We were lucky to catch up with Yuta recently and have shared our conversation below.

Yuta, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

In my freshman year of high school, my friends and I would have rap battles during our lunch period. We’d slack off during class to prepare our rhymes and then once class let out, we’d have fun. I didn’t know how seriously I wanted to take songwriting until I got depressed one summer and thought about what I wanted to do with my life. I had different hobbies and goals I wanted to achieve regarding education, but I didn’t feel like getting a degree would define who I was. At the beginning of my sophomore year of high school, I finally found the courage to record my first song and release it on YouTube. Of course, when I went to school the next day, people were laughing and making fun of my song. It was bad I admit, but my friends supported me and begged me to keep going so I could see improvement. I continued to make music on my phone for a few months and then the pandemic hit. By that time, I haven’t told my parents about my secret hobby. Whenever I wanted to record a song, I’d wait until no one was around because I still wasn’t confident enough in my music. It was really awkward for me but eventually, I showed my song to my cousin. I didn’t specifically tell him that I made the song but he found out and told my parents. In that short period of time from when I started to when my parents found out, I made a lot of improvement in the way I wrote songs and delivered my vocals. My parents were impressed with my horribly mixed songs and immediately got my older brother to take me to a studio. At the studio, I re-recorded the song that I played my parents and I was shocked at the difference between the two versions. I watched the engineer do cool things with my vocals and from that point, I knew I wanted to learn audio engineering. Later that year, my dad got me a laptop and I started working on my first album

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 name is Malik McMillian, but everyone calls me Yuta. I’ve been writing songs and engineering vocals for about 5 years now. Throughout the years, I have been self-recording albums and directing/editing my music videos. I started making music as a hobby at first, going under the name “4735” but decided to start taking it more seriously after hearing how much I improved as an artist throughout the pandemic. I think something that separates me from other artists is the way my music sounds and the topics that I speak about in my music. I try to make my music sound majestic and the instrumentals that I use are usually very calming and ambient. I write songs about personal experiences that have shaped who I am, which I think connects with people who have experienced similar things. I am most proud of my album “See You in Space Cowboy” which was released back in 2023. This album means a lot to me because I wrote and recorded it in about a month and it just feels raw and emotional. That album has also become my new blueprint for how I write albums and do things creatively. It taught me to be more comfortable taking risks when it comes to my music. For anyone who wants to follow my journey, I want you to know that even if I fail at this music thing, I’m going to keep trying until I succeed. I am passionate about music and I want to be able to take care of myself and my family with the music I make.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Back in 2022, my father passed away and it completely shifted the way I view life as a whole. I went to college a week after he passed and I felt miserable throughout my first year as a college student. Recording music just felt awkward because I didn’t want to address those feelings. However, I pushed myself to meet more people and connect with other artists. This taught me to be more comfortable with the music I was making and from there, I went on to write some of my best music.

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

For me, it’s just having a conversation about the art. Even if I’m talking to someone who does something outside of music, it’s fun to listen to their creative journey and see how they’re putting their personality into the stuff that they make. I enjoy talking to people about how art makes them feel because it helps me understand that person better,

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/YutaTheProphet
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whosyuta_/
• Twitter: https://x.com/yutathegod
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@yutathegod4735
• Soundcloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/xMxn8M9AKRPabAQC8