What Makes Malcolm.E different from other Rappers?
I would say what makes me different from other rappers is my sound and what I rap about. Being highly influenced by both Boom bap and Trap, I have learned to combine catchy melodies and hooks with conscious raps.
Few years from now, where will Malcolm.E be?
I see myself being a successful independent international artist. My plan in the next couple of years is to start my own recording studio and record label. There are a lot of talented artists just like me, I am lucky to have some of them as my friends. My goal in music is to tell my story but also make sure that people get to hear other stories that need to be heard and there are a lot of artists out here who are talking.
What is the Motive behind your writings?
The motive behind my writing is to be real as I can be on what I speak about. With Things Change EP I was going through a lot of change as a person and as an artist. Previously my artist name was Joedasky but I felt that name didn't represent me well, then I came up with Malcolm.E.
Having a hard time trying to find my sound it also put a lot of doubt in my dreams to be an artist. In life and in music I learned that there will be a lot of trials and errors but if you apply a million solutions to a problem you are eventually going to come up with the right solutions and that's what I applied to my craft. Countless hours in the studio pushing myself represents me and who I am. I wanted my stage name to be meaningful. Not only to me but my fans.
Malcolm.E, what is the story behind this stage name?
I wanted my stage name to be authentic so this is actually my real first name and the first letter of my surname. I just added the dot in between for my stage name. My full name is Malcolm-Jemal Endris.
5. Lil Wayne, J.Cole and 2Pac... What makes them your major inspirations?
Lil Wayne is where everything started for me. I was just a kid who loved House Music but when I heard a track from one of my classmates back in primary school, I was so intrigued about how Lil Wayne sounded on the song and just the way he flowed. His voice was unique, his style of rapping was unique. I had heard rap songs before that moment but that made me say "I want to be like this guy". I studied his music, downloaded all his mixtapes and albums and I just became a huge fan of him. He just inspired me to start writing, so I would definitely say Lil Wayne is the reason I started rapping. 2 Pac I listened to during my high school years and that just opened my mind on how powerful rap music really is. What he spoke about was so real and that is why people still talk about and praise him to this day. His Music is timeless and it just inspired me to make more music that people can relate to and music that can help them get through tough times like 2 Pac did For Me. J. Cole on the other hand inspired me to be myself and believe in my own message.
What makes a good Rapper according to your opinion?
For me what makes a good rapper is the passion he or she shows for the rap culture and the influence he or she makes on the rap culture. If you look at all the rappers that are considered the greatest of all time in the rap game, they have all individually influenced the culture whether it is by the way people who love hip hop dress and most importantly how he or she changes or brings a new hip hop sound to the rap game. A great example I can give is Lil Wayne, if you look at a lot of artist now they all look like him, have tattoos like him and try to sound like him.
What are the three best highlights from your Music Journey?
Reaching the TOP 10 in the MTN Bushfire Pulse Firefly competition in Swaziland earlier this year which had over 600 artists competing. It was a great learning experience for me.
• Getting my qualification as a Sound Engineer from Cape Audio College in December last year.
• Completing my first music project, Things Change EP, which is also now out on all major commercial digital music platforms.
8. What are your Social media handles where fans can get updates from?
• My Fans can follow me and get my updates on these social media pages
Instagram: @Iammalcolm.e
Facebook: @IAMMALCOLME
Twitter: @Malcolm_E1
Who do you want to send your shout outs to?
I'd like to send my first shout out to my mother who has been nothing but supportive of my musical journey, she is definitely the big reason I work so hard on my craft. All a son wants is to make his mother proud. A huge shout out to Kid Gap, Keozei, DakingDula and Cargo who were the artists featured on my first project, Things Change EP. Also a huge shout out to Trxy who was responsible for most of the beats on this project and did the mixing and mastering of my songs - he did a fantastic Job!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=E2M-8keHauY
