We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tsg: Ap!. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with TSG: below.

Alright, TSG: thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

The risk? Believing in myself as I had begun the drive down an unconventional route to success. That belief is what got me to where I am today. I was only seventeen when I started recording music. Lying to my parents about my whereabouts because I knew they wouldn’t yet support the idea. Skipping classes to freestyle with my friends in random classrooms. Signing an early decision, full scholarship, to UW-Madison, to get as far away from home as I could, so that no familial shackles, nor expectations, could hold me for any longer. Plunging myself into that world of independence truly radicalized my self image, for no more, could family in my life dictate my next steps. Only until understanding myself as an individual, could all of my successes as a musician, mean something. Getting flown out to college campuses to perform, only as a freshman in college. Gaining admittance to No Label Academy @ Harvard, led by IDK. Becoming an artist that has over one hundred thousand streams. None of these things would have happened if I never took “the risk.” Funny enough, I don’t even think believing in myself should have been as risky as it once was.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My artist moniker is, “TSG: AP!” This stands for, “The Sun’s Guide: AP!” My introductory statement for said title goes as such, “Shining the light of the sun on my own experiences to guide you, as you learn about your own.” I got into this industry after freestyling in my high school library, as my friends & I always would, to be approached by an old friend, Vancar, who invited us to his basement recording studio. This is where I made my first ever, publicly released record on SoundCloud. From then, I would go on to meet more influential & professional people in the industry. Family like Kingpen Slim, a hip-hop artist out of D.C., got me into my first real deal studio with Arkitech. This is where a lot of records from my solo career were recorded. I really felt a part of the industry when I got to No Label Academy in 2021 & left with relationships that I never would imagine having. Then to later, work alongside Nike in 2023 as a product intern, an opportunity from No Label that still is changing my life. My creative works are lyrically autobiographical & sonically directionless. People who listen to me have a difficult time categorizing my nature. You are better off just enjoying the art. This is what I am most proud of. I have used my life experiences to spark conversation & introspection with those who choose to indulge in my art. This is what provides constant fulfillment throughout my day to day.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Once I started gaining newfound attention when I got to UW-Madison, I joined the numbers game. It’s all I could focus on. I believed I was so good at what I was doing, my mind conjured this ego that now craved validation through numerical data. So, if someone thought something I created wouldn’t be commercially successful, I tossed the idea out completely. My first breakout record, “Trauma!,” featuring my godbrother, Nige, really messed my head up. At 18, I had financial backing for the first time & that push gave the record over one hundred thousand streams on Spotify & YouTube. A mistake I am grateful to now learn from. Immensely. The social commentary & expectations I now faced, made me feel like whatever I did next had to be just as big or else…I was a failure. This ego killed my genuine creative spirit that sparked this whole journey & I grew empty. I mean it when I say that No Label Academy really changed my life & got me out of that creative rut. It made me believe in myself again. It made me believe that I didn’t need to be the creative person that regurgitated carbon copies of previous records to find commercial success in the industry. It reminded me of what I once already knew – The truth in my emotions is what will make my art meaningful. Not a numerical value attached to the art. I wasted so much time listening to all of those people saying numbers matter. They really don’t. The love poured into the art trumps all.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I literally get to do what I want, when I want. When I’m not bartending for the Italian restaurant I work for, that is. Any idea that randomly pops up in my head, I have the ability to actualize it. I hope people really understand how much of a gift that is. That we can literally make something out of nothing. That something having the power to evolve the way someone thinks or behaves, grants a feeling I have never felt doing anything else. I love being able to understand myself, even when I don’t. When I’m dealing with life’s hiccups & can’t understand why. Because I am an artist, I know that there is something I can create to help me understand my troubles. If not understand, at least come to terms with them & accept them for what they are. A luxury. This life brings flexibility, not a rigorous structure that I must adhere to the second I arise from bed. A luxury. I may not have the most money in the world. I may not be the most streamed artist in the world. But, boy oh boy. I think when it comes to fulfillment? I have GOT to be up there. What I’m doing is what that seventeen year old version of myself always desired.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://fanlink.tv/theworldoftsg
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/theworldoftsg
• Twitter: https://x.com/theworldoftsg
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@theworldoftsg
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/theworldoftsg

Image Credits

Photos by HagenBrothers, Thomas Griffith & Isaac Westberg