Here's what Turquoise Prince had to say when we caught up with him during his support of Horrorshow's Australian tour. Check out pics from their Woollongong show below.
Do you look for inspiration in hip-hop here in Australia or abroad?
I definitely think inspiration is found everywhere. I take a lot from the crew I surround myself with, it’s always different though - the internet is a huge one.
Your lyrics are very personal. Is it cathartic to release that or scary to have it out in such a public place?
This probably sounds mad cheesy but I'd honestly rather write songs about my problems as opposed to addressing them directly. My music varies depending on how I’m feeling, sometimes when I’m down I’ll write some mad sad shit. It’s not scary to be judged for who you really are, it’s honest and people will either connect or they wont.
Name a life-changing album and live show.
My mum never let me listen to hip-hop as a kid because I was already a little rough around the edges. My dad lived on the other side of town and loved playing that 'cool dad’ role and always had Eminem pumping in his truck when he’d pick me up from school. I was probably 10 years old when I asked him to get me the new 50 cent Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ album as my birthday present, since mum wouldn’t allow it. He did and I remember unwrapping it and just losing my shit. That album gave me a lot of confidence throughout the rest of my primary school life.
As for a life-changing life show - I’d have to say watching Anderson Paak play Listen Out 2016 from side stage. He was just killing it on the drums like 3 meters away from me. I couldn’t even introduce myself to him afterwards when I saw him at the canteen I was so star struck. He’s a god, the electricity was real.
Your releases are sporadic but always feels really nurtured and finessed. Do you sweat over lyrics and production for a long time?
I am probably one of the most disgusting perfectionists you will ever meet. I don’t sweat over lyrics, but no one gets to hear the shit until it’s done. I hate playing demos for people and hearing what I need to fix, it literally gives me anxiety. And the same goes with production, a lot of the time if it’s my beat - the synths and samples I use are super primitive, but I know how the end product has to sound. So I can hear how it has to sound but nobody else can until it actually sounds how it has to sound (if that makes sense?). The trick is to get it there before I show my crew.
You cross between hip-hop and electronica. Do you feel like the two blend effortlessly these days?
Genre-bending is the new thing IMO, I’m trying to incorporate all these other influences before anyone else in Australia does. There’s such a stigma around Australian Hip-Hop right now and I hate it. I’m here to wash everyone’s mouth out with soap until the idea of Aus Hip-Hop tastes like money.
What are you proudest about so far in your career?
Honestly I’d have to say playing the Enmore with Horrorshow and the crew. Jumping back on stage to play our songs together to over a thousand people who were singling along to every word was mad overwhelming. To me there is no higher feeling. So I’m proud of that moment, but I’m more so inspired.
If you could work with any producer in the world who would you tap and why?
If you asked me this a year ago I would have definitely said Flume because his sound is so distinguishable, and that’s how I want my music to be described as and recognised by the minute you press play. But honestly I’d have to say that there is nobody out there that I value more than my team. I just really want to put the music I’m making with my crew out. I don’t get along with every producer I meet; a lot of these electronic cats have mad ego, and I tend to clash with producers who don’t let me run the session. A lot of producers can’t handle some young nobody telling them what to change etc. There has to be a spark of mutual understanding otherwise nothing gets done/finished.
Do you think Canberra has helped or hindered your musical identity?
The Canberra music scene is nothing compared to the Sydney music scene. There are a lot of big fishes in little ponds here, and that can either be a good thing or a bad thing.
I’ve been writing songs since I was in primary school, but I’ve been in this game for 3 years now and I feel I’ve only just established my full musical identity. For some it can take a whole lifetime to work that shit out, so being a big fish in a little Canberra-pond has definitely helped me establish my musical identity for sure.
Horrorshow said you've been working with them a bit lately. How did that relationship start?
It started on a bender. The HS lads came to one of Hau’s gigs that I was jumping up to play a couple songs for. We had a few drinks and a chat afterwards at the Newtown Social Club, then we ended up kicking-on at Adit’s house. We started connecting, showing each other unreleased music and he said we should work together. I thought it was just bender-talk until he sent me a folder of beats the following week. I wrote and recorded a song literally the night he sent me the beats (because I was trying to impress him) and that ended up being my lead single that should be coming out this August. We’ve now got too many songs to count, he really understands what I’m trying to do and we just have that magic in studio that I can’t find anywhere else.
What have you learnt from them and their energy?
Too many lessons both on music and on life. Their network (the Oneday crew) and everyone surrounding them are all just on another level. It’s too inspiring.
Check out the snaps of their Woollongong show by Dominique Berns-Blackwell below.
