Beginning his freestyle rapping career at age 11, it was clear Toronto artist Mallokay had a natural talent. Taking each and every opportunity to perform and write music, by 2019 he was able to establish his own home recording studio for himself and other members of his community to use.
Being influenced by many great artists like Eminem and 2Pac helped Mallokay to hone in on his skills and work off of their musical ability to create his own unique lyricism and sound.
On his newest track “Rainy Days”, Mallokay draws deeply into his inner soul to create melodic, vibey music. With lyrics like, “Other sleepless nights that gave us clouded sights” and “I love that but you break me” it is easy to notice the intensity and depth behind each word and the feelings that transcend from this song. As Mallokay layers various vocals, the monotone nature is able to relax listeners while the beat increases the song's movement while still continuing to complement the vocals.
As the track carries a unique mysterious background sound, the emotions and feelings associated with a rainy day truly surround each aspect of this song. With unreal R&B songs to chill to like “Rainy Days,” we are excited to see how Mallokay continues to grow as an artist as he carries on releasing new music.
Hello Mallokay, Welcome to Buzzmusic. What would you say is the storyline and inspiration behind your new track “Rainy Days?"
I wrote Rainy Days during a really difficult time in my last relationship back in July of 2018. I won’t go into details about why out of respect for my ex, but it was fairly toxic and there were a lot of issues constantly happening. I felt as though no matter what I’d say, what I felt about the problems that I was dealing with in regards to her at the time wouldn’t get through to her the way I truly wanted it to. This was especially difficult during this time because of the fact that I’d never talk to anyone else about my problems. So what happens when the only person you talk to about your problems is also the source of some of your biggest problems but you’re not able to get your message across to them to a sufficient degree? Writing this song was my way of getting everything off of my chest and relieving some of the tension that was building up, which it did help with. But even more than that, it was my way of getting my side of the story out there, in a way where I felt I’d be able to express myself the best way I possibly could. Fast forward to now, it’s really dope how I can listen to that track and pretty much go “Oh yeah, that’s how I was feeling at that time” or “I must’ve been thinking of X when I wrote Y” and things like that. Sort of like having a journal, except in song format.
You mentioned that your home recording studio also serves local youth who are trying to join the music industry, how has community shaped you as an artist and how important is it in your songwriting?
Being more involved in the community, especially the music side of it has really broadened my perspectives on the people of the music industry, particularly the younger ones. I find that generally when people leave school and start their adult life, their disconnect from youth grows significantly. Having so many people who are just starting their music careers come through to record gives me a chance to see and think so many different things that I feel gives you just another opportunity to mature. For example, I might be engineering for an artist that I think has a lot of potentials. I might start to think something like “How good of a rapper was I at that age?” or “What is it about this artist’s work ethic that I feel I can apply to my own?”. One disadvantage that comes with being disconnected from the youth is losing touch with what’s relevant. Being around these kids lets me listen in on what’s poppin’ in their eyes, what matters to them, etc. which is important for me to know as an artist who wants to cater to a wide age demographic.
The music industry has faced some difficulties in 2020 with the lockdown and inability to perform, what was your experience writing and releasing music through those tough times?
I knew from the start of all this craziness that this would all be a blessing in disguise, at least for me. Although, I do believe that it can be a blessing for everyone else too as long as they can figure out how. Being in lockdown has given me the chance to focus on my craft more than ever before. I’m fully aware of how much more time I have now, and I’m constantly figuring out how to make better use of it by cutting out more bullshit and concentrating more focus on writing, recording, etc. Despite being able to admit that 2020 was one of the worst years I’ve ever experienced, I can’t deny the amount of growth I’ve done in every aspect of my life, and it’s because of all this that I believe that people as a whole will come out of these trying times a lot stronger and ready to take on the world, even more, especially the music industry.
What would you say is the next step for your career and songwriting and how will you keep advancing your skills to meet your goal of being the greatest lyricist in HipHop?
I’ve thought about this from so many angles over and over again, but right now I believe my best next step is to build my catalog. But I don’t mean an album or two. I mean a catalog big enough to compete with everyone who’s been in the industry for 20+ years now, especially while I’m independent and have the freedom to do so. I feel like this will make marketing myself a lot easier instead of having someone fall in love with 1 of my songs and missing out on a chance to build a connection with me from them going down the wormhole of my catalog. In regards to becoming the greatest lyricist, all I can really do is keep going, but harder and harder as time passes. I’m 21 right now, but I feel confident that I can go toe-to-toe with almost anyone in hip hop, lyrically speaking. I’m not trying to sound cocky, but I truly do believe it especially considering how focused I’ve been on refining my lyricism since 11 years old. The only person I feel I definitely don’t outmatch yet is Eminem, but that doesn’t bother me since he’s probably one of the biggest reasons I got to this point because of how much I’ve learned from him. He still has over 20 years above me though, so we’ll see where I’m at when I’m his age.
What can we expect to see from you throughout 2021?
New songs. A lot of new songs. I’m trying to finish 1 song every 12 days (or less) for the rest of the year. I’m aiming for a couple of music videos too depending on what the lockdown situation is later this year. Everyone can expect a lot more power moves from me too. I feel like I’ve leveled up a lot in the past few months alone and it’ll show in all the moves I’ll be making. I won’t give all the details away, but you’ll know when you see what I’m talking about.
