Featured Track: “Pour More” by Goodpeoples
Let’s start things off easy: who are you and where are you from?
My name is Goodpeoples aka dagoodchef. Others call me GP. I’m from Inglewood, California.
How would you say where you grew up influences your sound?
It influences me in a different way than most. I feel it makes me more open-minded, because in a place like Inglewood and LA people moreso like to stick to whatever’s poppin at the time and all the party songs. So being around such a thing created chaos in my mind, because I was raised around all genres of music, from Movato (reggae artist) to Michael Jackson, Outkast, Tupac, Snoop Dogg, Rick James, Jill Scott, Earth, Wind & Fire, and shit like that. So when I got old enough and was able to access music online or any other way I could, I strayed away from typical LA music and got into anything that stimulated my mind and had feeling, soul, message, or some sense of purpose, because I became conscious of the fact that the music you constantly listen to affects your mentality, which then plays a role in your lifestyle. So I would say where I grew up influences my sound in a special way, because I aim to get people out of such a similar mindstate and expand on what they consume, because it’s monumental whether you believe it or not.
You mention God a lot on your album GOOD TIMES; “Head Bowed” and “Watching Me” especially seem to be about faith. Were you raised religious?
Wasn’t raised in a religious home at all, but I was always taught to be a believer and that there is a higher power and I’ve seen good work, so I’ve had conversations with God since a child and I try my best to cherish my relationship with Him, because there’s situations where I know the turnout wouldn’t have been without Him. He’s answered many of my prayers, so that’s why I’ll always have my faith in Him, because He’s been proven in my mind, body, and soul. I feel it every day, so He affects my music, my life, and my conscious in a spiritual way.
I want to delve into the featured track in question, “Pour More.” Who are you toasting, specifically, on that track?
“Pour More” was a celebration track inspired by the year 2016, dedicated to everyone who was present for the journey. A lot of growth was discovered, a bond between me and others in my camp was broken to grow stronger, we all created some of the best music of our career so far and came more into our own as artists and we learned so much about each other as well as ourselves, so the track felt very necessary to me.
Photo Credit: 3rdiiiphotography
“Pour More” could’ve been a basic party track, but it feels like more than that. A lot of people seem to get drunk and party to forget their pain, but this song seems like it’s more about celebrating life, would you say that’s accurate?
Yes, it’s about celebrating life and the fact that just because things aren’t perfect, you will always have the option to believe in God and yourself and do everything in your power to make progressive things happen, not only for yourself, but for the people around you.
I like how the beat gets chopped and screwed near the end of the song and how your flow changes up as well. What was this turn in the song supposed to signify?
That transition was to signify further down the line everyone in my camp who stayed down and remained true to themselves and the family we’ve built. It also signifies the appreciation I feel, because it’s not often you start a music career and begin to meet people and have intentions to work with them and remain fam until it’s all over .
Your style reminds me of Joey Bada$$, without just sounding like a clone. Who else would you say has influenced you?
It’s a very long list of artists who influence me. Joey is definitely one of them, been rockin wit Pro Era since like 2010. But just to be brief I’ll only name a few artists I’d assume most peoplel know: My favorite rapper, André 3000, Big Boi, Lupe Fiasco, Mos Def, Da$h, Retch, Earl Sweatshirt, Tyler, the Creator, Jill Scott, the whole TDE camp, Tink, Mick Jenkins, AlecBe, Merlaku Ra, N.E.R.D., Lil Wayne, Anderson .Paak, JMSN, Floetry, and Lalah Hathaway.
Photo Credit: 3rdiiiphotography
How’d you get hooked up with the producers you work with? Are they people you know in real life or are they people you found online?
I met AlecBe on Twitter back in 2010, that’s been my brother ever since. A few years later, like 2014, I met Jonboyice and Merlaku Ra through a collective I’m no longer a part of. But that’s been fam ever since and everyone else I either hit them up through the internet or they hit me up, or I might run into em in a studio session or at an event or one of my shows and we’d chop it up. They’d listen to me and most of the time they fuck with me as an artist and a person so I end up getting beats.
How do you choose beats to rhyme over? Do you pick ones producers bring you or do you work with them to develop them?
I’m very particular, my producer homies who I’ve been knowing for years usually already know what I like so they just send me shit if I ask or randomly, but most of the time I like to have a session and create a beat from scratch with the producer because I can’t produce for shit. But I do my best to communicate with whatever producer I’m working with what I’m feeling so we end up on the same page.
Do you spend time writing your rhymes ahead of time or are they mostly freestyled?
I literally write every day, so it’s 50/50. Sometimes I hear a beat and a verse and a song just comes to me, so I either write it down mentally or in my iPhone or go straight into recording, but it all depends on the recording environment, how high I am and shit like that. But I have plenty of verses where the first like 12 bars are written, then the rest is all freestyled, because sometimes I just feel it and it just happens organically, like I don’t even have to think, just say what’s on my mental, and other times I may have to take my time and really pinpoint what it is I’m trying to do with the verse or song.
It seems like GOOD TIMES is pretty optimistic and MELANCHOLY is way more heavy, are these supposed to show two different sides of you, or does this shift coincide with changes going on in your life?
They show growth and definitely a shift in my life. When I made melancholy music I was two years younger, a lot more hot headed, and a little more lost, not just as an artist, but as a black man, I didn’t know how to channel my frustration and energy into my music how I did when I made the GOOD TIMES EP. Optimism wasn’t really an option for me when I made MELANCHOLY due to personal situations, and it led me to strengthen my faith in myself, my family, and God.
A huge thank you to Goodpeoples for letting us feature “Pour More” and ask him some questions. Follow him on Twitter here and Instagram here.
Carter Moon
Carter Moon grew up in the desolate Evangelic capital of the world and responded by developing a taste in counter culture, which eventually bloomed into a love for filmmaking and screenwriting. Carter has average opinions on most things, but will defend them adamantly and loudly until no one else wants to bother speaking up. He runs Crossfader's podcast, IN THE CROSSHAIRS.
