Shuffle premiere of "Too Ill" off Skizzy Mars' latest project titled Pace. Pace is out on March 4, 2014. Download and follow Skizzy on Twitter here.
The 20-year-old New York City born and bred artist is the definition of up-and-coming. After a few moments of small talk, he tells me about the two West Coast shows he has next weekend. He's performing with popular Chicago-based Chance the Rapper at a school in Washington, then a show at Stanford. I ask how this type of lifestyle is going for him. "You know, I'm comfortable, and colleges pay well, man. Enough to live comfortably in the come up. As long as I can just have money in my pocket for weed and shit, I'm good," he replies.
On top of doing spot shows all over the country, Skizzy has been spending the past few months working diligently on his latest music project, titled Pace. The free-for-download release is the second of its kind in the past year, following up Skizzy's first full-length project Phases, the successful mixtape that has compiled over a million listens on SoundCloud.
"Phases was a little, not dark, but more low key stoner music. With Pace, it's more cohesive. It's more about vibes, and I wanted to make a groovy record. I don't want to replicate anything. I just want to make the type of shit I would listen to," he explains. Skizzy has been working almost solely with NYC producer Michael Keenan, who also happens to be his on-stage DJ. Mikey, as Skizzy refers to him, has been a supplier of nothing but dope beats that are built off samples from many different genres. Skizzy laces these tracks with his signature storytelling flow and auto-tuned melodies. From what I've been able to hear off of Pace so far, the collaboration is truly a recipe for success.
We crack open a bottle of Chimay, the heavy Belgian style beer. He grabs the experienced looking bong off of the coffee table and takes a rip. Staying high seems about as normal to Skizzy as staying hydrated is to most. NBA basketball is on the television. Clippers vs. Thunder. "What do you think about these short sleeve jerseys?" he asks. Skizzy, a lifelong NBA fan and previously a two-year starter on his high school's varsity team, is a basketball know-it-all. A big fan of sports personalities like Bill Simmons and Stephen A. Smith, he almost went down a very different path. There was a stint at a prestigious sports broadcaster camp, a gig writing for a very popular New York Knicks blog and covering the NBA draft. He went to college with a vision of sports journalism, but once he put "Douchebag" on the Internet in 2011, everything changed. I tell him I like the jerseys because I like change. He feels me, and responds, "It's all about progression."
There is an underlying theme of change and progression in our conversation, as there is in Skizzy's music. "I call it the post-Kanye generation. You know, I didn't grow up on Tupac and Biggie. I grew up on Cudi and Ye and Drake. I listened to The Killers, and Beirut, and shit like that. For me, it's just about being creative, working with other insanely creative people, and adding diversity to music," he says.
At only 20 years old, Skizzy is appreciative of what the last two to three years has brought, but he's nowhere near satisfied. With a growing fanbase and oversight of his brand Penthouse Records, he values being strategic, but there is a sense of urgency that radiates from his tone. "People say, 'how do you feel about being 20?' I'm like, dude, I'm old. I feel kind of insecure about being 20. There're so many kids out there now. It's sick. There're 17 year olds that are killing it."
He might be concerned about getting older in a game where youth thrives, but with that comes an understanding of the long run. It's a philosophy that could be the difference between a couple popular mixtapes and worldwide stardom. "Consistency and quality of music goes a long way. Momentum is everything. When people anticipate your new music, that's the most gratifying thing to me. Losing that? That fucking sucks. That's like the scariest thing in the world to me. I have some friends that have lost that momentum, and it's just the worst thing," he says.
Skizzy and I kick it for a while. We discuss music, girls, NYC nights, college, drugs, shows, video games, basketball, life. Before I leave, we run a quick match in Fifa. I'm England, he's France. It's a defensive battle, but I lose 1-0 to a Franck Ribery 45th-minute goal after a series of missed opportunities.
"It's hard to talk and play Fifa," he says. I agree.
This article is in conjunction with the exclusive Indie Shuffle premiere of "Too Ill" off Skizzy Mars' latest project titled Pace. Pace is out on March 4, 2014. Download and follow Skizzy on Twitter here.
Streaming source:
http://soundcloud.com/skizzymars/too-ill
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