Interview: Slymkrez On His Music Journey And Forthcoming Debut EP ‘Listen To The Message/Don’t Shoot The Messenger’

Slymkrez grew up in a ‘Face-you-I-face-me’ residence where he got exposed to various genres of music from different neighbours. Born Igenuma Prosper, he quickly fell in love with music and became a songwriter by the time he was 12 years old. Like any good Nigerian child, Slymkrez went to school to please his parents who wanted him to be a banker but things did not work out as he only cared about music. “My parents wanted me to be a banker. I tried to go to school but I left because I did not understand economics. I was distracted and I was always looking for a studio instead of classes, he explains.”

He dropped out and focused on creating music. In 2018, he made his official debut with Money, enlisting Chocolate City rapper Blaqbonez. He released another single two years later. Now, Slymkrez is set to put out his first full project titled Listen to the message/don’t shoot the messenger (LTTM/DSTM). In this inteview conducted over zoom, we get to know the man behind the art as we discuss his upbringing, music journey and forthcoming EP.

Tell us about your music journey, when did it all start for you?

I grew up in a ‘Face-you-I-face-me’ house. Each occupant played music and had different tastes in music. As a kid, I used to sit on the passage and consume lots of music ranging from Bob Marley to Yinka Ayefele. Whenever I try to write a song, I reflect on my childhood days and how it’s supposed to be done because my music is influenced by the environment i had as a child. I listened to a lot of Bob Marley, Burning Spear and Peter Tosh so I am heavily influenced by reggae. I don’t remember when I started making music because it’s something I have been doing. I just remember always writing until I could be able to afford a studio. I have been writing since I was 12. The first time I visited a studio was in 2014. Since then, I have been in and out of the studio.

You’ve been writing music for a while now, walk us through your creative process 

I need to have a storyline. Even if I hear a beat or not, I need to have something I want to talk about. I don’t sit down and write songs every day. I just write phrases or sentences every day. When I go to a studio and they play a beat, I try to make what I have written make sense. 

How would you describe your sound?

I would say Afro. It is what everyone is singing but Afro-fusion is everything I want to do. I try to infuse Afro in any other sound and make it sound like Afro.

Lets talk about your debut project, tell us about LTTM/DSTM and what should people expect from it?

I didn’t want the title not to be short. The title is powerful. When you listen to the project you will understand the title. I wanted to create something that is peaceful and pass a reasonable message, at the same time. The project opens with Different; on this I am telling people about how unusual I am. I didn’t want to be regular and add a rap in a verse so I called my sister to recite a poem. It’s like you dancing to a poem in a club. The second track is a love song with me talking about desiring a love interest. I was in my feelings when I created that. The third track Roadside came from thinking about black people and what they have been. , Instead of doing a song that addresses the issue directly, I wanted to do a song that comes at the matter indirectly but still carries the same message. The last song is Quando. It’s a Spanish word for when which can be used as a question. It’s a different genre. The song is about being exhausted from waiting for your lover to return. In the project, there is a message for everyone. I feel people will enjoy the EP.

Which song was most challenging for you and do you have any favourites? 

Definitely Roadside. I did the first verse during the EndSARS protest in 2020. I recorded and kept the song on my laptop. This year, I retrieved the song and revamped it. I decided to have someone on the song so I paid for a verse but things got stressful as the person kept delaying. I had to get a lawyer involved to help me get my money which set my EP release date back. 

My favourite tracks are Different and Roadside. The former is a personal song where I talk about myself and how different I am. 

This is a solo project, do you have plans for future collaborations and what’s next for you?

There are a lot of people I want to collaborate with like Angelique Kidjo and Jacob Banks. I am already working on my album. It should be out in like 2 or 3 years. I want to make sure I am deep-rooted and committed to getting to my goal. I also have an interest in agriculture which is a thing I will do on the side.