Having been active in the Sydney underground hip-hop scene for over a decade, Dseeva has emerged once more with his album Kintsugi.
It’s been a long journey of self-reflection for the rapper, which has culminated in an album named after “the philosophy of embracing ones imperfections.” With Kintsugi still fresh in our earholes, Dseeva will be performing tracks from the album (and old favourite ‘Come Get Me’ for the first time ever) at the Bald Faced Stag, where he’ll be joined by a slew of mic veterans and promising newcomers. Also billed are artists as diverse as Skeaz Lauren, Talakai, Nihilist, T-Wreckz, Svlty & more taking the stage on August 3.
Ahead of the show, we talk to Dseeva about his new album and the process of turning a new leaf:
You just supported Obie Trice last weekend. How was that show?
Yeah, The show was mad. The crowd was loving it. I was surprised how many people in the crowd knew who we were, which was sick. Obie and Swifty are both legends and real humble dudes. Shout outs to Patrick and the boys for getting us on there.
You also just recently released your album Kintsugi, which is the “philosophy of embracing ones imperfections.” What would you say these imperfections are with Dseeva, and how has your process of self-reflection changed over the years?
Man, too many to list. I’m my own worst enemy and harshest critic. The main things would be my anger, which has gotten me into trouble on many occasions. I’ve had to work hard on controlling it over the years and learning to channel that energy into other things like music & training. Learning to ignore shit talkers and not care what others think because you’ll never please everyone. Also being loyal to the wrong people – those who didn’t deserve it and also realising the futility of my drug use and how much damage it was causing. Lots of things.
What’s one message you’d like to give anyone who’s about to give Kintsugi a listen?
This is my most honest, mature and highest quality work to date. ‘Kintsugi’ is 2.0 version of Dseeva. The album has so many styles & vibes, but still feels like a complete body of work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l30mP91eEtA
The album also includes a collaboration with Hau. How did you guys link up and what was it like working with him?
Yeah the tracks called ‘Nobody’s Home.’ I’ve known Hau for about eight years. When he saw I’d got my act back together he reached out and asked to hear what I was working on for my album. As soon as he heard my draft of ‘Nobody’s Home’ he was like, “Damn, that’s a vibe, let me do my thing on the hook.” Working with him was easy – he’s a veteran and a pioneer. He knew exactly what sound he wanted and what would work with the rest of the song. Recording him was a breeze too, he was basically in and out. Smashed it.
You’ve curated a pretty eclectic lineup for your launch show. What was your selection process for the artists?
I wanted a mix of acts on there, similar to my album itself. So I basically hit up artists who I’ve already been doing shows with over the last year or so and who have been putting in work, building a buzz. The line up has something for everyone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lm8kzRSUvjg
The show will also see you perform an old track, ‘Come Get Me’ for the first time. Why are you choosing to perform it now?
Yeah boy, haha, shit will be hectic. I’ve never done it before because it kills me and destroys my voice, and also because I’ve chilled out a lot since I dropped that track. That song feels like an old, bad chapter in my life which I’m trying to distance myself from. But it is a chapter nonetheless, and people are still always asking about it, so I thought for my debut album launch I would bring out old Dseeva and give the fans what they want.
Tell us about the creation of ‘Come Get Me’ – any particular memories about that track and that era of your career?
Around then I was out of control, getting into fights every weekend, so I had accumulated a lot of enemies and I was getting death threats. I also felt some people I thought were brothers had done me dirty, and then I caught my girl cheating on me after coming back from overseas. So I was plotting some crazy shit, and a close friend basically locked me in a room and said to put all of that anger into a song or you’re just going to do something stupid.
I wrote and recorded ‘Come Get Me’ that day. I still ended up getting arrested after, but at least got a good song out of it. I stay out of trouble these days though, I’ve grown up and hate that shit now.
How do you think the local rap scene has changed since then?
So much has changed. Just music in general has changed, from how it is consumed to the sounds. But with Aussie hip-hop, the main difference is how widely it’s accepted now. Back then, you had your small groups of Aussie hip-hop heads and then the rest of Australia were hardcore US hip-hop or rock fans. All the rockers called us wiggas or homies, but now everyone listens to it.
The Sydney scene was also a lot rougher back then too, there was always fights and everyone was a writer so there was always crews everywhere and the graf beef leaked into the hip-hop. It’s a lot more chilled nowadays and to be honest, I prefer that because it was near impossible to get venues.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7CyDq2NO28
Your five favourite local rap tracks of all time?
I couldn’t pick top tracks, but my top five Aus MC’s at the moment would probably be: Nihilist, Rates, Huskii, I AM D and Jimmy Nice… but honourable mentions would be Solo & ChillinIT.
What’s on the cards for Dseeva for the rest of 2018?
I’ll be doing a bunch more shows outside of Sydney. Doing an East coast tour for sure. I’m Always working on more music. I’ve got some massive collabs coming and more video clips.
