Artist Snapshot: SWSHR (@swshrofficial)

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SWSHR

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The next Artist Snapshot features a unique artist from Seattle, Washington SWSHR. We recently were able to promote some of his new music including WAWA and music video for “Cantaloupe”. Afterwards we had the opportunity to learn more about himself as an artist and feature him in the next Artist Snapshot: SWSHR.

What is your favorite Swisher Flavr #rareflavr? - Why? How long have you been smoking weed, how does it play a part in your music. We assume your name comes from Swisher Sweets. Who has influenced you the most to start smoking weed?

Hey that’s a good assumption, I used to be a big Swisher Sweet head back in high school.  Me and my friends were definitely smoking Swishers, and if they stay a dollar a piece I think they’ll be chillin’ for a while. My boy Atticus says that everybody’s first blunt is a grape Swisher Sweet, and that’s the case for me but I don’t know about everybody!  I really started smoking in early high school and haven’t really stopped for that long, it gets me in a good headspace to create and to keep the patience I need to produce and mix and master on a laptop.

What was life like growing up in Seattle? The music scene ? Was cantaloupe filmed there? How has Seattle shaped you? Have you been anywhere else in the world?  

The music scene in Seattle is historically super insane and pretty deep in jazz and blues, and was probably pretty influential in me getting into jazz at an early age.  I played piano in the Garfield High School jazz band and we toured Europe and played in New York, so that was super awesome to experience before I got really into producing and rapping.  All of my videos have been filmed in the US, two in Colorado and one in Boston, but the video for Cantaloupe was filmed at the Paint Mines about an hour north of my college.  I have been all around the world with my family, and have been super grateful for the experiences my parents have afforded me, but I would love to spend more time in Europe, and visit the UK.

Do you have any experience performing live? What has that been like? 

I had my first legit performance in Seattle last summer, with an organization called Raw Artists that works with independent artists all across the US.  It went super well, a ton of my homies showed out, and I a lot of new heads hit me up after the show with a lot of encouragement.  I’ve performed many times at house shows at college, and all of them have been super live and have garnered a lot of support for my music.  I’ve been creating a lot more recently, so I’ve sort of dropped off of the show search.

Tell us about your projects that have been released? How many total eps are available? Which platform do you recommend people go to the most or where you are most poppin? Which Track or project really depicts your style the most?

I’ve released two full projects, Plantasia and Fruitbowl EP, and the process has been really illuminating and difficult but I’ve learned so much.  Plantasia was all produced on Garageband, so really not super proud about the sound but it means a lot to me in terms of where I’ve grown from and how my music has developed over the last few years.  I’m really proud of Cantaloupe, which features my college friend D-dub on the guitar, and my boy Tarin on the animation.  While I was mixing the project, Tarin was animating the video and after the summer we were both finished, and threw a dope release party the night of the release.  Cantaloupe captures a good insight into my musicality, and the total artistic nature of the project because it really was a communal effort.  The Fruitbowl EP has gotten a little over 100k on Soundcloud, but my Spotify is poppin’ off too!

Who are your top 5 favorite rappers/musicians- how have they influenced your life? who are your favorite producers to work with- what has it been like working with producers

your co-workers/collabs?

Top 5 is pretty difficult to put together, but I think T.I. takes the top spot as the first rapper I really connected with.  He’s got the southern flow on lock, and he’s been relevant and such a big leader in the hip-hop community for years.  I been on Gunna lately, and I think both of those two have influenced my flow a lot especially recently with Gunna.  I’m also a big fan of Smino’s new tape.  The only person I’ve really worked with consistently is D-dub, a rapper/producer from Cambridge.  We met at college, but linked up first in Paris and he brought me weed from Amsterdam!  He’s a killer musician, hit up his socials and his music for ya kid.

D-DUB FB//D-DUB IG//D-DUB SOUNDCLOUD

What do you have planned next as far as future projects? What is your goal as an artist?

My overall goal as an artist is to be doing everything I can on my own.  I’ve gotten way better at producing in the last month, and I’m super excited to be able to feel comfortable releasing something I made all on my own.  I’ve got a few singles lined up, although I don’t know when they’ll be scheduled for release.

What are some of your favorite brands you fuck with the most? Who would you want to have a deal with the most?

I mean I think the biggest possibility of a sponsorship would be from Swisher Sweets, but I don’t really smoke those anymore haha.  If I ever blow up I’d love to get sponsored by the Seattle Mariners.  They’re trash but everyone in Seattle loves ‘em.  

Wawa, a song by SWSHR on Spotify

@SWSHR

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