Q: Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how your childhood impacted your musical direction?
A: Well this is E. Grizzly, one half of Online Counter Psyops. My family is Puerto Rican and I would say it impacted my musical direction because all we listened to was salsa, freestyle and hip hop. Especially growing up in the Philly and Miami area which have big hip hop scenes. Didn’t really start getting into Rock and Punk until I was older.
Q: How are you planning on growing your fan base and sharing your music with the world? What message do you have for anyone who is about to discover “Online Counter Psyops”?
A: We just make music, play shows and do art. We don’t really go into it thinking of growing our fanbase. It’s just something that we feel like we have to do. It’s kind of like that Bronx Tale quote. “The saddest thing in life is wasted talent.” We feel like we are wasting our talents and life away if we don’t do something creative. If there’s a song that a lot of people like we’ll play that song. A lot of fans have mentioned they want us to do more hip hop so that’s another reason why we started the Online Counter Psyops project. So we do pay attention to what our fans and friends have said but usually we do art for art’s sake. The message we have is usually just sharing alternative perspectives and point of views.
Q: Who is the most inspiring artist for you right now? And where do you find inspiration for making music?
A: I’ve been following Anderson .Paak a lot lately. I just find his confidence, singing, rapping and playing drums inspiring. Musicians like that inspire me everyday to practice singing and playing piano. Josh Homme just dropped a new Queens of the Stone Age album which is in heavy rotation for me lately. He kind of always gives me a new perspective with song writing with his sarcasm and not taking everything so seriously. I do have a few more musicians that I follow religiously and they always inspire me but those are the recent ones. I also find inspiration when I learn how to play new songs on the piano because it shows me new ways to create melodies.
Q: Can you tell us about the story or message behind the album, “Hello, Hello Are You Still There?.”?
A: Well the idea is trying to find what my future self would say. I would assume my future self would have more wisdom than I do now. So that’s where the future concept comes in. Us from the future talking to us in the past. I try to just find different ways of looking at things and promoting ideas like integrity and dignity that my young self didn’t put much value in.
Q: How would you describe your sound in one word for potential listeners?
A: For hip hop heads I would say it’s lyricism on trip hop beats. I’m sure you can call the production edm, future bass, trap etc. There’s so many sub genres. But I know the hip hop heads know trip hop so that’s the best way I can describe the production.
Q: Did you face any challenges while writing or recording the album?
A: Well Marko Level is in Miami and I’m in Philly so there were mixing issues because it’s hard to mix over the phone. We ended up figuring it out but it took longer.
Q: What is the message of your music? And what are your goals as an artist?
A: I would say I had depression when I was younger and I figured out how to snap out of it. So I mostly write about the philosophy and psychology that helped with my mental health issues. I feel like you can logic your way out of feelings that are unnecessary like jealousy or envy. Obviously some mental health problems are way more extreme than what I went through but the average person who’s just sad can find a way to be happy. Or at least at peace and I try to write about it. It’s literally endless material.
Q: Who is your dream artist to collaborate with? (dead or alive)
A: Hmmm. Prince is my favorite just because he was the most talented live in my opinion. I never saw anyone sing, dance and play guitar like Prince did. But I wouldn’t want to collaborate with him. He’s too good. He needs the spotlight. There’s a few though. I would love to sing the blues with Muddy Waters. Would love to produce a post punk album with James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem. Would love to do a hip hop song with Mos Def. I can name at least 10 dream collaborations.
Q: What is your advice for people interested in pursuing music as a career or for those trying to enter the industry?
A: Oooofff, that’s a tough one. Well first of all if nobody likes it I wouldn’t continue pursuing music. But if there’s people who love what you do then I would continue. As far as making a career of it I would learn how to play instruments and write songs. It’s a lot easier to make a career out of music if you’re a producer, musician and songwriter because you can get gig work at clubs and in studios. Only singing cover songs and rapping is not going to fly anymore.
Q: If you could go back in time and give a younger you some words of wisdom, what would they be?
A: I was just so insecure when I was younger it’s kind of hard to help that kid out. I needed a dad or a mentor. My advice would be to definitely look for a mentor who was successful.
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