We recently connected with Marc the Prophet and have shared our conversation below.
Marc the Prophet, appreciate you joining us today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?
I definitely am happy as an artist but it isn’t always the easiest to stay that way. I love music and I love the process but things like writer’s block or someone not communicating with you on a collaboration can be really frustrating. As of right now, I do have a regular job to help finance my artistic career and sometimes I think about if I were to stop music entirely and only work. That shit terrifies me. There’s nothing wrong with working a regular job at all, I just personally don’t want to experience the same thing over and over for the rest of my life. Day in and day out doing the same mundane tasks and potentially working under the thumb of somebody else, nah I’m good. Being an artist can be frustrating but it’s liberating. That makes me happy.
Marc the Prophet, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I got into making music really late compared to a lot of artists today both underground and mainstream. Most artists started getting into music around the ages of like 9-10. I started when I was 18 out of absolutely nowhere. I heard a song called Curry Chicken by Joey Bada$$ while walking to anatomy class in high school. Hearing that song for the first time single handedly changed my entire life trajectory in a span of 3 minutes and 33 seconds. As soon as I heard it, for the first time ever I thought I wanted to make something as cool as that and so I got started working on music that day for the first time.
I’m a rap/hip-hop artist and sometimes also dive into pop/drum and bass sounds though those are unreleased. What I think sets me apart from others is the content of my music. For the most part, my music has some sort of positive message without being too corny. I’m not trying too hard to be positive or push some sort of message. I just rap about the things I believe and have been through and you can tell that translates through the energy on the song. Obviously, I have party/mainstream rap songs every now and then like my latest single “Type Shit” but I really think I am versatile and can do it all. If you need me to rap about how to surpass your limits and get to the next level, I can do that. If I gotta rap about flexing diamonds on my neck and teeth, I can do that too haha.
I guess the thing I’m most proud of is that I’m still here doing it. Trying to make it work. I haven’t gave up and I won’t and to me that’s really awesome because that’s not who I always used to be. The only thing potential fans and followers need to know about me is that one way or another my music will 100% change the world for the better and it is going to be a crazy ride. I want to bring them along for the whole journey.
Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?
Don’t even get me started on NFT’s mannnnnnnn. Worst. Experience. Ever. But I still think they have potential. To keep it short, in 2021, I was not working a job and really had no funds left in my savings so as I was looking for work, I was also trying to make money in the meantime. I was doordashing but I came across NFT’s within all the meme hype in social media that year. I did not just jump right into it, I did weeks and months of research on the whole entire concept of NFTs and some potential projects that were coming out too. I really felt ready and had 3 main projects locked down that I wanted to invest into. I ended up wasting about $1,000 on these 3 projects and gas fees as well. Gas fees are essentially where you pay for the computer to process your transaction. It’s like crypto tax in a way. Anyways, 2 out of the 3 projects ended up being rug pulls (where the creator just took everyone’s money and disappeared) and the last one, the creators just kinda dropped it because they didn’t have enough liquidity to keep it up and running. And then the crypto market entered its bear state and now NFTs are practically dead for now. There are some legitimate projects out there but honestly it’s way too unregulated so you don’t know what you’re getting into. I may get back into them one day when things are more in order, but for now I am definitely staying away from all that mess.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
How hard it is. How much persistence it requires. Non-creatives only look at the highlight reel that we as creatives share. They look at the smoke and mirrors artists provide and maybe that’s our fault for not being more vulnerable with the process. We only show our successes but never our failures. Non-creatives don’t understand the feeling of working on a song for a year just to pitch it to 250 different playlists and have 90% of them deny you saying the song isn’t good enough. Or performing a song in a room full of only, maybe, 10 people and none of them seem to be enjoying it.
It comes with a lot of sacrifices too. Skipping out on hanging with friends and family because you have a song you’re writing that day or an event you’re going to. Staying up till 4am just to get the perfect take of the song you’re recording even though you have to be up in a few hours for work. And the cost…everythinggggg costs money as a creative. Studio time? At least $75/hr. Mixing and mastering if it’s not included? Might be another $100. Beat buying, playlist pitching, synchronization license pitching, music videos, photo shoots, music marketing, ad promotion. Money, Money, Money. Most artists you see looking rich are most likely not, music is a really expensive career.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @marctheprophet
- Youtube: Marc the Prophet
- Other: Apple Music and Spotify: Marc the Prophet
Image Credits
Park/Outside/Upclose Photos: @aricreatesart Performance photos: @everythingiscyan