The YOUniverse in A Dream With @Steve_Omari

Conducted By @TrueGodImmortal

1. First and foremost, for those who don't know, tell us where you're from and what you represent.

Steve Omari:  Peace to all the listeners. I'm from the small town of Jasper, TX. I'm a product of '90s pop culture. I represent art and self-expression is therapeutic to me.    

2. What made you fall in love with hip-hop?

Steve: I was amazed at how music artists could paint pictures with their words and the emotions that they could evoke. 

3. What influenced you to become an artist yourself? Who were some of your favorite artists growing up?

Steve: My best friend from college, O, was the the person that approached me about becoming an artist.  When we had free time, we would just freestyle in the lobby of our dorm.  I was just doing it for fun, but he asked me to join his group because of the talent he saw, that I was unaware of.  Some of my favorite artists growing up were Notorious B.I.G., Snoop Dog, Eminem, Ludacris, & Kanye West. College is where I became a fan of Common, and his style was a great inspiration.

4. You have two EPs on Bandcamp, The Dreamer and Been Here Before. What was the inspiration behind those projects?

Steve: The Dreamer was me coming into my own style. 




It was a young man's journey to find himself.  All my hopes and dreams fueled that project. 

Been Here Before was from frustration. 

I had moved back to my hometown (Google Jasper, TX) and I was feeling frustrated with my situation. I wanted to be in a better place, because I felt that I had "been here before." 

5. Do you have a list of producers that you'd love to work with?

Steve: I would love to work on some unheard beats from the the crates of J. Dilla & Nujabes (R.I.P. to both of them). DJ Premier, Flying Lotus, and some indie producers. 

6. If you were going to create a posse track, what five rappers would you want to be on it?

Steve: I would have Common, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, J. Cole, & Jay Electronica on that track.

7. I see you're working on a new EP called Her Favorite Flower Is... as well as an album titled YOUniverse. Can you give us a bit of detail on those?

Steve: Her Favorite Flower Is... will be a short EP that was inspired by one of my favorite anime, Samurai Champloo.  It'll be about love in its different forms. The love of women, the love of money, the love of alcohol, the love of social networks, etc.  My interpretation on what a lot of people think love is vs. what it actually is. YOUniverse is going to be dark. I dealt with some heavy depression in 2014 and it's going to be explored. It'll also be a project where I'm not holding myself back or censoring myself. The perspective of a young Black man in America and how he feels in the midst of everything, past and present. 

8. Moving on from the music, what's your take on the racial climate of today? With Ferguson, all the black men killed by cops and the SAE situation, how does it make you feel as a black man?

Steve: Words can't describe the anger, sadness, and disappointment that I feel. Peace to the young kings who were slain. I pray for their families. I'm not surprised by the comments made by members of the SAE fraternity at OU. These ideas and feelings towards Black people are taught. This country has a lot of issues that need to be addressed, instead of being swept under the floor.

9. Do you believe that its possible to get beyond racism in this lifetime? Or is that something that's too engrained into our psyches to let go of?

Steve: I used to think we could go beyond racism in our lifetime, but I don't think we can.  It can get better, but it won't go away. Even if we all looked the same, I feel like there would still be hatred and war. 

10. Your music has a positive message to it.  If you could send a message to the youth of today, what would that be?

Steve: Focus on love and not hatred.  Use your imagination and be creative. Turn off the TV, iPad, deactivate social networks and read. Travel, learn from people that don't think like you. Surround yourself with people that are working towards improving themselves. Don't let where you come from or how you look define who you are. Let the God in you shine and share that light.

11. Final question, what would you want your legacy to be?

Steve: I want to leave this world better than how I found it.  I want to inspire people to never give up.  If you get knocked down, you get back up, stronger than before. 

12. Any last remarks or shout outs?

Steve: I just want to say thank you for the interview.  Shout out to Ya Boy O, Dmill, Christian, Morgan, T3-Kingz, & SpeedontheBeat (DAR Business)