FEW GUUD THOUGHTS w/ Kapwani — Interview + Review
The journey of healing is a process and does not happen overnight. It forces you to face reality and gain a graceful understanding of acceptance. Finding peace within yourself and accepting the person you’ve manifested sets the groundwork for your evolution. GA native Kapwani recently dropped her project NAKÚPENDA, a well-written and produced body of work that depicts the journey of self-love and grasping the concept of an upward spiral. On her latest sonic offering, Kapwani is honest and detailed with her writing, providing a faultless amount of artistry that signifies her presence in music.
The tranquil tone of the project allows listeners to follow Kapwani as she poetically explains how to love yourself. Every song plays a pivotal role in the next one. As if it’s a step-by-step help book about self-love. On “sungokp,” Kapwani discusses feeling free and uses the metaphors of flying doves to express her current inner peace. “UNTITLED” highlights Kapwani’s ever-growing self-love and how she still finds grace during the “complexities” of life. On “like u,” she’s drawing a line in the sand and separating herself from peers whose frequencies don’t align with hers. “feelmeout” featuring DavidTheTragic, is one of the many standout tracks from the project, playing as the prolong for the album.
The 25-minute sonic offering demonstrates Kapwani’s admiration of neo-soul and jazz. The production by Allen Thomas plays an essential role in the pacing and comforting environment the project set forth. The instrumentation alongside Kapwani harmonies is enthralling. Finding inner peace and learning to love yourself could be a roller coaster ride, but Kapwani’s latest project makes the journey easier.
Our Interview
You're from Atlanta, Georgia, right?
“Yes, I was born in Philly, but I was raised here. and then my dad lives in Philly cuz like my parents split up, but I usually go there every summer and like Christmas/New Years time. So I'm pretty familiar with the city a bit.”
How has living between ATL and Philly influence your music?
“Well, I come from an African household. My parents are from Tanzania. So growing up, my parents didn't listen to the radio as much. Well, my mom listened to the radio, but not my dad. He’s not really a radio person. My mom, on the other hand, she listens to like, what's on the radio and then mostly like what she would hear back home and like Tanzania music and stuff”
“I basically grew up when the internet was becoming a thing. So I spent a lot of time, like on YouTube, just listening to a lot of music and all this. So I would say what influenced me the most, not so much up north, but maybe more down south… like listening to Outkast and Erykah Badu. Just a lot of like Southern soul type of music. I really gravitated towards a lot of Southern Neo soul music.”
How was it growing up in an African household, wanting to be an artist?
“It’s funny because my mom thought it was just a little thing, like some hobby. She didn't realize I could sing for real until I performed at a talent show in the sixth grade. Everybody went crazy and they were just like, you didn't know, your daughter could sing like this.”
Were they supportive?
“My parents are very supportive. As a child, my mom and dad always saw that I had an interest in music and singing. Most African parents want their kids to be in school, you know, doctor, lawyer, whatever the case may be. Me on the other hand, I gravitated towards the music. Like even in school, most kids were picking gym when I preferred the arts. I played violin for about eight years and even did a lil classical music. I don’t want to be boxed in.”
What’s your recording process?
“My first EP, Everything Will Be Okay, I recorded that in this apartment, in my house, like alone, I just went and bought everything; Interfaces, speakers, microphone, the whole thing, like, so I could just do it at home in my own comfort. Then I’ll meet up with an engineer to mix it a bit more to my liking.”
Do you remember making your first song?
“I had written this song a long time ago… just had it in a notebook and never looked at it. And I guess, I was in a singing mood one day. I got like a beat off of YouTube. All fun. And then I sung the song and stuff.
I thought it was ass. Everybody else was like you should keep going. So then, um, I decided like, it was going to be an everyday thing.”
What was that switch? When did you start taking music more seriously ?
“When I first started, I would just write little songs here and there. I always loved music but never thought it'd be a career. I didn't think it was accessible until I went out on a limb to do it.”
How would you describe your ideal creative direction?
“I usually like finding a producer that I really get along with and we can actually just hone in, for periods of time and just work.
So for NAKÚPENDA specifically, I did that with Allen Thomas. He produced about six songs on that EP. We also have other songs that just aren't out, you know, I let everything that's.”
How’d you meet Allen Thomas?
“We met through my manager Qi. So QI knew Allen, like they've been friends for some years. And so, um, this was right after I did Afro punk with, I did background vocals for Liv.e. After the show my producer said let’s meet Allen, he makes very dope beats.”
Throughout the project, you could definitely hear the connection and comfort between you and Allen.
“With my writing, I’m intimate with it.. so when I knew I was comfortable writing in front of Allen, I knew I could trust him and we worked really well together.”
Cont’d
“In Atlanta, a lot of producers don't make the type of music that I make or like the type of beats I'm trying to perform on. Or, maybe I just have not been exposed to them yet.”
“Everythingmeta” is one of the hardest tracks from you and Allen. I love the off beat kicks, was that intentional?
It’s funny because we did argue about that in the mixing sessions but I insisted on keeping it the way it is. But yeah, it basically just kind of happened. Like, we didn't really think about it.
Like I heard the beat and then I had this song that I wrote already. I just started singing and then tried to find a flow with it. I try not to think too hard when I do it. Cuz like, if you think too hard, then it's like, you start getting caught up. I kind of just fill out the beat and just move with it
What’s the meaning behind NAKÚPENDA?
“That means I love you in Swahili.”
Is NAKÚPENDA about self love and growth?
“From Everything Would Be Okay to NAKÚPENDA, like, and Everything Would Be Okay was more so talking to a person that I was with and how I was unhappy. But for this project, this is just me, like, actually, Because at the time, I didn't realize, like, what I was doing with my music. I'm more self-aware as to what I'm writing about and what I want to get across, you know? For this project, I feel like I'm stepping into my own light and leaving what happened in the past, and like seeing what's set out for the future”
Tell me more about “Jalen’s Interlude”
“So Jalen is an old friend of mine who passed away. It’s a bit sad because I did not know her for a long time but for the time I did, she was a very, very sweet person and very confident. So in this song, When I wrote it, I didn't really realize I was writing it about her until I was done with the song type of thing.”
“She always believed in the idea of an upward spiral, which I adopted for myself. Jalen carried the attitude of understanding people may be against you and that their opinions shouldn’t matter. What matters is how you think of yourself. She always stepped into her own light and I felt as if this interlude embodied her aura. “
“Untitled,” was it really hard to find a title for it?
“Yes! Like, I am really bad with titles. Like if you ask anybody like, oh my goodness.”
If you were running in the apocalypse, what pair of sneakers would you wear and why?
“You wanna have shoes for comfort, but if I think about younger me and like, I used to play outside a lot, definitely some high top converse. Once you beat them in, they're comfortable. (Chuckles) It may not be good for your bones, but you gonna get somewhere,
What's one album that's impacted you and your sound?
“Probably Choose Your Weapon by Hiatus Kaiyote.”
How would you describe your music in two words?
Eclectic and free
How did the cover art for NAKÚPENDA come about?
I found this artist Jasper Hugo probably before the album was even a full thought and I just really loved their work. They had a certain way of drawing their characters. We connected on Instagram and once I realized I was actually making an album, I would send them music and we began brainstorming the cover art idea. I wanted to feel part of this new world and the reason I’m holding a laptop is because of how much tech impacts society.
What would you like the listeners to get from your new project?
“I would want my listeners to know that it's okay to be uncomfortable in your skin and comfortable in your skin. In those two phases, like always love yourself no matter what. Cause sometimes, like I said before, Sometimes people can make you feel weird about yourself, but like, you don't have to surrender yourself to that. Write your own story.”
What are the last three albums you listened to?
Reflections by Tony Snow
Afro by Brandy
When I Get Home by Solange
