BIG BRILLA INTERVIEW: Big Brilla emerges from the vibrant heart of Newham, East London, a 27-year-old UK Rap and conscious hip-hop artist whose music transcends the boundaries of traditional rap. With a rich tapestry woven from his first love of acting, Big Brilla’s narrative-driven lyrics tell stories of struggle, hope, and human resilience.

What 5 words describe your sound?

Electric, Fun, Conscious, Vibey, Catchy.

Tell me something unique about your creative process.

My ability to write lyrics that solely come from the heart. There’s times where I’d just write subconsciously and after I feel like I’m done, I’d sit there and read what I’ve written fully unaware of what my heart was saying. The results surprise me all the time! Another unique thing would be being able to write absolutely anywhere. Whether it’s on the train, on the bus even at a rave, if I have a melody or a lyric in my head, I have to write them then and there.

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

It would have to be ‘War Of The Mind’ from my debut EP ‘Sincerely Brills’. It highlights my thought process as a young man growing up in Newham, surrounded by mental issues my whole life, weather it’s battling my own mental difficulties or trying to escape the people close to me who haven’t dealt with their mental difficulties.

What inspired you to make that song?

The unanswered questions I had as a child. I grew up in a single parent household with my dad in and out of my life from young. I remember blaming my Mum for my Dad not wanting me, going through a tsunami of emotions as I grew up! I was confused and wanted answers to why I felt so lonely and depressed at such a young age, and at the age I am now, 27, I made it my mission to accept that there may not be any answers to my questions, that it’s either sink or swim and that inevitably we are all going through a war internally that we HAVE to win, hence the title ‘War Of The Mind’.

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

When I wrote a track called ‘spiritual awakening’ this was a track highlighting everything – and I mean absolutely everything – the good, the bad and the ugly. I spoke about topics relating to the relationship with my parents, my attempts on my life and my general mental health. This was the first time I’ve ever cried whilst writing, it felt like a literal weight off my shoulders as I felt as if every line I was writing truly came from the heart which allowed me to heal more and more.

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

I’d say the best experience I’ve had on stage was when I opened up for the UK legend Donae’o. The experience was immense and the atmosphere was out of this world. I remember telling myself to just have fun and enjoy the moment which I did, and in the end I could honestly say it was my best performance to date. My worst experience on stage has to be when I decided to do a last minute show after a 13 hour shift. One thing I can admit to is not being able to know when my body is overly tired and this show was one of them times. I remember getting to the show feeling ready and energised as per usual, however when I got on the stage, I realised how exhausted I really was. It was just an unfocused show and although I was still giving it my all I knew for a fact I could have done much better.

What is your favourite song to perform?

An unreleased track called ‘Thief in the night’ because of the energy I’m giving out to my audience. Anytime I’ve performed this track, nine times out of ten the audience gives the energy back to me and that feeling is unmatched.

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

I’d say the artist and album that first inspired me to pursue music was 50 Cent’s ‘Get Rich Die Trying’ album for a lot of people my age this was a historical moment in time, where we got to hear someone who came from absolutely nothing, turn it around and make something of himself. His songs made me feel important, made me feel confident and I remember thinking to myself “that’s exactly what I want people to feel when listening to my music.” I’d say the album and artist that made me really want to make music is Mr Kendrick Duckworth Lamar. I suffer with mental health and there’s been some very dark moments in my life and Kendrick’s artistry helped me out of some of my darkest times. Two albums in particular: ‘good kid, m.A.A.d city’ and ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’.

Whats the meaning behind your name?

The stage name “Big Brilla” came from the word brilliance, I’ve always described my art and sound as brilliant and the abbreviation for brilliance is “Brill” so I decided to add an a at the end and make it my official stage name. Some of my friends would call me “Brills” or even in some cases “Brillicent” which is a mixture between militant and brilliant.

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

I graduated as an actor in 2018, movies and theatre productions were always – and still are – a big interest of mine. To be able to escape through and live through someone else’s journey and to represent the person you’re portraying is such an amazing feeling, so if it wasn’t music I would definitely be pursuing an acting career.

What’s success to you?

Success to me is to inspire others around you to grow and to be better for themselves. There’s been many times where I felt like giving in, not being good enough for the music industry or any industry I was interested in getting into. But moments where a fan or someone who loves what I do, comes up to me and tells me that my music inspires or has helped them, is what I see as success.

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

I think the moments in my life that really shaped who I was and made me who I am today was the moments where I felt like giving it all up. I was a pretty dark person growing up. Mentally I was depressed and didn’t see a way out of my situation at all, and one day where it seemed like it was the end, I found music. I wrote what I felt at that exact moment and I felt better, I kept doing this over and over again until eventually I started to find myself and really focus on what it was I needed to do.

Where can people keep in touch with you?

There’s many ways people can keep in touch with me like social media or through email. I’m looking to create a personal website this year for all my fans to keep up to date with shows and events that I will be taking part in. I love doing shows, not only performing but meeting people in real life and the effects my music has on people personally.