Illy (01/04/2014)
Hey Illy, how are you going today man?
Hey man, how’s it going?
Yeah not too bad.
Awesome, the shows on the Cinematic tour sold out, have you got to the stage where you’re expecting at least one sell out show, or you still feel like you’re going to rock up and play for 10 people?
It doesn’t feel like we’re going to rock and up play to 10 people, but these shows sold out a lot quicker than we thought. Some of them, pretty much all of them, have sold out a least a month in advance which is a new thing for me. I guess it’s somewhere in between expecting no-one to show up, and expecting a sell out show. It’s cool man, this is really exciting, it’s nice to be one of those guys that doesn’t just explode and then drop off. It’s all been pretty gradual and it’s nice to see that it’s still just going up.
Yeah you’ve been building for a while now, how long would you say you’ve been in the hip hop business?
Well the first album came out in 2009, so it’s a couple months off being five years ago. But I’ve been doing live shows since I was 17, and I was writing songs from like 13. So it’s over half my life now, which is crazy.
Along with you being in it for so long, on the social network side of things, I know I became a bigger fan of your music simply because you’ve kept a level head over the years. Have you noticed that as a common theme with your fans, and that’s why they’ve stuck with you for so long?
Yeah a bit man, Aussie hip-hop is a funny genre because it’s so awesome. So much of it is intelligent, but a lot of it is lowbrow shit as well. Sort of bottom of the barrel sort of stuff. It means people who aren’t fans can point to that stuff and say “It’s bullshit. This genre is a joke”. So I’ve tried to avoid that, I’ve tried to make something that people can like, without lowering their standards and trying to make dumb shit if you know what I mean? I guess the online shit, the social media side of it, is kind of a reflection of that. I mean, I’ve got a level head, I’m the same as everyone else, I’m not some special dude. I guess, yeah, people have come up to me and said they really appreciate that I’m down to Earth. People online will be like “Oh my god, I can’t believe you replied to this”, or “I’m tripping that you took the time to holler back”, but I’ve got the time! You took the time to hit me up, and you’re a fan of my music, that’s how it should be. Sorry, that’s a really long answer *laughs*
That’s completely fine. I was asking because, compared to America where they blow up and they start saying they’re riding in limos and drinking high class champagne, one of the biggest positive responses you’ve got has been when you posted a photo of you flipping off your own poster in Melbourne.
*laughs* yeah man, I don’t know. It’s just not who I am to be up my own arse. I’m not one of those dudes, and I never will be. You know, people appreciate it because smart people listen to Australian Hip Hop too. When I’m talking about some shit that’s not just retarded, people appreciate that. It’s cool.
*laughs* definitely. Now, just to move onto the Hottest 100, the Aus Music Month Medley you did was your highest song to make it into it, did you anticipate that your fans would love it as much as they did?
Man, we had eleven days to make that, so I didn’t have any time other than just to think “How the fuck am I going to get this done in time?" I thought it was a cool idea, for real man, I was under that much pressure to get it done. I wasn’t thinking about anything apart from just getting it done. When we were making it, until when we performed it, there was no time to worry about what people were going to think. You know, you rehearse it, rehearse it, rehearse it, then when you play it, it’s the first time people hear it. It’s not like there’s a middle ground like with an album, where you’ve got this finished thing that no-one’s heard. Like, I was finishing big parts of the verses, four hours before we played it. If you look at the video, I’m scrolling on an iPad and reading the lyrics because I didn’t have time to memorise them, mainly because I’d written them in the hours beforehand. Yeah man, the sort of long answer to that is, I wasn’t too worried about what people were thinking. By the time I could, I knew people loved it because people were hitting me up and telling me that.
Still going along the Hottest 100 side of things, I’m a huge fan of The Amity Affliction, and ‘Youngbloods’ just worked out so well. Did you or Ahren come up with the idea to put him as the hook?
That was my idea man, my manager manages The Amity Affliction as well, and he showed me their song at a house party like three years ago. It’s not my music, like not really my genre, but that hook was insane. It was like “Dude, that could be a sick hook for one of my songs.” He hit up Ahren, and we just hung out and did it, it just sort of happened.
So are you guys best mates now? Like, are we going to see you go on tour with the Amity boys, or are you just going to see it as a backburner sort of thing?
Nah, I don’t think so man. But Ahren’s a fucking legend. They’re busy doing their shit, and I’m busy with mine. I’d love to go and play with them, and you know, I’ve actually sort of got into Amity’s stuff since. With their cover of ‘Born to Die’ ‘Too Legit to Quit’, it’s sick, it’s such a great cover of the song. I’m a new Amity fan, so it’s cool.
Do you reckon you’ll be doing more collaborations with artists along different genres? That’d probably set you apart from a lot of people.
I don’t know man, I’m always open to working with talented people. I’m not one to shut doors before I’ve had a chance to see what’s inside. But I’m not gonna say I’m going to do a whole bunch of collaborations. But if the right thing came along, man, I would be so down. The reason ‘Youngbloods’ worked is because it’s just a cool idea, a cool song, a cool beat, a cool hook, it was just cool. If something like that were to happen again, I’d be totally down for it.
I’m looking forward to it. You said before that you’re doing your own stuff; since starting OneTwo, have you found it hard to keep the balance between managing and the performing side of things? Or have you and UNFD figured it out where that won’t ever be a problem?
Well right now, there’s not too much to do. Like, Cinematic has been my focus, and we’ve got Allday’s album coming out soon. But Allday, he knows what he wants and he’s going for it, so it doesn’t require much to tell someone who’s motivated and driven, to be motivated and driven. Like he’s doing that himself, but as soon as his album is out and as soon as it’s finished, in terms of getting it ready, that’s when the OneTwo stuff will come into play. But at the moment, there hasn’t been too much apart from Cinematic. I’m an artist first, I’m my own artist. That’s not going to change, so there hasn’t been a situation when I’ve gone “Fuck, I’ve either gotta dedicate time to being an artist or dedicate time to OneTwo”. It might happen at some stage, but I’m not there yet.
Hopefully it doesn’t and you can just keep the balance you’ve got going on.
Yeah well, I’d love to be able to go into management and just really branch it out. To get to that point, I’d have to dedicate some more time to it. But right now, I’ve got a lot of time, I’m not in the studio for another month, two months, three months, so I’ve got so much time on my hands. Mainly to rehearse the live show, do stuff, play FIFA, it’s cool right now. I’m not pressed for time so it’s cool man.
Excellent. Obviously Cinematic’s a huge part of your life and it’s blowing up in a big way at the moment, have you got a feel yet for the crowd favourite songs, or is the upcoming tour how you’re going to gauge that?
‘Tightrope’ is probably the song that we’ve been playing for the last few months that’s gotten the biggest response. With the new stuff though, the tour will be a pretty good indicator of what’s actually popular. But I’d say ‘Tightrope’ and ‘One For The City’ are probably the two that have got the best response so far. But again Cinematic isn’t all about party tunes, like, we’re playing the whole album on this tour and I think that some of the songs won’t get that jumping around, wild response sort of thing. Some of them won’t translate to playing live, for various reasons, it’s hard to tell man without playing them.
Would you be open to supporting Kanye? I’m not sure what he’d be like with someone rapping before him.
Oh I love Kanye West, he’s a crazy artist, and he’s one of the best in the past 10 years in the world. But I think he’d be a little bit too intense, like to deal with at this stage. If the offer comes in, I’ll totally take it.
Yeah that’d be a massive opportunity. Along those lines, since 360’s just toured with Eminem, it’s not too hard to imagine someone like Kanye or even Jay-Z bringing you along for the ride when he tours next. You didn’t get a chance to talk to his management or anything like that when you were over there in Brooklyn?
Nah, my girlfriend and I went to his concert in Brooklyn on our first night in New York. But no, no pow wows with his management unfortunately.
That’s a shame, I was hoping to get some massive info out of you at some point.
*laughs* Sorry dude, I’m letting you down.
Nah, that’s alright. You’ve already won an ARIA for ‘Bring it Back’, are there any awards you’ve set your sights on for Cinematic?
Nah man, I don’t really care too much about the awards. I mean, the ARIA was nice, and it’s always going to be something I’m proud of and I can hang my hat on for the rest of my life. But I don’t give too much of a fuck about awards that aren’t voted for by the people, by the public. I put more value in a Hottest 100 place than an ARIA, because one’s voted for by the industry, and one is voted for by the people. You can’t fuck with the fact that people are going out and supporting me.
Yeah, and the industry aren’t exactly the ones who are buying your album and coming to the shows.
Exactly, exactly dude. It’s nice, I’m not talking down the ARIAs, but for me personally, I would take a spot in the Hottest 100 over an ARIA any day. Mainly because the industry one is voted for by people who aren’t fans, and yeah, the other one is exclusively fans and people who support me. You have to make that the priority, if you don’t, then you’ve got your priorities fucked up.
Well it’s definitely a good way to live, rather than going for awards and drifting away from your fans.
Nah man, never that. Never that.
Now you’ve come a long way since ‘On the Bus’ which is one of my favourite songs of yours, do you think your younger self would actually look at you and say he’d be happier riding the bus?
He’d probably be like “Hurry up, I want to be a star” *laughs*. It was simpler, but there’s a lot of cool shit happening now man.
Yeah and at least now you don’t just have to limit yourself to Passion Pop.
*laughs* yeah, right? There are some obligations I have to make now.
Definitely, last year you rode the ‘On and On’ wave to Europe, how did the crowds over there compare to the ones in Australia? I know you did a show in London, and was it the Czech Republic?
Yeah man, we played London, Berlin and Prague. Berlin was really tough, it was a last minute gig and it was a really tough gig. It was one of those were it brings your feet firmly to the ground, and it just sort of humbles you. But Prague was at a festival and we got five hundred people to listen, and we played in a Soviet Era bunker like in a hill. It was wild dude. It was crazy, we did well there. People probably didn’t understand what we were saying, but they wilded out regardless. London, we sold it out, it was a small room with only a couple hundred people but it was our first time in London man, and it was awesome.
Are there any overseas venues or places that you really want to hit up? Maybe Japan or something like that?
Dude, I would love to play Japan. I would love to play a gig in Tokyo, or Osaka, or Fukushima or wherever. Right now, it’s all good, I’m sort of settled here. But if something pops up I’ll take it, I’d love to take it to New York or LA, or the Snowfields in Canada. But you know, if it comes it comes, and if it doesn’t it doesn’t, I’m fine with staying here.
A lot of people seem to not realize they have big fanbases overseas and then they’re completely shocked when their shows sell out, and that their music has reached that far. Did you have an example of when that’s happened to you, I suppose the sold out show in London was something like that for you.
I didn’t expect to sell it out, which would be my example. It caught all of us by surprise, but it was fun you know, it is awesome to think that your music is making it that far around the world.
Just finally, I wanted to ask, you were your own model for your merch shots over on 24 hundred, do you reckon you’re going to reach a level soon where you can hire someone else for that job?
*laughs* Yeah, I think so bro. I think that was a one off thing, and it was last minute so I just said “Fuck it, I’ll do it”. I don’t think that’ll happen again. That’s a good question *laughs*.
Thanks for talking with the 59th Sound today.
Cheers dude.
Jonty Simmons
Hey man, how’s it going?
Yeah not too bad.
Awesome, the shows on the Cinematic tour sold out, have you got to the stage where you’re expecting at least one sell out show, or you still feel like you’re going to rock up and play for 10 people?
It doesn’t feel like we’re going to rock and up play to 10 people, but these shows sold out a lot quicker than we thought. Some of them, pretty much all of them, have sold out a least a month in advance which is a new thing for me. I guess it’s somewhere in between expecting no-one to show up, and expecting a sell out show. It’s cool man, this is really exciting, it’s nice to be one of those guys that doesn’t just explode and then drop off. It’s all been pretty gradual and it’s nice to see that it’s still just going up.
Yeah you’ve been building for a while now, how long would you say you’ve been in the hip hop business?
Well the first album came out in 2009, so it’s a couple months off being five years ago. But I’ve been doing live shows since I was 17, and I was writing songs from like 13. So it’s over half my life now, which is crazy.
Along with you being in it for so long, on the social network side of things, I know I became a bigger fan of your music simply because you’ve kept a level head over the years. Have you noticed that as a common theme with your fans, and that’s why they’ve stuck with you for so long?
Yeah a bit man, Aussie hip-hop is a funny genre because it’s so awesome. So much of it is intelligent, but a lot of it is lowbrow shit as well. Sort of bottom of the barrel sort of stuff. It means people who aren’t fans can point to that stuff and say “It’s bullshit. This genre is a joke”. So I’ve tried to avoid that, I’ve tried to make something that people can like, without lowering their standards and trying to make dumb shit if you know what I mean? I guess the online shit, the social media side of it, is kind of a reflection of that. I mean, I’ve got a level head, I’m the same as everyone else, I’m not some special dude. I guess, yeah, people have come up to me and said they really appreciate that I’m down to Earth. People online will be like “Oh my god, I can’t believe you replied to this”, or “I’m tripping that you took the time to holler back”, but I’ve got the time! You took the time to hit me up, and you’re a fan of my music, that’s how it should be. Sorry, that’s a really long answer *laughs*
That’s completely fine. I was asking because, compared to America where they blow up and they start saying they’re riding in limos and drinking high class champagne, one of the biggest positive responses you’ve got has been when you posted a photo of you flipping off your own poster in Melbourne.
*laughs* yeah man, I don’t know. It’s just not who I am to be up my own arse. I’m not one of those dudes, and I never will be. You know, people appreciate it because smart people listen to Australian Hip Hop too. When I’m talking about some shit that’s not just retarded, people appreciate that. It’s cool.
*laughs* definitely. Now, just to move onto the Hottest 100, the Aus Music Month Medley you did was your highest song to make it into it, did you anticipate that your fans would love it as much as they did?
Man, we had eleven days to make that, so I didn’t have any time other than just to think “How the fuck am I going to get this done in time?" I thought it was a cool idea, for real man, I was under that much pressure to get it done. I wasn’t thinking about anything apart from just getting it done. When we were making it, until when we performed it, there was no time to worry about what people were going to think. You know, you rehearse it, rehearse it, rehearse it, then when you play it, it’s the first time people hear it. It’s not like there’s a middle ground like with an album, where you’ve got this finished thing that no-one’s heard. Like, I was finishing big parts of the verses, four hours before we played it. If you look at the video, I’m scrolling on an iPad and reading the lyrics because I didn’t have time to memorise them, mainly because I’d written them in the hours beforehand. Yeah man, the sort of long answer to that is, I wasn’t too worried about what people were thinking. By the time I could, I knew people loved it because people were hitting me up and telling me that.
Still going along the Hottest 100 side of things, I’m a huge fan of The Amity Affliction, and ‘Youngbloods’ just worked out so well. Did you or Ahren come up with the idea to put him as the hook?
That was my idea man, my manager manages The Amity Affliction as well, and he showed me their song at a house party like three years ago. It’s not my music, like not really my genre, but that hook was insane. It was like “Dude, that could be a sick hook for one of my songs.” He hit up Ahren, and we just hung out and did it, it just sort of happened.
So are you guys best mates now? Like, are we going to see you go on tour with the Amity boys, or are you just going to see it as a backburner sort of thing?
Nah, I don’t think so man. But Ahren’s a fucking legend. They’re busy doing their shit, and I’m busy with mine. I’d love to go and play with them, and you know, I’ve actually sort of got into Amity’s stuff since. With their cover of ‘Born to Die’ ‘Too Legit to Quit’, it’s sick, it’s such a great cover of the song. I’m a new Amity fan, so it’s cool.
Do you reckon you’ll be doing more collaborations with artists along different genres? That’d probably set you apart from a lot of people.
I don’t know man, I’m always open to working with talented people. I’m not one to shut doors before I’ve had a chance to see what’s inside. But I’m not gonna say I’m going to do a whole bunch of collaborations. But if the right thing came along, man, I would be so down. The reason ‘Youngbloods’ worked is because it’s just a cool idea, a cool song, a cool beat, a cool hook, it was just cool. If something like that were to happen again, I’d be totally down for it.
I’m looking forward to it. You said before that you’re doing your own stuff; since starting OneTwo, have you found it hard to keep the balance between managing and the performing side of things? Or have you and UNFD figured it out where that won’t ever be a problem?
Well right now, there’s not too much to do. Like, Cinematic has been my focus, and we’ve got Allday’s album coming out soon. But Allday, he knows what he wants and he’s going for it, so it doesn’t require much to tell someone who’s motivated and driven, to be motivated and driven. Like he’s doing that himself, but as soon as his album is out and as soon as it’s finished, in terms of getting it ready, that’s when the OneTwo stuff will come into play. But at the moment, there hasn’t been too much apart from Cinematic. I’m an artist first, I’m my own artist. That’s not going to change, so there hasn’t been a situation when I’ve gone “Fuck, I’ve either gotta dedicate time to being an artist or dedicate time to OneTwo”. It might happen at some stage, but I’m not there yet.
Hopefully it doesn’t and you can just keep the balance you’ve got going on.
Yeah well, I’d love to be able to go into management and just really branch it out. To get to that point, I’d have to dedicate some more time to it. But right now, I’ve got a lot of time, I’m not in the studio for another month, two months, three months, so I’ve got so much time on my hands. Mainly to rehearse the live show, do stuff, play FIFA, it’s cool right now. I’m not pressed for time so it’s cool man.
Excellent. Obviously Cinematic’s a huge part of your life and it’s blowing up in a big way at the moment, have you got a feel yet for the crowd favourite songs, or is the upcoming tour how you’re going to gauge that?
‘Tightrope’ is probably the song that we’ve been playing for the last few months that’s gotten the biggest response. With the new stuff though, the tour will be a pretty good indicator of what’s actually popular. But I’d say ‘Tightrope’ and ‘One For The City’ are probably the two that have got the best response so far. But again Cinematic isn’t all about party tunes, like, we’re playing the whole album on this tour and I think that some of the songs won’t get that jumping around, wild response sort of thing. Some of them won’t translate to playing live, for various reasons, it’s hard to tell man without playing them.
Would you be open to supporting Kanye? I’m not sure what he’d be like with someone rapping before him.
Oh I love Kanye West, he’s a crazy artist, and he’s one of the best in the past 10 years in the world. But I think he’d be a little bit too intense, like to deal with at this stage. If the offer comes in, I’ll totally take it.
Yeah that’d be a massive opportunity. Along those lines, since 360’s just toured with Eminem, it’s not too hard to imagine someone like Kanye or even Jay-Z bringing you along for the ride when he tours next. You didn’t get a chance to talk to his management or anything like that when you were over there in Brooklyn?
Nah, my girlfriend and I went to his concert in Brooklyn on our first night in New York. But no, no pow wows with his management unfortunately.
That’s a shame, I was hoping to get some massive info out of you at some point.
*laughs* Sorry dude, I’m letting you down.
Nah, that’s alright. You’ve already won an ARIA for ‘Bring it Back’, are there any awards you’ve set your sights on for Cinematic?
Nah man, I don’t really care too much about the awards. I mean, the ARIA was nice, and it’s always going to be something I’m proud of and I can hang my hat on for the rest of my life. But I don’t give too much of a fuck about awards that aren’t voted for by the people, by the public. I put more value in a Hottest 100 place than an ARIA, because one’s voted for by the industry, and one is voted for by the people. You can’t fuck with the fact that people are going out and supporting me.
Yeah, and the industry aren’t exactly the ones who are buying your album and coming to the shows.
Exactly, exactly dude. It’s nice, I’m not talking down the ARIAs, but for me personally, I would take a spot in the Hottest 100 over an ARIA any day. Mainly because the industry one is voted for by people who aren’t fans, and yeah, the other one is exclusively fans and people who support me. You have to make that the priority, if you don’t, then you’ve got your priorities fucked up.
Well it’s definitely a good way to live, rather than going for awards and drifting away from your fans.
Nah man, never that. Never that.
Now you’ve come a long way since ‘On the Bus’ which is one of my favourite songs of yours, do you think your younger self would actually look at you and say he’d be happier riding the bus?
He’d probably be like “Hurry up, I want to be a star” *laughs*. It was simpler, but there’s a lot of cool shit happening now man.
Yeah and at least now you don’t just have to limit yourself to Passion Pop.
*laughs* yeah, right? There are some obligations I have to make now.
Definitely, last year you rode the ‘On and On’ wave to Europe, how did the crowds over there compare to the ones in Australia? I know you did a show in London, and was it the Czech Republic?
Yeah man, we played London, Berlin and Prague. Berlin was really tough, it was a last minute gig and it was a really tough gig. It was one of those were it brings your feet firmly to the ground, and it just sort of humbles you. But Prague was at a festival and we got five hundred people to listen, and we played in a Soviet Era bunker like in a hill. It was wild dude. It was crazy, we did well there. People probably didn’t understand what we were saying, but they wilded out regardless. London, we sold it out, it was a small room with only a couple hundred people but it was our first time in London man, and it was awesome.
Are there any overseas venues or places that you really want to hit up? Maybe Japan or something like that?
Dude, I would love to play Japan. I would love to play a gig in Tokyo, or Osaka, or Fukushima or wherever. Right now, it’s all good, I’m sort of settled here. But if something pops up I’ll take it, I’d love to take it to New York or LA, or the Snowfields in Canada. But you know, if it comes it comes, and if it doesn’t it doesn’t, I’m fine with staying here.
A lot of people seem to not realize they have big fanbases overseas and then they’re completely shocked when their shows sell out, and that their music has reached that far. Did you have an example of when that’s happened to you, I suppose the sold out show in London was something like that for you.
I didn’t expect to sell it out, which would be my example. It caught all of us by surprise, but it was fun you know, it is awesome to think that your music is making it that far around the world.
Just finally, I wanted to ask, you were your own model for your merch shots over on 24 hundred, do you reckon you’re going to reach a level soon where you can hire someone else for that job?
*laughs* Yeah, I think so bro. I think that was a one off thing, and it was last minute so I just said “Fuck it, I’ll do it”. I don’t think that’ll happen again. That’s a good question *laughs*.
Thanks for talking with the 59th Sound today.
Cheers dude.
Jonty Simmons