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Easy come, easy Flo
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| | Rapper Flo RidaPhoto: AFP |
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May 22, 2009
By Munyaradzi Vomo
With his hit Right Round topping global charts, Flo Rida has the world at his feet. Yet the over-riding sense when you talk to him is that of a sleepy, bored 29-year-old .
While we feel the chill, summer is upon the northern hemisphere and I confirmed this when I spoke to the hip hop artist. His laid-back voice came through with disinterested, but apt, responses. Must be the Miami heat.
I tried to cheer him up by congratulating him on the success of his second album R.O.O.T.S, which spawned Right Round. The track has already out-done his acclaimed breakthrough hit Low, from his debut, Mail On Sunday.
Still, the response came: "I am happy that I have got to grow to this magnitude. It is a true blessing and I hope I remain on top of my game."
Given that he was one of the US musicians who came to the MTV Base Africa Music Awards held in Nigeria last year, I asked him about his first time on African soil.
"It was a great experience to finally be in the Motherland. Especially when I realised the fans down there are supportive of our music."
Armed with only a bottle of water and chewing gum, Flo Rida stays in the studio for hours trying to find the "ultimate sound".
His sound can be described as pop rap and his lyrical style is not so much rapping as sing- song rhyming.
Flo Rida is part of the new breed of rappers, along with T Pain and Akon, who, as an off-shoot of the crunk genre, have watered down hip hop into something even more mainstream than what Puff Daddy did for rap in the 1990s.
Flo Rida, born Tramar Dillard, was raised in Carol City, one of Miami's rougher neighbourhoods. While his friends were constantly in and out of prison, his mother's firm hand inspired him to dream of a better life.
He formed a rap group called Groundhoggz, which made money off mixtapes and opening shows for rap giants such as Scarface.
He then worked with Fresh Kid Ice, of 2 Live Crew, as a hype man. While touring with Kid Ice, Flo Rida's talent caught the attention of ex-Jodeci member, DeVante Swing, who tried to get him a deal, but was unsuccessful.
The rapper returned to Miami in 2006 and worked with Poe Boy Entertainment, which led to a deal with Atlantic Records.
Mail On Sunday was then born and the rest is history.
For a person who dropped out of tertiary education twice to pursue music, Flo Rida achieved his dream after a lot of hard work.
"I only attended college because I wanted to have that experience of going to school, but in time I noticed it was not my kind of thing. From the look of things, it was a wise move," he said.
Though success has finally knocked on his door, it took Flo Rida's resilience and belief in himself to overlook the rejection by major record labels.
"Every rejection was a motivation to push me even harder and, eventually, I made a breakthrough."
Unlike some musicians who release an album every two to three years, just nine months after his first album was released, Flo Rida was already at work on R.O.O.T.S.
"I will possibly do the same this year again. Creativity never stops so I will always try to ride on it whenever I can."
Will he come to South Africa?
"Most definitely. As matter of fact, my number is 001 305 287 2786 - I need the South African fans to call and tell me what they think about the new album," he said.
So there you go, fans. Get dialling, but just hope that you catch Flo Rida in high spirits.
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