By: Lindsey Borders
Wax, known by his stage name, is a diverse and multi-instrumentalist, who began placing videos up of him rapping and singing on YouTube where he caught the eye of fans and renowned labels such as Def Jam Recordings. Although originally signed with Def Jam, Wax has since parted with them and is currently producing albums on his independent label (that he’s owned since 2006). In early January 2013, he released his second studio album, Continue. Wax’s influences range from all genres of music including Guns N’ Roses to DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince. He has collaborated with several artists, including Dumbfounded, who will be performing at Vinyl the same night as Wax. In our recent interview with Wax he chats about his recent tour in Europe with Watsky, what tour stops in the US he’s most looking forward to, his popular podcasts, and much more:
You and Watsky are touring in Europe right now. How’s that going? Do you notice any major differences between audiences overseas and audiences in the US?
Wax: The Europe tour is going really well. Our whole crew gets along really well and we are having the time of our lives. It is amazing to be doing shows in Paris, London, Copenhagen, Berlin, etc…. it is a dream come true and we are having a blast. There are definitely differences as far as the audiences, but even from night to night you never know how an audience is going to react. The main thing is language. Both Watsky and I use a lot of slang and unusual vocabulary so some audiences in non-English speaking countries don’t understand all the jokes as easily. Still, it is not that big of a deal. Most of the fans that are at the shows understand English pretty well. From city to city it is always different though regardless of continent… The fans in Copenhagen were rowdy, so it just felt like I was doing a show in Philly.
When you tour the States, including your stop in Atlanta, where are you most looking forward to playing?
Wax: I always love playing in Baltimore because that is the “hometown” show. I put that in quotes because I am not from Baltimore, but I am from Maryland and my old band was a “Baltimore band”. That was my old stomping grounds and I will have tons of friends and family at that show. Besides that I am excited about every city pretty equally.
Your podcasts where you talk about everything from social issues to opinion and more are pretty popular. What encouraged you to pursue it and is it sort of an outlet for you as well?
Wax:I have actually been slacking on the podcast the past few months because of the tour. I haven’t put out a podcast in at least two months; used to put them out every week. I can’t explain my reasoning for doing them, it is definitely therapeutic for me and I enjoy talking I guess. I love making people laugh and think, plus it is a great open line of communication between myself and my fans. Hopefully I will stop slacking soon and get back to putting them out.
If you weren’t doing music, what would you be doing?
Wax: Honestly I would probably have a 9 to 5 that I hate. If I quit now though I have a lot of friends in the entertainment industry and I would probably try to get into comedy writing.
What’s been your best gig in the whole of your career, so far?
Wax: That’s a very tough question. Some of the smaller ones have been extremely fun, but I will say Donauinselfest in Austria this past summer would take it strictly due to the massiveness of the audience. There were 80,000 people in front of us. It felt crazy!
Wax performs with Dumbfounded at Vinyl, December 11. Tickets are $12 in advance, $15 day of show. Grab yours below!
