GOYA GUMBANI INTERVIEW: Brooklyn-born, South East London-based rapper Goya Gumbani announces his new album Warlord of the Weejuns, out March 21st via Ghostly International. Get familiar with this VIPER Presents interview…
What five words define your sound?
Calming, Black, Honest, Jazzy, substance
Tell me something unique about your creative process
Ideas seem to flow easy after preparing a strong plate of food.
Which song of yours would you like people to hear first?
‘Define Time’.
What inspired you to make that song?
The pressures of the current social constructs
What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music?
Music helped me talk to myself in ways I’ve never even been taught to listen before. It’s helped me be very open and expressive about how I’m either feeling or felt. I had to really become confident within myself and get very vulnerable to allow these things.
What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage?
My best experience is being able to perform at one of my fav festivals and seeing a sea of people locked in, WE OUT HERE 2023
What is your favourite song to perform?
‘Fix it’
Which artist/song/album made you want to make music?
Roc Marciano – ‘We ill’ off the ‘Reloaded’ album.
What’s the meaning behind your name?
Beans!
If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing instead?
I’d either be a samurai, or an astronaut.
What’s success to you?
I’m still working that out!!
What moment in your life/career forced you to change direction?
I asked my old boss to have two weeks off and he said no [laughs], but he went on vacation every six weeks. So I thought instead of helping someone build their dream maybe I should start building mine. I never looked back since.
Where can people keep in touch with you?
(Instagram) goya.gumbani or www.goyagumbani.com
Photo by Charles Mensah