Kageba 1.6 Interview

BY: JOSHUA ST. HILL / STAFF WRITER

(Source: The Official Kageba)

The ROC Nation program holds a diverse range of talent, on the brink of receiving the attention they deserve. Last semester, I remember a poster catching my eye with a red, dystopian vibe with the title Head Troublez. It was intriguing enough for me to follow the rabbit hole to Kageba 1.6’s streaming platform. From there, I discovered a rare combination–substance with a vibe. 

Kageba has the versatile ability to capture the audience with excellent production and keep them hooked with lyrics that dig deep. Often, we get artists that are too swayed to one side or the other, either rhythmic production with no meaning, or too backpack with no head bobbing. Yet, with singles like Cherry and STARS, substance and 808s pair perfectly like peanut butter and jelly, delivering a project with excellent replay value.

Last semester, I had the privilege of sitting down with Kageba and picking his brain about his creative process and how his surroundings and influences culminate in such dope projects. Interestingly enough, the self-affirmational single STARS was a product of our own Humanities building.

“When I made Head Troubles, it was actually in one of my classes; it was the Brooklyn Soul Ensemble class. So you had to write a song that kind of represented the power of self. So, I was writing, ‘What if you trust yourself?’ and ‘Belief is the truth!’ And I'm like, hold up, I have to write a song centered around that because during that time my family was going through a lot, and I wanted Head Troubles to be the manifestation of everything going wrong.” 

“You see me cover my head (on the EP cover). It's that phase of being distant from everybody else, right? ‘Everything is my fault.’ Then at the end you got ‘Stars.’ It's like, listen, ‘You got to trust yourself; you got to believe yourself through it.’ So then one of my good friends, GFG, played the bassline.”

GFG is responsible for the production of this single, a beat that sticks with you from the moment you press play. Kageba went on to hold him in high regard when explaining the origin of the process.

 “Shoutout to GFG. He makes crazy things by himself. He had that beat made, originally under the name ‘Electro Swing’ or something like that. But I said we’re changing that to ‘Stars.’ So I turned that into a production for class and then used that for an actual song.” 

The more we talked about the project, the more depth was added to the music. Kageba is a seasoned artist, and I realized that’s not just due to talent, but also repetition and intention. 

In an era where an artist can get away with releasing anything, Kageba takes the time and effort to give his fans projects that are sequenced with heart. Sometimes, this can delay the process of getting the music out, but Kageba breaks down how he perseveres past the pressure of releasing.

(Source: The Official Kageba)

“So, interestingly enough, I have probably four or five projects in my vault. Like, I have over 700 unreleased songs. But releasing my first EP was kind of a message to me, like, ‘You just need to do it.’ Like, I could tell the world that I had this many unreleased songs; I could tell the world, ‘I know my potential.’ I know songs that I've written and what I think they might mean to people, but at the end of the day, it's about what you do, not about the potential you have.” 

How the single Stars complements the rest of the EP. 

“So, when I was writing Stars, it was really, ‘What is Head Troubles missing?’ This is my first EP. This is how I’m going to represent myself to the world. What component is missing? And ‘Stars’ was really that final piece I could put together where it wasn't talking about love, lust, drugs, or anything like that—the typical shebang from a rapper, right? I was talking about something a little bit more personal: self-value, self-worth, knowing when to trust yourself, when to believe in yourself, and the fact that the journey of life is hard.” 

Concluding with a sobering thought for anyone with aspirations. 

“Many people are like, ‘Success is this and that; it's dragons and wizards; I could get this, I could achieve this in the next five years,’ but do you understand all the pitfalls and sacrifices that are going to come with that? So, Head Troubles was compiling every emotion, and ‘Stars’ just fit the last emotion that I wanted to exude to everybody.”

Singles come and go nowadays like the average French fry in this fast food industry. Stars stands out as the Michelin five-star appetizer that you box up and nibble at for the next few weeks. It’s music that you can move to, but also music that moves your mind–a combination that’s appreciated and needed in contemporary times. As we concluded our breakdown of the Head Troubles EP, I found myself lost in anticipation. How will he follow this up? 

“Well, I’ve kind of been avoiding that because I’ve been procrastinating. But I do have a new single. It's going to be called ‘Does It Even Exist?’ And it's coming out on November 15th. Clock it down in the calendar; write it down. And this song, I credit as one of the top three songs that I'll ever release right now in the current discography. Just because it's a little bit of everything.” 

“You get a little bit of Tyler, the Creator vibes; you get some fast, melodic rap; you get some slowed-down portions where it's like, 'Yo, he's just spitting right now.’ But all in all, it's just one of those songs where it kind of goes into what I really want to drop, which is Cherry, the EP coming out sometime mid-December. It's going to kind of be like Head Troubles, but on a deeper level, going into every single distinct emotion that you go through.”

Looking back on our conversation last semester, Kageba went on to do just that. You can find both Head Troubles and Cherry on streaming platforms, perfect examples of the star in the making on our campus grounds. You can find him on Instagram (@Theofficialkageba), where his sharp marketing will keep you updated on his progression and next moves.