Hailing from South London, Loso – otherwise known as Po Purple – is positioning himself accordingly to leave a striking impact on the UK Drill scene. Get to know him better with this VIPER interview…

What five words define your sound?

Versatile, Rhythmic, Punch, Clever but intelligible.

Tell me something unique about your creative process?

Almost every time I have a conversation with someone that I find interesting, I take away choice words without them knowing and write them down in a list that I call ‘Food for thought’. Anytime I get writers block or become in need of some inspiration I scan those notes and I’m instantly zoned back in to my creative space.

Which song of yours would you like people to hear first?

Well so far as Po Purple, I’ve put out two songs with another three waiting to be released. ideally I’d like people to hear them in order as I’ve released them, so the song ‘Control Alt & Delete’ would be the first song.

What inspired you to make that song?

The first time I heard the instrumental, it gave me punchline vibes and that’s something I get excited about creating in general. Funny enough the first line came to me simply because my screen crashed whilst downloading the mp3 to my laptop. Hence “Get it out of your system now, that’s Control Alt & Delete.”

What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music?

Oh, I can take it there especially when it comes to my relationship with women. I’ve had many vulnerable experiences and I find it somewhat therapeutic to express myself through music as it allows for not only words but instruments and melodies, which in my opinion adds more feeling and emotional response.

What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage?

I performed at a Rapology event sponsored by Sony and Choice FM a while back, whilst performing the mic kept getting feedback and it was horrible to say the least. On a brighter note, I performed at a local event where many of my family and friends turned up to support and I felt like a champion during that performance due to the screams from the crowd.

What is your favourite song to perform?

Currently I do enjoy performing ‘Corey’ although it hasn’t been much, it gets the crowd going and there’s nothing like the feeling of people liking my music.

Which artist/song/album made you want to make music?

None other than ‘Bone Thugs N Harmony – East1999/Eternal’. This group had a style so original and unique at the time that after listening to them once, I knew exactly what I wanted to be in life. Adding melody to fast Rap was a game changer and though many melodic rappers today may not know it, we’ve all been influenced in some way, shape or form, whether by Bone themselves or by artists influenced by them.

What’s the meaning by your name?

Po was the name of a special cannabis when I was growing up. In the beginning it had purple strands and youngsters like me were heavily influenced by the older generation making a living off this leaf. Also, whilst in my prime I was always told that I looked good in purple which made me invest in more purple garments which inevitably made it my thing. Po Purple it is.

If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing instead?

I tried my hand in acting attending an acting school for three years alongside making music, but I found that although I was becoming pretty good, I didn’t quite have the time pursue both avenues. As you can already tell, I chose to continue with music. So yeah, acting would probably be my second choice.

What’s success to you?

In terms of seeking the career that you desire, I would say real success is making your passion your profession. However, success comes in many forms, let us not dismiss the small successes that people like myself are achieving every day. Setting a goal whether big or small and taking the necessary steps to get there is a job in itself. I applaud anybody who’s made it happen for themselves whether it’s passing your driving test or even graduating. As long as all that hard work paid off, I see that as success.

What moment in your in your life/career forced you to change direction?

I was managing a singer at one point in life and I was so passionate about the work we were doing together that I put my own artistry aside to focus on pushing her brand to the forefront. The plan was moving onwards and upwards nicely until she decided one day that although she loves making music, the music business just wasn’t for her. Nothing I could say or do would change her mind I just had to accept that our hearts were in different places and that I wanted this a lot more than she did. This forced me to change direction, but I must say I’m now happy I did.

Where can people keep in touch with you?

You can catch me on your favourite social media platforms all @popurpleuk
Instagram: @popurpleuk
TikTok: @popurpleuk
Twitter: @popurpleuk
YouTube: @popurpleuk

Stream my music on all streaming platforms. Just type in ‘Po Purple’ on Spotify, Apple Music, Shazam, Amazon Music etc. Finally, I’d like to say thank you to Viper Presents for taking the time to have me. It’s
very much appreciated not to mention motivating me that much more to continue do what I do best. Love