We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Uri Gunter-randle a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Uri , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

Well let my moms tell it I’ve been rapping since before I could form words. But as far as solidifying the thought I was going to pursue being an artist as a career, I would say that probably happened around the end of my middle school years.

For our English/History class I had this teacher named Ms. Turner. She was a photography student at the Academy of Art in The City(SF) at the time too. Dope as hell she was probably my favorite teacher all time cause she really taught us about life stuff & would take us on field trips to different places. Went to the pier, the college she went to, a court case… Anyways at the end of the year she had the idea to have a rap battle last week of school.

Now at this time I was doing music but I was only writing I was always too shy to share it with anybody so I never really recited the works. My friends thought I could rap though so they were telling me I should join. Of course my anxiety start kicking and the nerves so I was trynna say naa but they talked me into it. My patna Justin said he was gone get in too so I was like aite I might as well.

So since this class was two classes back to back with one teacher she let us write the first period and practice and the second we all was gone do it. I write mine and all, she has everyone get up and form a circle then had us go one by one till we was all done. While each of us was going though she’d pull people aside to interview them on they opinions etc like commentary from “The Office”.

To my surprise at the end of it all she was playing back the different feedback & a lot of people were saying they liked mine the best my only issue was since I was so nervous I was speeding through reciting it and was mumbling. Even one of the more popular kids at the time said I was good. Once it was said and done, my patna Justin got first place and I actually ended up second.

It felt really good actually delivering the works and seeing the positive feedback. Also I think the step of actually just doing it really sparked a sort of high and that’s when I knew I really wanted to do this for life. I already loved creating the art but to see that even as I deliver it people thought it was good, and learning that year that you could actually make a career from this really solidified my decision on what I was going to do.

Uri , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I see y’all asking the good questions. As far as how I got into the field, even though I decided myself to start rapping, I sort of had an unintentional disposition to the industry. My mom used to rap when she was younger and my dad wrote a bit of poetry. So naturally the kid has to fall into some sort of music field.

When it comes to my services there’s a few angles to the answer. As much as I love music that’s not my only goal and passion. I also am an entrepreneur and cannabis connoisseur. Which as two other fields I’ve been slowly dipping into. I want to own a street wear brand of clothing and a brand of cannabis/cannabis accessories *in my Hank Hill voice*

I think what sets me apart from others is I’m not trying to put up a front. I make music for people who got the drive to go out and get it, people who like the finer things in life, people that are playing the cards they dealt, and people who trynna be better than they were yesterday. Not really any one demo my music is geared towards so if you rockin with it rock with it. My clothing brand I’m working on is to blend the ideas of keeping your emotional and mental balance about you while trynna navigate the world and maintain stability and success.

Main thing I want people to know about me and my brand is that you don’t gotta be in the streets to get your hustle on. You don’t gotta be only young to be turnt. You don’t have to be a hippie to attain peace. Just be genuine and pure with your intent. Trust the process. Lead with love. And lastly, love yourself mane remember to love yourself.

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

The most rewarding aspect is probably between the ability to turn my life into an art piece & seeing how many people resonate with my art. You can make a thousand songs and not every song is gonna pull the same people every time. Seeing what parts of a track or project are peoples’ favorite or what they related to the most is always interesting. Cause I’m putting my real life on these beats so if you rockin with it then in some way you not as far off from me as I could think.

Aside from that just being able to see all the different ways my mind can turn my thoughts, feelings, experiences, and all into words and arrange them in a way it’s poetic has to be my other most rewarding aspect. I get to give myself my flowers simply looking at the end result even before the other feedback and not even in a vain way just to know I really did that.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Expand your horizons. I know I’m gone sound like an old head saying this but we used to have real creativity. Even as recently as the rise of social media. People used to go viral cause they actually did something or were truly funny and talented. Everything wasn’t about numbers.

Now with things like AI and algorithms and allat, it took the humanity and the fun out the game. You used to have to pay for the extra exclusive stuff, now they making us pay for the basic levels. They took the humanity out of being a creative and just upped the greed now everyone miserable and trynna get rich cause you gotta pay to get the numbers in some way and you gotta get the numbers to get paid.

Aside from that, have humility. People not shamed enough or have enough humility to not make themselves look crazy and since nobody really out here checking it like that it’s getting normalized. Which is just making the weirdo rate grow every day. Stans used to be considered psychotic now it’s a badge of honor. Nobody can have radical opinions out of fear of being cancelled and fans thinking numbers dictate talent now. Whole game messed up.

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