Q: I love the album and the idea behind it, at what moment did you know an acid trip was going to lead you to an album?
SHALCO: Thanks! Usually when I write lyrics I tend to just write out what I’m thinking about at THAT specific time. It’s my way to clarify what I’m thinking about. (A lot cheaper than therapy haha). The more impactful an event is in my life, the more I’m thinking about it and trying to make sense of it, and the more likely it is for the subject to be in my head when I’m making music. It wasn’t like a “light bulb over the head epiphany” more just a gradual process of making each song about a specific moment in the night and then seeing if I can relate them to each other. I think I was about 3 or 4 songs in when I was like “ok why not just make this an album since it’s all about the same night.”
Q: How would you describe your lyrics?
SHALCO: I would say they’re fairly self-aware. I don’t really try to do too much “lyrical miracle” work on the lyrics, and I’ve never pretended I was very deep in terms of double entendres and stuff. I just hope that they convey what I was feeling during the moment I’m trying to recreate in the song. I don’t really think “oh people are gonna like this line” it’s more just like “what was I thinking at this time and how can I make it enjoyable to listen to.”
Q: Of your own music, do you have a favorite? If so, can you explain why?
SHALCO: My favorite is usually just the next thing I’m working on because I just really enjoy the process of trying to improve my craft. But the one that is very special to me is “Peride” because Its about the internalized racism in the Persian communities outside of Iran. It’s something that’s affected me and my family since I moved out of Iran. I think I made that song like 6 or 7 times and scrapped it every time because I never felt like I could do the subject justice. So I guess it represents a moment in my life where I was finally confident enough in my own musical ability to make a song about a subject that is so close to my heart.
Q: I was reading your Spotify bio and I love your authenticity, what do you do when you AREN’T working on music?
SHALCO: I appreciate that! I have like little periodic waves where I’m super productive and read a lot and study and everything and then for like a week I just party with my friends, and it just goes in like a cycle. But recently I just take my puppy to the dog park and chill there reading. I also spend a lot of time making content for Tik Tok and Instagram! I also skateboard quite a bit but I live in Canada so like 9 months out of the year it’s too cold for that. My favorite past time though is just watching awful late-night comedies.
Q: Who are your favorite musicians or biggest influences?
SHALCO: I have two gigantic posters of Kendrick Lamar and Kanye West in my room. I love everyone who pushes their genre forward. Especially the artists that like to create cohesive long pieces of work that can transport you into a different life for an hour or so. I’m more of a album listener than a single listener just because I feel like you can tell more meaningful and interesting stories across an entire album than just once song, so all the hip-hop “album” artists out there I really look up to.
Q: If you can have your fans remember one thing about you, what would it be?
SHALCO: Any time I think of Eminem, I remember a specific portion of my life that I associate with his music. I can remember exactly the person I was when I listen to Eminem now, much better than if I were to look at a picture of myself from that time. So I don’t even care if the remember something about ME personally, but I hope they can associate my music with a certain time/memory in their life and can then use that music to sort of “save” that time. I think music is the best form of time travel, and the biggest honor would be someone to use mine for it.
Interviewed by Jaye Maverick
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