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

Rollo, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

I abandoned a half-ride (50%) scholarship to attend law school in San Diego for an unpaid internship at a recording studio in Pittsburgh. It was the best decision of my life. A lot of people don’t know this, but I was accepted to law school at California Western in downtown San Diego. I would’ve been a member of the class of 2020. I was obsessed with the show Entourage and wanted to be the Ari Gold of the music industry instead of the movie business. The truth, though, is that the character I really wanted to be was Vinny Chase. Vince is a fictional movie star who brings his friends and family from his childhood with him when he makes it big in Hollywood. Before I started law school, I had a gap year between graduating college and starting law school. During that year I connected with an engineer named Justin Cicco who owned a studio in Pittsburgh. After buying 3 beats from him, I saw he tweeted about needing an intern so I reached out and asked if I could do it. Completely out of nowhere, I made the decision to move from my Dad’s house outside of Philly to Pittsburgh to take an unpaid internship at Upstreet Studios thinking it would look good on my resume as an aspiring music lawyer. I planned on staying for 4 months and then leaving for San Diego to start school. After seeing what Cicco had to offer, I ended up staying for 2 years. I was a super-fan of Taylor Gang, a music group formed by Wiz Khalifa which includes most of my favorite artists, and built a personal relationship with a few members of the team through Cicco. Ditching law school for that internship was the first step to me being where I am today in the music industry. The first time people started taking me seriously as an artist was when I dropped a song featuring Kris Hollis, an R&B singer who is signed to Taylor Gang. It solidified me being able to say I was living my dream. Fast forward 6 years later to 2023, I’m living in paradise here in San Diego, I’ve built relationships in the music industry that have changed my life forever, and I’m performing on the same stages as artists who have made millions of dollars doing what I’m pursuing. While I still have a ways to go, I know where I’m headed, and it all started with that decision to follow my heart and my gut and give up the chance of becoming a lawyer just to be around in the studio back in Pittsburgh.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I grew up obsessed with baseball and all I ever wanted to be was an MLB player, preferably for the Philadelphia Phillies. I made it to the NCAA and played D3 baseball at Susquehanna University, but as soon as I got there I knew I wasn’t going to go pro. After baseball ended abruptly in the middle of my college career I needed something to occupy my time. I have an obsessive personality when it comes to being productive and I always need to be making progress. Eventually I fell in love with making music. A friend of mine named Bryan Palsi rapped in college and even though we were the same age I looked up to him for it because it was always a secret goal of mine to be a rapper too. When I finally started dropping my own songs, I got a very encouraging immediate reaction from a lot of people. The field hockey team at my school took a liking to one of my songs and would play it in their locker room before games, and even through the stadium speakers during practice. The first time I heard some of them sing my lyrics I became addicted to that feeling immediately. My internship in Pittsburgh was my first official break into the professional side of music and moving to San Diego is what elevated me to heights a lot of artists don’t reach. I know how lucky I am to say that. A lot of thanks goes out to my mentors in the game, most notably Carleton Overstreet Jr. who runs the SDHipHop5K program. He has put his in faith in me as a member of San Diego’s hip hop scene and I know how much I owe to him for that. I’ve been able to begin growing my own brand called the “Rolled Souls” in San Diego and he along with other notable members of the community have given me their co-signs on pushing it in the city. The Rolled Souls combine artists and athletes – the two worlds I know best – into one team. We offer custom sports jerseys where you can put whatever name and number you want on your jersey and become a part of the roster. I’ve made my first sale pretty recently and plan on growing this brand from San Diego to the nation to the entire world.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

To some people what I’ll say to this question is going to stir some emotions, but its the absolute truth, so I hope they hear me out. I want to be an artist for the same reason that people join the military. If you join the military, you understand that there is the inevitable risk that you might die for your country. While I’m not brave enough to join the military, I am willing to take the risks that come along with being a hip-hop artist. This culture brings about certain energies that we don’t see in other genres of music and unfortunately it means you have to be willing to take certain risks. I’m willing to take these risks, but not for the money, not for the potential fame. The reason I want to be one of the greatest hip-hop artists to ever live is because this culture and genre saved my life. I need to accomplish.a lot more to be at the stature of the greats who saved me, but I know if I keep on rolling with the momentum I have, its only a matter of time. The best way to explain it is by saying no, I’m not willing to risk my safety to become famous, but I am willing to do anything for that 12 year old kid who cries themself to sleep at night. That kid who doesn’t have any friends, who girls don’t talk to, who struggles at home with their family, who feels misunderstood, unappreciated, unwanted. That kid who shoves their head under their pillow and puts their headphones on just to drown themself from the rest of the world. That kid who might not want to grow up and contemplates harming themself. But then as soon as they turn my song on, as soon as they hear my voice, they know they are not alone. They hear my voice and now they know that there’s people who used to be that kid too. Eminem did that for me. Wiz Khalifa did that for me. Logic did that for me. My goal in being an artist isn’t to become famous (although that would be sweet), its to have that moment someday somewhere when someone walks up to me and says my art saved their life. I pray I get to be who Eminem, Wiz and Logic were to me for somebody out there. That’s why I do this.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The biggest reward I’ve felt from my journey hasn’t been doing the shows, getting the features, taking the pictures, its the respect I’ve earned by doing all those things. For me my biggest joy comes from that nod or smile people give when they are telling you “that show was dope” or “dude this song is fire” or “bro I can’t believe you met him!” I wasn’t cool as a kid even though I was very involved in a lot of sports and never really felt like I belonged anywhere. Rapping and making music was the first thing I did where everybody everywhere started telling me I’m undeniably good at this. Respect comes in different shapes and sizes, you get it from afar and up close. Now that I’m performing on the same stage as celebrities, everybody in my life is finally starting to see what I was trying to show them all along. My parents weren’t very enthused when I told them, “no seriously, I’m trying to be a rapper,” but now they get very excited every time I send them a new flier with my name on it or an article written about me. My friends from school, even though most have lost touch, started paying a lot more attention to what I got going on, and even if they aren’t reaching out, the fact that I know they are watching gives me that motivation to show all of them they can do it too if they are willing to make the sacrifices and put in the work. The new relationships I’ve built are as valuable as the respect from the people in my past as well. When tenured music executives look you in the eye and tell you that they see what you’re doing, they like what you have to offer, and they know that this brand, idea and concept can work, what else can an artist ask for. Now I’m able to take my artistry and turn it into a brand as well. The Rolled Souls brand has started getting out there in San Diego and I’m more excited than ever. To be able to combine my life as an athlete with my career as an artist is very special to me. We are currently pushing our basketball jerseys since March Madness just happened and will be featuring baseball jerseys soon. My next project, “The Highest Ground Floor” dropped on April 14th as well and its the best music I’ve ever made. This is the project that I know will bring about that undeniable respect from the entire world.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/rollopapers
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rollopapers/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/rollopapers

Image Credits
DirectedByFlip, Bianca Sanborn, Raygotskillz  Kayelle Justine, Mötz-Art