Dope G: Zambia’s Rising Superstar

Rapunzel Rapunzel please let down your hair...

Rapunzel Rapunzel you should not let them judge you by your...

 

By now most of you or at least some of you may have heard the song My Hair, an exciting fusion of Rap and RnB about the confidence a woman should take in the style of her mane. But what you may not have heard of are the little titbits of the man himself behind the jam. So from his new album to what inspires him, Dope G had this to say...

I hear you have a new album coming soon, what inspired your work on the album?

For my album, being my first solo one, I made a conscious decision to unplug from my own little world and tried my best to look around to see what I felt was missing from the music that is already out there. I wanted every song to either feel like a one-on-one conversation with the listener or create a theatre of the mind where I tell a story which involves the listener in a way that it might not be their story that I am telling but they most certainly feel a part of it and it evokes real emotions as they listen.

What genres can we expect to hear in the album?

In as much as the core genre is hip hop in the way that I wrote and arranged the songs, I tried to be diverse where genres are concerned. I always say I am not a slave to genre so I tried to embody every genre that has influenced my 27 and a half year journey in this life. So from the eighties disco that my mother would blast from the x-bass stereo we had even before our first black and white TV to the episodes of 'Zilile Ngoma' that I watched later in life and all the mixes we would get with R n B, dancehall and hip hop on cassette tapes to the music I see my teenage nephew dabbing to now, I just picked all of them and created this colourful picture with them all.

The video for my hair was smoking hot, what does it take to make a video like that?

Thank you, MT productions really outdid themselves on that one. In terms of requirements, creativity is always key. I have learnt from acting that keeping the reaction of the audience in mind as you create is extremely vital hence you throw things that will shock the viewer. Other than that, the basics are necessary:  a good production team, confident extras, good grooming and make up and the outfits have to be on point too.

I am curious as to what the title of the new album will be?

The Album is titled 'Flowers'. It will be made available on mtnplay.com/dopeg So many symbolic meanings behind it but overall I just wanted to appreciate my people and give them Flowers while they live as opposed to putting them on their graves. The title track and video are worth checking out.

Some fun facts About Dope:

Favourite Colour
Favourites vary seasonally to be honest. Current favourite is yellow.

Favourite food

Any white meat dishes really. Grilled fish/ chicken are always a winner.

First thing you do every morning

Learning to pray before grabbing my phone to peep social media to see what is trending. Twitter and Facebook are my main news sources.

Do you have a creative mantra before you write any songs?

"Do not think, think is the enemy of creativity". Just basically emphasising that creativity is not as programmed as physics/ mathematics. You need to feel more than you think.

Favourite local Musician

There's a tie between Chef 187 and Pompi. They always challenge me to always go in avenues where most artists are scared to step foot in.

Favourite international act

Definitely Jay Z. He only had his first album at 26 but has somehow become the face of longevity. I aspire.

Which international or local act would you love to do a duet with?

My mind has been on perfecting my solo sound lately but now that the album is done, I am looking at options. I would love to do a collaboration album with a Copperbelt artist. I think they would bring something to the table, I love the kopala sound.

If you could choose just one famous person, dead or alive, to have dinner with, who would that be and why?

The late Dr. Myles Munroe. He sure had things figured out and I know a one-on-one with him would open my eyes to a lot. The beauty is he wasn't stingy with his knowledge so his words live on through his books and videos.

If you could be a cartoon character, which one would you choose to be?

Lol. Wow. Tough one. I guess the Brain from 'The Pinky and the Brain.’ I am always on a plan to take over the world. Lol.

If you were invisible for a day, what is the one thing you would love to do or one place you would love to go?

Crazy because I saw a movie titled 'Hollow Man' once based on the same concept. Sadly, I would have been on a Robin Hood type of thing, just trying to even out the gap between the rich and the poor. So some politicians would get a visit from me if you catch my drift. Lol.