Hailing from Rockaway Beach, Queens, NY, young Bobby Joseph immersed himself in music; varied genres, at a very early age.
At age 13, a chance encounter with veteran rapper-producer Kwamé [largely known for his trademark polka-dots], and who ultimately took Bobby under his wing, gave the aspiring emcee the much needed confidence in order to continue in his pursuit of Hip Hop.
Higher is only further proof that Bobby J From Rockaway is definitely here to stay.
First things first, let’s hop into this new solo project, Higher — Conceptually, what does this title represent both to and for you?
Higher is about elevating the sound of the current underground, boom-bap / indie NYC movement. We want to bridge the gap between what’s “underground” and what’s “commercial.” At its core, the backbone of this album is traditional East Coast, lyrical Hip Hop — that’s what me and Dom grew up on and what inspires us; but it’s more than that. We don’t want to limit ourselves to the types of records we’re “allowed” to make or just songs that we think only our core audience will react to. We also understand that in order to keep this sound alive, we have to bring new people into the fold and create the Hip Hop heads of tomorrow. It’s “underground” rap that’s also accessible to the average person.
For it, you teamed up exclusively with Dom Dirtee — What actually prompted this decision?
We first worked together on his second album, The Hardcore Composer 2, and the chemistry was there right off the bat. The inception of this album started with him sending me beats to choose from to make a song for what I’m assuming was going to be the start of his 3rd project. However, one song turned into 2, 2 songs turned into 4 and so on, with each new song outdoing the last one we did. By that point, it was obvious this was going to be a collaborative project. It happened organically.
Aside from that, how then does Higher either differ and / or compare to previous Bobby J From Rockaway efforts?
Dom’s production is unique from other producers I’ve worked with in the past. It’s very dark and moody at times, but also really melodic and every beat he’d send me would put me in a different space mentally, which allowed me to go places creatively I haven’t gone before. It’s probably my most cohesive project to date as the overall vibe makes every song bleed into the next like a seamless transition.
Now as a lyricist, when you sit down to pen your rhymes where do you draw your inspiration from?
Inspiration comes from everywhere. The start of a verse might come from a single word, or a phrase that I find interesting; a commercial on TV or a movie I just watched. Anything really. The key is to learn how to train your brain to recognize everyday, mundane things and turn them into inspiration. I’m constantly observing things around me and stacking ideas for when I need them.
Reflecting, tell me your whole inception into music — When did you first become interested in it? And, how did it all begin for Bobby J From Rockaway?
I grew up in a household where all types of music was played around me from a very young age. My dad – who was from Detroit – listened to a lot of New Wave, Motown, Funk, Disco, etcetera, and my mom – who’s from Brooklyn – listened to a lot of Classic Rock. My older brother, Eric, however was the one who I looked up to most and he was an MTV junkie watching music videos all day. He was heavy into Grunge and Metal and then by the mid-‘90’s his attention shifted completely to Hip Hop. He had all the classic albums. I’d go in his room and steal them and listen to them and study them. After a while, I really started to learn techniques rappers were using and it got to a point where I wanted to try and do it myself. From there, I started writing and haven’t stopped since.
Now you’re from Rockaway, Queens, correct? So coming up in “New York’s Playground,” who all did / do you consider to be your strongest musical influences?
On the Hip Hop side, definitely Big Pun, Eminem, Beastie Boys, Canibus, Chino XL, Big L, Biggie, Jay-Z, Nas, Black Thought, Method Man, underground dudes like Copywrite and the MHz, Kool G Rap, etcetera — anybody who had that multi-syllable rap style really. Aside from that, I always respected the Classic Rock greats like Don Henley from The Eagles, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Fleetwood Mac, Steely Dan etcetera. Beyond that, I’m just a fan of music in general so I don’t limit myself to any genre whether it be Pop, Dancehall, House – whatever – I respect good songwriting, and try to draw inspiration from it all.
In having said that, how do you classify your overall sound and / or style?
Me and Dom were joking around one day and called it, “New Wave Boom-Bap.” I’m still working on my elevator pitch, but that kind of makes sense to me. It’s lyrical Hip Hop with some Pop sensibilities, if that makes sense. In short, we just want to make great records, which is what our favorite artists all did.
Switching gears here, what exactly do you want people to get from your music?
I want to inspire the next generation of kids to want to rap in the same way my idols did it for me.
If you could collaborate with any one artist, living or dead, who would it be and why?
Rick Rubin. His career as a producer absolutely fascinates me with how he’s been able to seamlessly transition from genre to genre, and consistently bring the best out of every artist he works with. He’s definitely one of my idols, and his outlook on the creative process has helped reshape the way I look at making music.
If you could play any venue in the world, which one would you choose and why?
MSG / the Apollo Theater. No explanations needed!
On a more serious note, are you happy with the current state of Hip Hop?
I’m neither happy nor unhappy about it. The biggest problem is the over-saturation of the market in general and the gatekeeping surrounding artist discovery. There’s more music / rappers putting out music now than ever before, so there’s tons of great music in the marketplace if you’re willing to search for it. So there’s arguably more great rap music being made now than ever before. The problem is finding it, as so much music discovery is “curated” by Instagram / TikTok/ Spotify algorithms that tend to push the most outrageous clickbait content vs. quality music.
What do you feel has and will continue to be the key to your longevity?
Consistency and sticking to my creative vision.
What’s an average day like for you?
80% of my day revolves around family life and raising my daughter. I live a pretty boring life to be honest and, honestly, that’s the way I prefer it to be.
Please discuss how you interact with and respond to fans…
Mostly through social media and my mailing list. I’m very responsive to anybody who reaches out via Instagram, Twitter, etcetera.
What is your favorite part about this line of work? Your least favorite? And, why?
The creative process by far. Writing , recording, and engineering music. Conceptualizing videos, too. That’s the most fun for me. The least fun part is the politics of the music industry, and the marketing / promotional side of it. That can be a headache at times.
What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
If you’re going to do this, DO IT, and never stop / give up. Be prepared to dedicate years to this, and face all types of rejection, self doubt, and other people projecting their own insecurities on you to get you to stop. If you can persevere through that — and remain consistent — you will be successful.
Looking ahead, say five or maybe even ten years from now, where do you see yourself?
I’d like to not only still be putting out music myself, but producing and writing for other acts. Maybe writing music for TV or film, acting; anything creative really.
Any “parting” words for our readers?
HIGHER, with Dom Dirtee, dropping November 2024! Features include Paul Wall, Vivian Green, and DJ Evil Dee. First single, “Dangerous,” dropped 10/11 everywhere, and features Evil Dee from the legendary (Da) Beatminerz. Thanks!
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