Written By: Niki Jones of Houston TREND

 

IMG_6460In the new era of testament, it’s no longer about who does it first, but who does it good enough to be remembered forever. The element of music is forever evolving and along with it, raw talent is induced. Roosh Williams is a certified stamp on breaking ground with a ruinous flow and one hell of a chip on his shoulder with one valid point to prove; things are not what they once were and times have changed. Roosh never hides the intent of his aggression in his music, but paints a vivid picture of why he’s in this industry and that’s to KILL it.

“My backs against the wall and I love it because half these people are still not giving me a chance and its like I’m going to make you regret those words. I’m going to make you eat that shit.”

 

Roosh has come a long way from battle rapping in high school and the mall. 2013 has shown to be a great year for the unorthodox lyricist, Roosh Willy, performing at SXSW and dropping his most anticipated mixtape, Deja Roo: Times Have Changed, earlier this year, with features from Doughbeezy, Action Bronson, Scarface and Bubba Sparxx. His Kill Bill mentality on any beat he mounts, is one of the reasons his music is so lethal and can catch a witnessing eye off guard because he wouldn’t fit the stereo-typical outer essence of a rapper upon first sight, the Persian rapper explains. “I think people are surprised. I’m confident in what I do. This rap shit is like a jungle, if you’re not coming out to tear somebody’s head off and say I’m better than you, then you don’t need to be here and that’s my mentality. So when you match that up with the fact that I don’t look like I belong here, I think people are kind of blown away.”

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Along with his new project, under his belt, this past September, Roosh received the opportunity to be a part of a game changing experience, when Simple Mobile teamed up with HipHopDX and Complex Media giving Roosh a chance to work with rapper/producer, Like, of Cali group, Pac Div to create an EP, he titled, Drobots: The Reboot, which features Like and Devin the Dude. “Earlier this year Complex put up a top 10 list of rappers to look out for in Houston and I wasn’t on the list. Simple Mobile looked at this list to find out who they should pick and they were looking through all of the comments of people mentioning me not being on the list, so they looked me up and said that’s the guy we are going to pick.” Roosh and Like were given only 24hrs to create the five track EP, which was a revamp of Roosh’s previous mixtape, Attack of the Drobots he did in 2010. “As a lyricist I’m always writing, so I took some ideas I had already and revamped them. Like is crazy talented and he made the beats on the spot. We just clicked. Music is chemistry and if the chemistry is not there, then it’s not going to be right,” says Roosh.

 
IMG_6425Roosh built his buzz while attending University of Texas in Austin, where he was studying to become a lawyer. After the circulation of his mixtape, Roosh connected with current manager Grey and began to do shows for different fraternities, opening up for artists such as Bun B, Juvenile, Chitty Bang, Mac Miller, JCole and more. Williams then linked up with a classmate, Sascha Stone, who was in the startup phase of the popular Scoremore.

“I started getting a buzz through all these shows. Then I met Sascha and Claire, they were upstarting and I started doing all of their shows in Austin.  I did the Smokers Club Tour in Oct with Currensy, Big Krit and Smoke Dza. It was different because my style at the time was just punch line heavy and my substance was kind of lacking, so I was really just free styling over other peoples beats,” tells Roosh.

 

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Roosh is a true free-style monster, with the ability to run long, barely coming up for air, a technique that’s mostly become obsolete among a lot of rap artists today. But with any fashion of art, there has to be a willingness to understand exactly what’s trying to be conveyed and how to create a relatable story for the audience to feel. “When I put out my mixtape that got me buzzing in 2010, I was just free styling over other peoples beats, my message was wrong. I was talking about hoes and whatever. I had kids coming up to me at shows talking about that. And I was like no, you got it wrong and it opened my eyes. It was like what am I trying to say to these people and I started to think about and it’s the music you can relate to and when people hear me I want them to say he’s the truth, hes a real cat because that’s how I try to carry myself.” And like some authentic rappers, especially those who come from the underground, Roosh is not one to conform to be liked or accepted by anyone in this industry. “It’s not bullshit, it’s not a façade, if you listen to my music it’s all the truth. I don’t talk about anything that im not about. I want people to know whether you like me or not you can’t fu*k with me. Im authentic and that’s what it is. I have an attitude and I enjoy that.”

 

After linking up with Houston rapper Killa Kyleon to put out his visuals for “No Hard Feelings”, the viral spread of that video help cultivate a broader buzz for Roosh allowing him to become more popular for opening up shows. Still in school, doing shows and traveling in and out the city, Roosh was still able to maintain a high GPA and graduated with honors, but a rap career was becoming more evident and he put aside going to law school to go back home to Houston and figure out his next moves. “I had to come to Houston and start over. I just started connected. I was naïve and didn’t really know what to do. I made an EP and just started connected. I started linking up with people like Theresa (of SF2) and other rappers.” In 2011 Roosh put out an EP, “Aint That the Truth” and the following year a compilation album of songs he had made and decided to release it when he hit 1000 followers on twitter.

 

Like many underground artists vying for a suitable position in the music industry with hopes of breaking ground and making a name for themselves, it has to be a struggle not only to be taken serious by peers in the same position, but to keep the faith and consistently grind with a sick passion, while understanding that sacrifices become natural and let downs become routine and discovering the strength from within to hold yourself down, when everything is not going as planned. Roosh is the epitome of it all. But his purpose and reasoning to continue on, is bigger than him or his attitude. “I look at the fans that message me every day and tell me that they love my music. That my music got them through the day and all that. You just take that inspiration and you keep it going because that’s the hard part. The easy part is saying fu*k this and go get a [regular] job. It breaks you down mentally and it’s all about if you’re strong, you just bounce back if you’re confident. I had so many opportunities to just give up. I’m not there yet, but I’m a lot closer than I was. It’s obvious it’s not just the money. I’m confident in my talent and my ability; you just have to plan it right. I’ve been eating cereal and peanut butter sandwiches for a year. You sacrifice little things. I’m not poor; I support myself. I put my money in the right spots. I grind smart and I grind hard and I make the most out of it.”

 

IMG_6367With Times Have Changed and Drobots in the underground circulation, Roosh is now working on new music content and integrating different styles and will be working with Empire, a distribution company that provides and outlet to push music on a larger social scale, such as; iTunes, Amazon, Pandora and Spotify. “I’ve been trying to incorporate singing, but not like Drake singing, more like some Z-Ro influenced shit. I have that baritone voice and with Lace mixing it, it’s going to be dope. I’m just trying to think of how I can innovate again. That’s the whole thing, you don’t want to be stale. I don’t want to be the same.” When anyone listens to Roosh rap, whether it’s a feature or his own mayhem, then the aggression should be palpable in each rhyme uttered. But why? What’s the reason for his brash mannerism? “I’ve always been aggressive, but I had to channel it. When someone doesn’t give me the recognition I deserve, I just channel it. I use to go on twitter and talk shit to get my frustration out. Then I was like what’s the point of it. So I just channeled it and put it in my music. I’m definitely pissed off. You have to rap with a chip on your shoulder. The day I lose that I will be a different artist.”

 

IMG_6325Roosh’s delivery is what will captivate an audience the moment he steps in front of an audience. Some may know him and others new to him, but at the end of his performance, it’s a guarantee that the people who know him, will ride with him 10 times harder and those who didn’t, will become a fan that night! There are no margins that can contain the artist that is Roosh Williams. He pours out his frustrations and allows his audience to truly get inside his head. He loves what he does and the challenges that may surface because of it. Roosh is a lyrical beast that could never be tamed because, as he says it, he would be a completely different artist if he lost his head strong, eat or be eaten mentality and he’s not afraid to stand alone nor is he worried about any doubters, its just fuel to his fire.

“It’s just me and I love it like that and that’s what drives me. I’m at my best when I have something to prove and when you’re counting me out. And that’s why I love people counting me out. My backs against the wall, where I feel at home. It’s all about motivation and what inspires you because if the wrong thing inspires you, it’s going to show at the end of the day. I pull inspiration from everywhere.”Â