Hip-Hop Back In The Day’s Mr. Fix recently had the pleasure of interviewing Rap veteran Scor-zay-zee to discuss mental health and a new music project the Nottingham emcee is working on with 18-24 year-olds.
Fix – Was this album your idea or were you approached by Circle of Life?
Scorz – I have been working with a lady named Tricia and her Husband Ian for a few years doing workshops and creative projects in Nottingham over the last 4 summers. They have given people free opportunities and workspaces to get creative and get involved in some cool stuff. Circle of Light came about when I suggested to Tricia it would be really cool to make an album. It started with a workshop last year named circle of light. We made a track with 6-7 people. Then filmed the process. Tricia then applied for funding to make a bigger project, which has now snow balled into a monster. Confetti Studios in Nottingham have given us one of the best studios in the country to make the album. We will also be filming everything for a mini documentary. We have professional mentors , song writers like Nina Smith, Rob Green, an orchestra , and other professionals all on board, along with professional studio engineers to make the album.
Fix – It has been said that Women get together to discuss their issues and we (men) get together to escape ours. I am ashamedly confirmation of this theory as it takes a lot for me to open up about my on-going battle with anxiety. What can be done to break down this barrier and how important is it that we’re open about their struggles?
Scorz – I think men tend to be closed off when it comes to this due to their view of maybe deeming it a weakness. In this modern age of high out goings and the battle to not only survive but to also live up to the notion of a type of success, wether financial or merit within society like job title, or career, there is no room for a mental break. You can’t say “I need a break”. Plus the stress of having no support or the worry of needing time out and not knowing wether or not you will survive if that happens can really put pressure on men and women. I think male pride and feeling that they need to be the “Lion” or the “eagle” can play a major part in not talking. I always had the issues of “What’s the point” and feeling like there is no point and you just “get on with it”. The ego in men is funny thing it can lead to aggression, frustration, disappointment in financial success and depression. It’s interesting you say men get together to “escape” and women talk more about emotions. Maybe men need more counselling and a neutral ground where they can openly talk without feeling embarrassed or vulnerable.
Fix – How do you feel about medicinal help? I am prescribed Citalopram for my G.A.D. and felt very embarrassed about this of this for a long time and still hide it from others.
Scorz – I know many people who said citalopram has helped them get back to feeling good. That one tends to be more popular amongst men than you might think, there is probably thousands of men on that who don’t tell anyone. I have been on various medication and some of them didn’t work with me well at all. When I started to talk about these things openly I then got (and still get) messages from people who are on medication. I wanted to tell my story so that it can make others feel ok. The medication I am on drastically cuts the years of life according to stats. I have came to the point where I am going to have to come off them and seek other ways. Which right now seems like a mountain of a task for me. When I did my Illa scorz project I wanted the theme to be a “wear your illness with pride” sort of thing. I think it’s natural to want to feel like everyone else or not so different. It’s crazy because if we could see everyones illness or medication or sensitive issues above their heads like a little cloud we would probably see that there is less people who are “100%” than we thought.
Fix – Back to the project, Where and how can people apply, what is the dedline? Is it exclusive to people from Nottingham or can anyone apply?
Scorz – The project is for 18-24 year olds. They can apply on circle-of-light.org.uk places are going fast. If people can apply from other towns and can get there and home ok then yeah that is ok.
The process to apply is a simple application voicing their interests, wether rap, singing, music production. If you can play an instrument or just have a general interest in creativity. Then if you are successful in applying you will get an email. I think if people put a little effort into the application, this will help, as we would want passionate people. But however if you’re nervous and want to get out and be in a cool place doing some cool stuff then just say !. The album won’t be one genre like rap, it will be a wide range of styles.
Fix – What is your involvement in the project as a whole?
Scorz – I am lead practitioner so I will be making sure that we move along and try to juggle all the creativity and somehow organise that into a process of recording, getting ideas and songs down. Offering recording technique and writing help. Sparking ideas and helping people build on what they have and then making sure of that. Dropping some of my own bars on songs. We have three weeks So the first week will be writing and recording basic versions for what we have. Then the 2nd week will be fully recording and tweaking all the final songs. The 3rd week will be mixing mastering with a professional engineer. Along side all this I will be interviewing the other mentors and people and filming with a film maker to capture everything on film. The goal is 10 full tracks. So I make that two songs a day. In My experience in this type of work you can plan all you want before hand, but it’s having the ear and imagination to capture what’s happening right there and then and getting it polished and presented as a professional final piece that is the key. I think the input of the people attending is going to be the best part of it all. I cannot wait to jump into the madness and try to some how help navigate the ship to shore.
Fix – When and where will the project be available and in what capacity?
Scorz – We are aiming for world mental health day as a release 10th October. The release will be digital and limited edition vinyl. Circle of Light is a community interest Company so all proceeds from the music and any sales will be going back into the project to hopefully create more and more workshops for people for Free. We will be going for Christmas Number 1! Due to cuts in public services and funding by the conservative government we are trying to bring a little bit of light back to people. Like Tupac once said “they have money for wars but can’t feed the poor”. People are malnourished, they need places to go and learn, have fun and share their talents and Their passions. I once said in my one of my raps “Kids need more than a little youth club”. The whole world should have creative hubs instead of this financial jail of profit and not much fun. People need to work , but they also need to play as well. Thank you for taking time and helping us promote Circle of Light.
Follow Scorzayzee on Instagram and twitter (both) @scorzayzee
Follow Mr Fix on Instagram @Caffeineandhiphop and twitter @mrfixhhbitd