Boaz keeps it realer than most. It starts with something as simple as his name, but even that seemingly commonplace element speaks to how he values authenticity.
“I think it’s extremely important,” he says regarding authenticity. “Coming up, I never really seemed to get a nickname or anything like that. Everybody always recognized me like, ‘That’s Young Bo,’ or ‘That’s Little Bo.’ So when I really thought about going into Rap, it was like, ‘I might as well use my real name.’”
With that mentality, Boaz’s Real Name No Gimmicks series—which boasts his birth certificate as its artwork—was born. Throughout the project, Boaz has enlisted the likes of Scarface, Top Dawg Entertainment’s Punch and others. It ties into his genuine ethos while looping in like-minded peers, and it serves as the perfect set up for Boaz’s album. The Pittsburgh native is scheduled to announce the title and release date of said album Tuesday, September 16. In the meantime, Boaz is here to detail his approach to the project and preview a few cuts in jut the manner you’d expect. No gimmicks.
Boaz Explains Valuing Authenticity While Crafting His Album
AD LOADING...
HipHopDX: The title Real Name No Gimmicks screams authenticity. How important is authenticity to you when you’re making music?
Boaz: I think it’s extremely important. Coming up, I never really seemed to get a nickname or anything like that. Everybody always recognized me like, “That’s Young Bo,” or “That’s Little Bo.” So when I really thought about going into Rap, it was like, “I might as well use my real name.” It has a good sense of originality too, so authenticity is definitely a big thing with me.
DX: Are you putting a lot of authentic themes into your debut album?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: Definitely. I think it will be really reflective of life issues of early age people just growing up and taking over the world.
DX: Are you still aiming to release it in the fall?
Boaz: Yeah, hopefully we’re dropping it at the end of the summer or around September. We’re just critiquing ourselves and staying fresh and new. You’ll come to a point where you think your project is done, and you’ve created a whole different look. So then you’re like, “This has to go on the album.” With certain energy and certain things you do, you just recreate. It’s not necessarily a thing where the complication was with the music or the label or anything, it’s just that trying to give y’all the best product possible takes time.
DX: So, as you continue to grow, you make changes?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: Definitely. I think it just comes along with the experience. Sometimes you might feel as if this particular subject has more of a feel for right now.
DX: If you think about it that way, wouldn’t it be changing all the time?
Boaz: Yeah. I think that’s what we get in the series of the Real Name No Gimmicks, before the tape, just to get a feel for what’s going on in music right now and just trying to stay real relative to that. By the time the album drops, it’s like we’ve already seasoned it up so well that the whole purpose and it’s relativity to what’s going on right now is just on point.
How Boaz Represents A Different Side Of Pittsburgh
DX: On your latest project, I saw that you have a Punch [Terrence Henderson, President of TDE]. feature. You might be the only one with a Punch feature. How did that come about?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: I think just from making relationships in the industry. With Punch, we’ve been building with TDE for some time. We were playing the music and he was really interested in the song. I know he’s rapped before. He kind of dipped into the shadows, but he’s still extremely talented. So I was like, “Why don’t you just let something loose on the song?” and he was more than willing to do it. He was like, “Yo, I really like this joint.” When he shot it back, it was like, “Yo, Punch murdered this!” I think, surprisingly enough, people are really happy to hear him on the song.
DX: That’s pretty dope. You’ve said before that Mac Miller, Wiz Khalifa, and your music make up the people of Pittsburgh. How would you describe the group of people your music represents?
Boaz: I would say [it represents] the more poverty-stricken area—the deeper, urban core of the culture. It’s basically, Hip Hop at its essence… just the hood and everything we’ve seen Hip Hop emerge from is what we representing. That comes from just being immersed in the culture. Larimer Avenue—it is Hip Hop. I heard Prodigy say it the best way it could ever be put, “A thug ain’t a look, it’s a way of life.” I feel the same way with Hip Hop. It’s not a look, it’s a way of life. It kind of varies by culture.
DX: When I brought up you, Mac, and Wiz, you kind of all represent—I assume—a different part of the city. For you personally, who do you feel like you speak for?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: I would say the hood. It ain’t too much stretching for me to really go there. I think I just speak for those who can’t really speak for themselves, I guess. I speak for the people that need a voice. I’m like the ghetto spokesman.
DX: I know you’re from Larimer. Are there any other artists that have come from there?
Boaz: Yeah, actually. When we really first started rapping, I had began with a group, titled The Government. We were all from the neighborhood. We all grew to a nice bit a fame. Shout out to S-Money, Nizzy the Don, Hardtimes, and Lake Lansky. Yeah, it’s a pretty predominant Hip Hop area. We got a lot of good energy coming out of the hood.
DX: How long did you rap with them.
AD LOADING...
Boaz: I still do. It’s just, right now, I’m doing my solo thing, but we still rappin’ together.
DX: How long have you guys been together?
Boaz: Some time—close to 10 years.
DX: That’s dope. How do they feel about everything?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: They feel great. Most of the group found legal troubles, so it’s not like they stopped rapping or anything. It was just some things that went on in their life, so they’re extremely proud at this point. A few of them from behind the wall are like “Yo! Let’s get it done!” It’s just a beautiful look for all of us.
DX: Does that encourage you to continue to push on to where their lives could have gone?
Boaz: It’s extreme encouragement. It’s that much more inspiring to know that I’ve walked in those shoes and could easily be in that situation. It gives me a sense of being fortunate and like, “Wow,” and it comes from hard work. You really gotta know that when you’re trying to make yourself a professional musician, it comes with a lot of work.
DX: You really have to think ahead. You can’t just think in the moment.
AD LOADING...
Boaz: Certainly. Marketing has become so important in music. There used to be a point where you could just be natural and let it flow, but the playing ground is so dense right now. You really have to keep yourself original and outstanding. That comes with a lot of preparation.
Boaz Talks Michael Brown’s Death & Having A Sense Of Pity
DX: Definitely. A lot of rappers, from Talib Kweli to Vince Staples to one of the people you collaborated with, Crooked I, have commented on the murder of Michael Brown and what’s happened in Ferguson. What are some of your thoughts on the recent events?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: I think people try to have a sense of pity for humanity. Rest in peace to Michael Brown, but it’s so dangerous out there in that world. Right now, given the level of tension between cops and robbers—and this is like the best thing I could say for anybody that’s even perceived to be on the bad side of the law—you want to be as respectful to the authorities as possible. I’m not telling you to go tell on somebody, but when the authorities are trying to get you to comply to do something, it’s best to just do it. I know you want to use your rights to the best of your ability but let’s just let the police do what they do and stay alive. As you see, it’s dangerous. The authorities want their respect. Just be careful and be mindful that the law is the law and they do have people to exercise that, both in your defense and offensively, at times. It’s dangerous out there.
DX: With all of the conversations going on with the political and racial issues, with journalists getting thrown in jail for no reason, with all of that combined…
Boaz: We had a huge discussion about the way mass media is driving things. It’s driving people to think things aren’t being done from a moral sense. People are more worried about the way it’s being perceived. We was talking about how somebody might punch somebody and say, “WorldStar!” It’s real out there. It’s not a game. I think people are taking entertainment, right now, as more reality than reality really is. When things blow up, it’s like, “Fuck, this is terrible.” But I mean, it’s reality.
DX: Sometimes, we’re somewhere safe, and we’re just tweeting while people are really experiencing what’s going on, over there.
AD LOADING...
Boaz: Definitely. It was told to me like this: “Justice depends on everybody.” I can’t just be just safe in my enjoyments, and you can’t just be safe in yours. That’s unjust. It’s got to be an equal thing.
DX: It’s something we’ve got to keep working on. So, are there any other Pittsburgh artists you’ve kept your eye on?
Boaz: I think Pittsburgh is always aspiring. Right now, it’s so much going on that I can’t even keep up. Every time you look, it’s like I’ve got somebody on my Twitter or my Instagram like, “Yo, check this out! Check this out!” It’s really just about being outstanding. There’s a few guys. There’s a guy named Deezlee—he was just recently arrested—but he’s got a huge song in the club, right now that everybody’s really liking. That’s what I’m saying. The culture is so close to reality, right now, that these guys are like, “Wow, he was just in the streets with us, but now he’s gone.” You gotta really buckle down and make that sacrifice if you want to be a professional. Just stay at it. Anybody who’s aspiring to get it done in Pittsburgh, [if] I see you in the streets, holla.
DX: How do you describe your work ethic?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: There’s a word I’m looking for. I want to say it’s determined. I’m just a determined worker. I can’t take the taste of failure. It’s just not something I’m accustomed to. You keep working until you get it. I think that anything [attainable] is something you can manifest. So, it’s not that farfetched to be a rapper, nowadays, or an athlete, or anybody that’s admired. Just go hard at it.
DX: In terms of storytelling, what are you most looking forward to on your debut album?
Boaz: I’m really looking forward to moving forward and releasing some of these thoughts I’ve had of life behind me and airing it out and just reaching new heights in life, to repeat the cycle. I think when you really become that musician, you’ve got to stay affluent and fans are looking for that soothe like “Yo, every time I pop him in, he’s just right on point.” That’s just what we’re aiming to do, just keep the fans pleased.
DX: Are there any specific personal stories you can share with us?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: Definitely. I’ve got a few on there that are really true to life. I’ve got a song titled Intuition that’s real true to life. I’ve got a song titled “Rooting For The Villain” that’s—these songs are really a few underdog stories that [make you feel like], “Wow, you won this time.” It’s just having a good time, stories about sex and love and real interesting stuff. It’s really hard to even classify it as rap because it’s so everywhere. To me, it’s a masterful piece.
DX: What is “Rooting For The Villain” about?
Boaz: “Rooting For The Villain” is about a good guy who wanted to do good things but couldn’t seem to get his message across, so he kind of had to do things in the way that people might not have liked, but it got their attention. Once it did, the people begin to appreciate his plight. So, it’s like “Wow, they’re rooting for the villain.” Whether he dies or lives at the end of the movie, it’s like “Wow, we were really rooting for this guy.” If he dies, it’s like “Ahh, they killed this dude!”
DX: Is it a good guy gone bad, kind of?
AD LOADING...
Boaz: Pretty much. But once a good guy’s gone bad, he’s not gone forever. That’s for women.
DX: It works. Is it something that has happened to you or someone you know?
Boaz: I’ve seen it happen on many occasions, just being impoverished and, I guess, being from a low-income family. It’s kind of the reason that some people make decisions to do the wrong thing. To try to make some right out of it. So, I can’t say everybody that’s doing the wrong thing has a bad means to it. There’s some villains that have good intentions.
AD LOADING...
RELATED:DXNext – Boaz [Interview]
