Q&A WITH UNOTHEACTIVIST [@unotheactivist]

BY Kat Friar

December 5, 2023

Q&A WITH UNOTHEACTIVIST [@unotheactivist]

Hailing from Atlanta, artist Unotheactivist combines trap, rock and melodic rap. GUAP catches up with him about his musical journey.

Kat: Who would you say your music is for and how would you describe it?

Ultimately, my music is my own therapy so I make it for me. It’s like my journal and many people go through what I go through so they relate [to it].

Kat: How do you feel like growing up in Atlanta has had an effect on the music you make?

Growing up in Atlanta, I ain’t have much – single mom always at work, so I was outside everyday with the big homies doing hood baby s**t. I was like 14 maybe, they had this s**t called Yung BFPL, made music everyday in a f****d up studio at man’s crib. It was so hard though, I got a lot of inspiration [from] them, they made the “Hol’ Up” dance. Me & ATL Jacob from the same neighbourhood. He was in 5th [or] 6th grade making beats on a iPad, but all in all Young Thug, Future and Lil’ Wayne was the biggest influences on me at that time

Kat: I feel like you’re quite a versatile artist, what makes you gravitate towards different sonics and sub-genres?

Long car rides with [my] mum, she [was] playing some Green Day – them melodies stuck in my head forever. Or being up early as hell for MTV music videos and The Fray [was] on it everyday. I used to f**k with Fall Out Boy too, so it’s like second nature.

Kat: Which artists and what parts of your life inspire your music?

A lot of artist inspire my life, the most influential era of my life was me around 13-16. All I listened to was Future, Young Thug, Chris Brown, OutKast – especially Rocko around that time, [he] influenced my whole drip and how I carried myself. I wanted to be A1.

Kat: What’s the most valuable piece of advice someone gave you about the music industry and what’s the most valuable advice you’d give to aspiring artists?

I never really got no advice, except for keep going, but I would tell an aspiring artist to do what you feel is right in your gut and heart and don’t let nobody change your mission.

Kat: Do you prefer producing or writing lyrics and why?

I don’t write music – ironically I freestyle everything, but I love producing, being an artist I hear different sounds that should go into the beat, different bounces that change the tempo. I would say producing is my favourite thing to do at the moment.

Kat: If you could pick any movie or video game to have one of your songs on the soundtrack, what song would it be, what movie/video game would it be and why?

2K was a major part of my childhood. I would want my song coming on soon as the game starts.