+ (614) BLESSED –GODSPEED
TALENT Blessed
PHOTOGRAPHY Leo Harunah
STYLIST Parmtree
ARTWORK Jesse Vega
SET DESIGN Francesca Nwokeocha
WORDS Tariro Mukando
BLESSED is an artist who defies expectation. The Ghanaian-Australian musician isn’t someone who takes the easy route. He signed to Sony when he was 18 and made music under the pseudonym, Miracle, where he cemented himself as a pioneer for the culture. For context, if you weren’t a teenager in the 2010s or weren’t paying attention, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that BLESSED was the biggest celebrity in Western Sydney. The term “area famous” doesn’t do him justice. He gave Black kids in Australia someone we could rally behind. After all, he could relate to our experience of being children to immigrant parents and having to navigate African and Western culture. Fast forward a few years and he’s left Sony, ditched the pseudonym, and produced music for Kid Laroi and Manu Crooks. He’s making music that is authentic to him and proving that trusting your talent always pay off.
When it comes to pressure, he isn’t one to let external opinions influence his art. There’s no better example of this than his departure from Sony. “I don’t really like to be told what to do and being in a situation where you’re signed to a major label [and] they’re putting all of this money behind you so obviously they’re going to want to have a say in everything you do, everything you wear, [and] all the places you go... I’m an artist at heart and that’s not art anymore, it becomes manufactured noise and I just didn’t want to be a part of that.
“Whatever it took, it didn’t matter to me if I wouldn’t have the same opportunities. Through my art and through being true to myself I’d be able to create those opportunities for myself.”
So, farewell Sony? The popularisation of independent musicians has created an environment where there’s less need for artists to sign to major labels with the new generation of musicians afinding success by leveraging their social platforms. “[Major] Labels are going to become obsolete... We have the internet to market our own stuff. What can the labels offer an artist nowadays? It’s just money. Money comes and money goes. I’m not encouraging this [laughs], but you can get money from your local drug dealer to support you and put up the money to shoot cool videos to market yourself, what do you need a label for? I definitely feel like the tides are shifting towards the independent route [and] the ownership route. A lot of these young TikTokers and popular YouTube kids can create their own platform and whether I like their music or not, that’s something that I can appreciate. They don’t need labels to do these things.”
With major labels losing their lustre, there’s no better time for BLESSED to launch his label, Godspeed. Godspeed came out of a random encounter with a Frank Ocean song. Waiting in a line at Maccas, his Creative Director’s order number was the same as the track number for Godspeed on Frank Ocean’s Blonde album, which they were listening to at the time. Religion has been woven into the fabric of who BLESSED is, coming from a “super Christian” family and having a Pastor as a father, so the word was perfect. “Godspeed is pretty much wishing you well on your journey. Life is a journey and I’m wishing everyone well, I’m also wishing myself well.”
Among the homegrown talent that BLESSED is wishing well is Baby Prince who he describes as “my favourite rapper right now”, Amaarae, a collaborator on his latest project, Billymaree, One Four and Kid Laroi. “It’s just beautiful to watch and it makes me proud to see that it can be done on such a global scale... it’s exciting to see that and I just hope that a lot more kids are inspired by [them] and start making music, doing fashion, start media outlets, whatever it is to contribute to the culture.”
BLESSED’s most recent project Music Is the Medicine is a 13-track insight into his views on youth, heartbreak and death. There’s always purpose in his process so every song on the mixtape is tuned to a different sound frequency – frequencies related to healing, abundance, hope, etc. – so listeners are affected by more than just the lyrics.
Despite having a career that spans over a decade, BLESSED feels like the best is yet to come. “When I was younger, I used to think getting older was scary but now that I’m heading into my thirties, I feel like they’re going to be the best years of my life. I’ve accumulated so much knowledge, wisdom and understanding of myself, not even of the outside world but within.”
His current sound has been described as indie pop, rock and hip-hop but he doesn’t fixate on genres. After all, his musical influences include Kanye West, Nirvana and Jimi Hendrix. What matters most to him is creating music that is true to him. “I think my view of music is so true to myself and true to what I believe in, and what I think I should be creating so I’m never scared of what anyone else thinks or what might fit their mould or criteria. To me, all of my music is so freeing and is from a deep place. It’s almost like my ancestors are speaking through me.”
“ALL MY MUSIC IS FREEING AND FROM A DEEP PLACE. IT’S ALMOST LIKE MY ANCESTORS ARE SPEAKING THROUGH ME.”
There’s a distinct difference between BLESSED’s current sound and his previous one and he understands that his new music might not resonate with fans who were there for Miracle. “The [new] music is so different. It’s really more of an introspective view of myself and my surroundings whereas when I was younger, I was just rapping for the fun of it. [I was] just trying to stick to the mould and just fit in and be cool. It’s funny because even my own family members, my younger brothers are always like ‘When are you going to rap again?’. I get it though, and I definitely appreciate who I was, who I used to be and that helped me grow into who I am.”
With the success of alternative artists like Kid Cudi, B.O.B. and Lupe Fiasco, we asked BLESSED if he thought mainstream Australian industry was ready to embace him. “At the end of the day Australia has never accepted any Black artist in any genre in any regard so I’ll just be happy to see any Black artist accepted on a mainstream level in Australia. I have no idea what genre it’d be, but I think we all want to see it.”
When asked whether Black Australian artists should focus on making it abroad, his answer is a resounding yes. “That’s the sad truth. Artists like Manu Crooks, who is one of my brothers, his streams and views all come from Europe. He’s way bigger in Europe than he is in his own home country so for the rest of us artists here it’s sad, but we pretty much have to look outside before our neighbours look at us.”
Another reason for the industry not backing Black artists could be because of a lack of access Black artists have to people in power. “I think they’d [industry gate keepers and labels] rather put on their mates or people they go out drinking with... Whereas most, if not all, of the Black artists are from out West or somewhere else in Australia [and] don’t really have the connections and we don’t have the drive to be buddy-buddy or kiss ass to be put in the right positions or the right spots to eventually become mainstream.
“For an artist to become mainstream or accepted nation-wide that means their business has to be right. They have to be doing all of the festivals or the shows, having their face everywhere and having the brand associations to elevate their profile and all these things are as important as the music.”
Although new artists have emerged and found success in doing things differently, it seems that most major labels still aren’t willing to take risks on Black artists who don’t fit into stereotypical genres. “It’s way bigger than the music and to be allowed to do all of those things you have to get pushed and backed by the right people and the people in power are the wrong people. They’ve been doing the exact same thing over and over again whereas it’s a different time and it’s a different generation. Australia is such a multicultural place. If they were to open their eyes, they could potentially be banking off of some of that talent but they’re not willing to do it.”
There’s no shortage of reasons as to why the industry continues to operate the way it does but BLESSED’s success serves as a reminder that artists don’t have to play the game the way it was designed. They don’t have to play the game at all. As we eagerly await the launch of Godspeed, we’re left to imagine what BLESSED’s next project – potentially a gospel album – will sound like. Whatever the sound, we know it’ll be something that’ll be what the culture needs at that moment. If you’re looking for the voice of the past, present and future, look no further than BLESSED.