If you haven't listened to G.Wakai yet, it's probably time to start. The South Florida artist has been steadily making a name for himself over the past few years with different singles, EP's, and most recently - a full length album.
If you're a fan of the local Palm Beach scene, chances are you've seen him perform at a few shows here and there. While listening to G.Wakai, the energy is infectious and translates immensely through each track. If you're one of those people that likes to reminisce about "Summer 2016 Rap Music", this might be the vibe for you.
" Music to me is like breathing." says Wakai. "I feel like it was always for me but I didn’t realize it till I got older. I’ve always been into music. From listening to old songs with my parents and being in band to learn more about it. And I’ve learned and met a lot through music. I feel like it truly connects people in many ways."
"I grew up listening to a lot of 70-80s rock/pop and the old melodies always stuck out for me and I’d always hum them but kinda make them my own. And as I grew up it got to a point where I wanted to do it my own way. So like early 2017 one day I was at my friends house listening to beats and we were like bro let’s start making our own music. So literally the next day we went out and got a usb mic, downloaded audacity and started to record."
-How do you feel about the South Florida music scene?
"The south Florida scene is crazy right now. There’s crazy talent everywhere but I feel like we’re being categorized as X and Kodak wannabes. And that’s not true at all. To be honest, I feel like I don’t sound like anyone from in my city and maybe in Florida. But man in my city there so many different sounds, people just need to take the time out of their days and actually sit there and hear them."
"My sound is very melodic but not in a slow way. It’s very catchy in my opinion. I make lit, happy music. I was kinda going through that sad sound phase but then I was like, bro, I want people to be lit when they hear me so ever since then I’ve been making lit shit."
G.Wakai's most recent project, Red Star, is a full length album available on all streaming platforms. The album is packed with features from other local artists. This project is a great introduction to Wakai's sound and diversity as an artist.
-Talk a little bit about your new album
"My album 'Red Star' was a project I’ve been working on for a year now. I announced it in my IG bio but no one really realized it. It’s kind of a rollercoaster because it gets you lit and then it calms you down a bit just to vibe and then it gets lit again and ends with some smooth shit. But from the start I wanted to make every single song catchy and I think executed that well. I wanna thank all the producers and artists that were able to help me complete it. So big shout out to all the artist from my city who were on it. Shout out to my main producer, Adrian. Devsocold went dummy on that tape too, and all the other producers. One thing I also loved about the tape was the cover art, made by dummyfries. But yeah to me Red Star is just a catchy ass album."
-What can we expect to see in the future from you?
"I haven’t stopped working on music since the album dropped. I have enough songs to drop another one right now but that’s for later. Visual are also on the way for the tape so make sure to look out for that and the most important one. I will be doing more shows around the city and out of it too. But besides all that expect MORE music here and there and then when I go ghost just know something bigger is coming."
You can find G.Wakai on Instagram @g.wakai and make sure to check out his music and other social platforms below.