Kicking off his love for producing and making music at 15, GRAMMAR THA GOD found inspiration in the likes of 2Pac, Nas, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg & DMX.
Basing himself in the vibrant music scene of Melbourne, rapper and producer Grammar Tha God started making beats at 15 and hasn’t quit since. As he grew into the scene, he charged into the live scene being a regular performer at Brisbane’s underground rap community. He has always been full speed ahead into his dreams and goals as a musician and has been coated in passion and talent.
With exposure from his past project Thousand Grams Of Dopeness he was able to lift himself up and plunge himself into the Aussie music scene which eventuated into his own label Black Music Group.Now reemerging with a new name after taking a short break to re-centre his career, Grammar Tha God is back to show us how much he has grown as an artist.
Post his latest release of the single Energy, Happy got to have a dive into the inspiration and influences that built GRAMMAR up as not only a rapper, but also a producer and label maker. The guy is doing some legendary things.
HAPPY: Thanks for chatting with us again, we’re keen to hear which artists have inspired you to make the music that you make? What was their impact on you as a person?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: Artists like 2Pac, Nas, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg & DMX really impacted my life as I related to their music deeply. They are my Top 5 favorite Hip Hop artists of all time. They inspired me to use my voice as an artist to speak my mind fearlessly & connect with the world through music.
HAPPY: Tell us more about the hometown that you grew up in
GRAMMAR THA GOD: I was born in Dubai & lived in Abu Dhabi for the first 9 years of my life, I was a baby back then enjoying my first decade on planet earth. From 9 to 15 years old I lived in Sydney, I made friends from some very diverse backgrounds down there & we all loved rap music, especially me haha. At 15 my family and I moved to Brisbane & it was there where I found my true self & the direction I wanted to move towards with my life as far as what & who I wanted to become. I lived there from 2006 until early 2022 & had a good crack at being an artist/producer. Now I’m based in Melbourne chasing my dreams harder than I ever have & loving life, so I’ve never really had a hometown to be honest, I’m a global citizen!
HAPPY: What was the writing and recording process like for Energy?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: With Energy it all started off with the beat. I was going through tons of beats produced by Legion Beats when my ear caught Energy. I instantly felt the vibe it gave off & wrote the first verse. I originally planned to have another rapper as a featured guest on the song. I had him write a complete verse for it, but due to personal reasons I ended up deciding to keep the song for myself & wrote the 2nd verse not too long after. As far as the recording process, the first & 2nd verse were recorded in 2 different studios in Melbourne. Recording Energy was really natural & easy as it’s a fun song that’s full of good energy & good vibes. These types of songs are my favorite tracks to write & record.
HAPPY: Who inspired you to become a producer? What was their impact on you as a person?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: It’s hard to answer this question as there are literally so many producers to name that inspired me to become a producer, but if I had to narrow them all down to 3 producers, it would have to be Dr Dre, Pharrell Williams & Kanye West. These 3 guys really had an impact on me as a music artist as their production resumes are out of this world. With Dr Dre producing all of NWA’s albums, His debut album The Chronic which ushered in a new wave of Funk Based Hip Hop that elevated the genre & made it global, Snoop Dogg’s debut album Doggystyle, Eminem’s debut album Marshall Mathers LP, his comeback album 2001 & all his contributions to 50 Cent’s debut album Get Rich Or Die Tryin, The Game’s debut album The Documentary, all the way to Kendrick Lamar’s debut album Good Kid Maad City. His ability to navigate the music industry decade after decade, consistently create music that shifts the culture of Hip Hop globally and his ability to get better & better with time musically really resonates with me. I can say the same thing about Pharrell Williams & Kanye West. Their production resumes are out of this world!
HAPPY: What did you read last that opened your eyes and mind to a new perspective?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: I read the 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene recently & learnt some very valuable lessons from it. That’s a really popular book among book readers. Robert Greene connected with 50 Cent a few years ago to write the 50th Law, it’s a semi-autobiographical account that details 50 Cent’s rise to success. That book is on my ‘to read asap’ list!
HAPPY: How would you describe your music best?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: I’d describe my music as cool, fun, deep & intelligent. I’ve always felt that I was a conscious rapper with mainstream appeal, so my music is balanced & has a wide range as far as subject matters, sonics & concepts.
HAPPY: Who inspired you to become a label Owner, and what was their impact on you as a person?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: When I was in high school, I paid attention to the moves that my favorite artists were making behind the scenes, from Dr Dre, Jay Z & 50 Cent to the new wave of artists that came out of the internet era between 2006 – 2010. With the internet becoming more mainstream & prominent around 2009, I witnessed how independence was taking over the music industry for the first time with countless artists like Soulja Boy & Wiz Khalifa going viral independently off YouTube + Twitter & becoming household names within Hip Hop. All of this inspired me to start my own record label ‘Black Music Group (BMG) & become a label owner. I had a vision to eventually discover, produce & manage artists under my label. I still have this vision today.
HAPPY: Where do you see hip-hop going as a genre?
GRAMMAR THA GOD: I see Hip Hop continuing to be the strongest force in the music industry. I also see it continuing to evolve sonically. I do feel like the substance in the lyrical content has been missing in Hip Hop as of late. It’s really unfortunate as that’s what Hip Hop is really about in my opinion. So, I’m doing everything in my power as an artist, producer & label owner to bring that feeling back in Hip Hop with my music & the artists I’ll be working with in the future. It’s time to shift the algorithm!
Check out GRAMMAR THA GOD’S latest single below.
Interviewed by Olivia Adams.
Photos supplied.