Hear what this wild one has to say about his music and how he creates it! We couldn’t tame him!
Bio: Ultra_eko is a new and original South London based independent hip-hop artist. He has begun releasing music only since Summer 2019, but in that time has demonstrated a varied, eclectic, and wholly unique voice within the genre. From the dark, piano infused beats of ‘Monster,’ to the frivolous, freewheeling energy of ‘Moolah’; from the chilled introspectiveness of ‘Low,’ to the catchy pop satire of ‘Broken Glass.’
Whilst his music would certainly be classed as hip-hop, there is not a distinct or identifiable sound by which to recognise it. Rather, it is the unique voice of Ultra_eko himself, the self-professed storyteller, whose powerful writing and vision shines through in every track. His passion for writing and rapping is evident, and in every track, he has a story to tell, a journey upon which to take his listeners and hold them captive. His are often dark tales, touching on regret, struggles between conflicted lovers, breakdowns in relationships, lies and deceit, the difficulties of understanding ourselves and our place in the modern world. The fragile identities we all cling to, liable to crack and fracture at any time. There is a depth and authenticity to the voices in which he writes, and this comes from his own wealth of experience. Born and raised in South London, Ultra_eko has lived and worked his life amongst the people of whom he writes. The colourful and dramatic life he has lived, market trader, pro gambler, bootlegger, amongst others, is his source of inspiration.
Ultra_eko has no plans to slow down with his prolific output, and hopes this past year marks only the beginning of his journey. He has bold ambitions as to where he wants to take his sound and stories, with ideas to take his work to ever greater degrees of complexity and skill. Ultra_eko is an artist of great drive and intensity, and so there will be plenty of new and exciting material in the year ahead
First off, what’s the story with the name?
People seem to connect with the name; it certainly has a resonance to it, Ultra_eko. I didn’t realise or intent the similarities to Alter ego until it was pointed out by someone, yet the two names are so very similar. I had originally come up with the name Baby Echo; not sure why I thought ‘Baby’ was a good title and very glad I didn’t use it, but I liked the word ‘echo’ in relation to an artist because I felt that echoing the word back upon itself was very much the job of an artist. Anyway, the name was already in use, and I was looking for something wholly unique. And so I began typing various names into Spotify trying to find something original and eventually came up with the Ultra_eko title. ‘Ultra’ is something of a superhero title I would say, and I remember an old Transformer character called Ultra Magnus, so perhaps that inspired the name on some deep subconscious level.
Tell us about your musical past, would you tell us about your early years?
There really are no early years to speak of. It has been less than a year that I have been making these tracks, and it came about entirely accidentally. I had purchased a Korg MiniSynth for my son to try and encourage him in his piano lessons. However, he did not really show interest in it at this stage, and so I began messing around on it myself, and I composed a track over which I recorded a hastily written rap. I sent it to a few friends and was surprised by their positive response. Encouraged by this feedback, I began looking into producing something better. I have always loved hip hop since childhood, and I had spent various periods writing lyrics and producing music, but nothing close to the quality of what I have released this last year. I started looking at construction kits and learning various software to put the music together. My passion, however, has always been the writing. Writing is what and drives me; the beats are simply the medium in which I am working. I would always describe myself as a writer first and foremost, and I soon realised that I was writing much faster than I was able to compose the music. I see hip hop not only as a musical medium, but a literary one; and not one or the other, but a fusion of the two. It is quite unique in this way. I remember the beat writers of the fifties, Kerouac, Ginsberg etc, would read live poetry over jazz music. You might see hip hop as sharing roots with this. How I am seeing things at this time, is that this fusion of music and language gives birth to this beautiful and inspiring new medium we call hip hop. As a writer, I like each track to tell a story, to express a powerful emotion or experience, to put an important message across, or simply to make you laugh. I consider the lyrics to my music to be the most important part, which is why I always post the lyrics to every track up on Soundcloud; no one has ever told me that they read them so I hope I’m not wasting my time. I put a lot of time into what I write; words are chosen carefully; I try and create the best piece of work I am able to.
And with so much focus going into the writing, I was happy to find that beats could be bought pre-made. There is still a lot of licence to be creative within that since I will always get the stems if possible so that my mix/master guy, Adam Lewis, is given as much freedom within the track to work as possible. Finding the sound engineer, Adam Lewis, was possibly the best thing to have happened to me musically last year. He is here in the UK which is a massive help, so he gets a lot of the dark English humour. I often have in my tracks, which might pass someone else by if they weren’t familiar with it. Also, he really seems to have an intuitive understanding of what I am trying to do sound-wise; I will have an idea in my head of how I want a particular part of the track to sound, and most of the time he will get this without me having to say anything, so I guess we are thinking on the same wavelength.
So in terms of how I would put something together, it would begin with the idea, the story that I want to tell. I would then try to find a beat that reflects the mood of the piece I want to write. I really find that music can act as a key or a doorway to help you access deeper parts of the self. Even when I used to write prose, short stories, or a novel, I would always write my best material with headphones on, listening to Pink Floyd, perhaps. Music inspires, it stirs emotions, brings vivid imagery to mind, all of which are conducive to good writing. And so I will write a piece to a beat, refine and perfect it as much as possible, and then send everything to Adam to work on musically. The writing part alone is so time-consuming that being able to outsource the music is a godsend; I don’t believe that I would be able to create something as good as some of the beats I use. I am also finding that I am beginning to spend increasing amounts of time learning the promo side of this music business, which some might see as the most crucial component of all. There is no point in creating and releasing all these tracks if you don’t have anyone to listen. So everything has been done whilst on a steep learning curve these last ten months or so. What pleases me is that I have a very clear direction in mind as to where I want to go and take this over the next ten months. I have a clear idea of where I want to go musically, thematically, of the image I want to create, the persona I want to build, and I have clear aims in terms of wanting to build an audience, an active audience who want to listen to the music. I think the audience, the listeners, are what the artist thrives off; we all have this ego-driven need to feel valued.
How would you describe your sound?
The genre would be hip hop, but as for the sound, there is no particular essence that unites all my tracks in terms of sound. I look for music which reflects and works in sync with the story I am trying to tell and the mood I am trying to create. I suppose that many of my tracks have dark undertones and so you might say that there are some dark elements to the music which unites the tracks thematically. At the same time, I also love the frivolous high energy tracks as seen in ‘Moolah’ or ‘We do the bank now,’ so the sound really is very dependent on the song as a whole.
Which artists have the biggest influence on your sound?
That’s a difficult question to answer because I really do try and create something unique and different from everyone else; I see myself as an original. But of course, we are all subject to influence. I have grown up and spent my life loving and listening to both hip hop and indie music, so there is a wide variety of influences of individuals or groups that I love. To name a few in the hip hop field, Tupac, Biggie, Dave, Ocean Wisdom, Lyrics Borns, the Solesides Crew. In terms of indie and classic rock or pop, Radiohead, the Beetles, Pink Floyd, The Smiths, and Elbow. There’s nothing better than finding that new sound that just hits you, fires you up with bursts of new energy and inspiration; it’s like rocket fuel.
What’s the last song you listened to?
That would be ‘Blessed’ by Ocean Wisdom featuring Dizzy Rascal; I absolutely love this track at the moment.
What’s your source for hearing new music?
I use the Apple subscription; it’s amazing how easily accessible music is these days; everything at the touch of your finger. And of course, it’s great seeing my own material in their library.
Who is your dream producer?
At the moment, I think that would be UK rapper Dave, who is an all-round artist, a performer and a musician who pays great detail to how his tracks are put together and makes great music, deservingly winning the Mercury Prize.
If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?
As above.
What led you to music, and what motivates you to keep making it?
As I mentioned earlier, it was wholly accidental that I came to start making tracks last year, but I feel very changed by the whole experience, and I would find it difficult to stop at this moment. It has become an overwhelming passion and obsession for me and drives me from the moment I wake until I sleep. I have always been someone who does things to excess, that defines my personality, and I’m somewhat of an ‘all or nothing’ person. I am motivated by the love of the music, the love of writing and of creating tracks that I am proud of and through which I can reach out and connect with people. In many ways I feel that this period of prolific creativity is in some ways motivated by the feeling that I am making up for all the time I wasn’t making these tracks. I wish I had started earlier, and yet, perhaps this was the exact right moment for me; the perfect coming together of conditions; who knows?
Tell us about the songwriting process. How does it all come together?
I would say that it is often a mixture of different processes and starting points. It may begin with an idea, a concept, or a story that I want to tell. Or it may begin with a sound, an instrumental that I have found which immediately inspires. Music has very powerful effects, and sometimes an instrumental can inspire a flurry of ideas and images to burst to the forefront of my mind so that a story will begin to form. I will then work from that point, using the sound to lead the story.
If I already have an idea that I want to explore, then I will look for sounds that seem to reflect and capture the mood I am trying to create and then develop it using those. Often I will write a piece to several different sounds or instrumentals, finding that the music brings forth different aspects or elements of the story.
Once I have decided on a final sound, then it’s a case of trimming the verse to perfectly fit the music and getting the flow just right.
How do you connect with your audience?
I would say my most direct means is through my Instagram account. It’s funny because I had never used any of these social media services until I began making the music; now I seem hopelessly addicted to Insta in particular. I never used to understand the validation people got from views and likes, the little ego boost, and now I’m an addict. Insta is great for posting live performances, poems, artwork; it’s great for visual and audio media, and there seems to be a good degree of interaction. In contrast, my Twitter account rarely gets many responses to posts even when I can see, they have been viewed many times. Soundcloud is also great for building a relationship with an audience; as listeners can comment and provide feedback on what they like or dislike about a track, I have made several good friends through Soundcloud. In contrast, Spotify is wholly anonymous, and you really don’t know much about the people listening. I plan to have a website up and running within the next two months whereby I hope to develop a much closer relationship with listeners and other artists; I am hoping to build some sort of hub or forum where artists and listeners can connect, post music and art and perhaps build a small online community of like-minded people.
What is the easiest way for them to connect with you?
Answered above.
Connect with Ultra_eko via his Instagram, Twitter, SoundCloud, Spotify, and YouTube accounts.
Do you work with a producer? If so, how do they help shape your sound?
I don’t work with a producer.
Your tracks tend to have dark, gritty content to them. What inspired this? Is it the people who lived around you? How about the things you’ve experienced?
I think I have always had a dark sensibility about my character. Certainly, I came from a family who carried a lot of pain and heartache and I think this gets passed down to children through the environment in which they are raised; they pick up on moods and emotions, even if they are unspoken. That sad, melancholic vibe was very present when I was a child; I remember that I became terrified to sleep at night as thoughts of death and nothingness would consume and terrify me. I come from a poor working-class family in South London and still am very much part of that environment, and there often isn’t very much to be cheerful about. All of this fear and pain and sadness; these dark emotions have become the foundation from which I write. I began to read Stephen King’s horror novels from the age of ten and worked my way through his library. Rather than be scared, I found comfort in those stories, they made me feel better about my own dark concerns, and soon after I began writing myself. I discovered that writing was a great way to process and work through feelings and emotions, to get to grips and understand them, and in doing so much better understand oneself. It is a type of waking dream, whereby the images thrown up by the subconscious often can be very revealing as to what is going on within a person.
Your most popular song, “Broken Glass,” you sing during the hook, “I ain’t leaving here unless it’s in a body bag.” What inspired such extreme words? What was the inspiration for the song overall?
To me, that sentence is a very stoical turn of phrase. It suggests loyalty and commitment; that the narrator is not going to give up on something no matter how hard or unpleasant it might become. On the other hand, it suggests stubbornness and rigidity, a refusal to be flexible and to accept change. They are two sides of the same coin, and those traits can be advantageous or disadvantageous, depending on the situation.
What lyrics stand out to you the most in “Broken Glass?” What do they mean to you?
It’s a fairly light-hearted song, a darkly humorous piece; my favourite line in terms of its composition would be,
‘You know deep down I love you very dearly, and so it really hurt to hear this’
It sounds a very simple line, but it is perfectly weighted and balanced, and there is a beauty in its simplicity and form; I do not know why, I don’t have the technical knowledge to break it down for analysis; but I know instinctively, the way it sounds when spoken is fantastic; I wish I had a whole track with such clean lines.
Your latest release, “Wild One,” in the chorus you sing, “I know not what I do, I know not what I’ve done, I did not think, and I did not plan, always carried by a grey, grey wind.” What do those lyrics mean? What inspired them?
Those lyrics were actually inspired by an Ojibwa saying, an indigenous people of Canada. ‘Sometimes I go about in great pity for myself when all the while I am carried by a great wind.’ It was famously used in a Sopranos episode, and I think it captures an important essence of life. That a lot of what happens to us is wholly outside of our control; even when we think we are in control and making decisions, those choices have often been made unconsciously long before they even reached our conscious awareness. And so, we are often carried along in life by forces outside of our control, and it would benefit us to recognise this, and not always place such a burden for circumstance on our own shoulders; we should let ourselves be carried by the winds of Fate more often; it might lead to a greater sense of well being about ourselves and peace with the world.
Editor’s note: Since beginning of this interview, Ultra_eko has released a new track called “Wormwood Scrubs.” Check it out!
What lyrics stand out to you the most in “Wild One?” What do they mean?
I like the line, ‘ain’t never done nothing by the book, can’t live a life someone else already writ’ – which to me is about finding your own path, the path that is most true to you and what you need from this life. Too often, we look to others to lead us, but their journey may be very different from our own and not benefit us in the same way. We must each look at what we want, what do our souls most crave and desire here during our time on earth, and try to satisfy these soulful needs; this hopefully will result in a fulfilling life. Too often, we find ourselves living the life that someone else wants for, a life that is designed for their happiness but not our own; we have all been guilty of trying to please others. But this often leads to unhappiness and is not the path that we fill our souls with content. We must listen to those inner voices; what they ask of us.
What’s next for you?
I really want to keep growing, improving, connecting with more people, to feel I am developing as an artist, exploring new ground, new ideas, and trying to really flex those creative muscles. I have what I believe some great stuff lined up and I hope to have an album out soon; if I can coincide that with the website going live, then that will be fantastic. There will be plenty of content, I hope, and I really hope people feel a connection with what I am doing; that for me, means more than anything.
Anything else you’d like to add or let us know about?
Thank you for your time; and for giving me this opportunity to talk and express different ideas and thoughts; I hope some of what I say resonates with people; and please feel free to message me on Insta, even if it’s just to say hello; I would love to hear from you.
