You're probably wondering, "who is eMeX?"
To answer your question, he's an up and coming rapper from Baltimore, MD, who attends Howard University in Washington, DC. He has been rapping since a young age and is finally ready to let the world hear what he has to offer to the rap game. Previously he released several tracks via his Facebook account where he received a lot of great feedback from his friends & he also used the previous running site- jamglue.com to his advantage (where he was even named, arguably, the best rapper on the site even though he was a newcomer at that point). With his lyrical ability & metaphorical onslaught, impeccable wordplay, and low-key singing ability (which he keeps hush-hush and likely won't reveal unless asked in person!), his versatility is the combination of something we haven't seen before. His mixtape has been long awaited by his friends and fans, and on Monday, February 21, 2011, THE WAIT IS OVER. eMeX will be releasing his debut mixtape entitled Honorable Discharge. I can honestly say he is what the game's been missing, and recently I had time to interview eMeX and ask him some questions that will give you a look into his world and his music. Take a look:
Q: What does "eMeX" stand for, how did you come up with that name?
A: Its pronounced (M-X), my birth name is Matthew Xavier Walker, so I just came up with the name "eMeX" because of my first two initials. I just added the "e's" to make it different. In addition he added, "...by the time I blow up, people won't mess up my name anymore. It's my way of knowing... 'You've made it'."
Q: What type of music inspires you?
A: Any type of music inspires me, I draw inspiration from anywhere necessary: from anger (on aggressive beats), pain or realistic issues (on heartfelt beats), just life or what's on my mind at the moment (for smooth beats), to just "How I'm Livin'!" (with beats that make you vibe & feel the music).
Q: What music artists inspire you?
A: Man there's so many to name, but as far as MY rapping, I was inspired mostly by Drake, Jay-Z, Kanye West, & J. Cole all for different reasons.
Drake- for the fact that he made music personal to his own life, not trying to be anybody else...
Jay-Z- because his lyrical capability was untouched, he could have multiple meanings in one line and it'd be the realest shit you ever heard, haha.
Kanye West- for the fact that he changed the game, point blank period. Who else do you know coming in rockin' pink Polos and providing better music than anybody in this era? Don't worry I'll wait... lol nah but really... Kanye is a musical genius.
J. Cole- ...this man has the aggression of the struggle that needs to be heard in music. He makes you realize the trials in daily life along with the metaphors that make you kinda step back and say "Damn..." With Cole it's all topped of with his delivery that can't be denied.
As far as my R&B: It would be Drake, Usher, Trey Songz, & Michael Jackson...
All-in-all these artists compel me to express myself in an effective way, have showmanship that's unmatched, and tell a story with my music.
Q: What made you decide that you wanted to rap?
A: I started rapping sort of as a way to get away from my problems. Specifically at a time where sports were my life, when I got hit by a car, it put a halt to all of my hopes of a future in that field due to the mental block that my injury caused. On top of that, losing family members that had passed away, and even my parents being divorced, and much more... but it's always been an outlet for me. I'd rather put my thoughts on paper than to have my actions lead to something I may regret.
Q: What do you like to rap about the most?
A: Hmm... that's a good question... I don't think I have one thing that I like the most, but I do feel like one of the easiest things to write about is love. When you're in a relationship with someone, your feelings are so deep that the ups & downs tend to be drastic. So it's easy to draw inspiration from the one that you love- whether it's hate for the moment, love for an eternity, or vice versa.
Q: What do you like most about "Rap" as a whole?
A: I like the fact that rap wasn't supposed to make it, and now its arguably the most influencing genre of music in the world. Kids, especially in black communities, use Rap/Hip-Hop to get away from their problems (just as I did). Eventually I want to inspire someone just like rap did for me.
Q: What gets your creative juices flowing or what inspires you to come up with the things that you rap about?
A: My creativity is often spur of the moment. I tend to write from the present. Secondarily I write for the past and then the future, but it's all about where my mind is at THAT specific moment. Anything that comes to my mind is relevant to be used in a song. All I have to do at that point is come up with a clever way to transfer my thoughts into my sound.
Q: Who is your favorite rapper of all time?
A: My favorite RAPPER (strictly RAPPER) is Jay-Z.
...however, my favorite ARTIST would likely be Kanye... or even Drake.
Q: What do you plan to do with your music?
A: I plan to make it what I do for a living. This is what I love to do, and I just want everyone else to love me for doing it. That's all.
Q: What would you like your fans to know about your music?
A: I want my fans to LISTEN. I'm a lyrical rapper and I feel like half the things I say go over peoples' heads. Nobody takes the time to appreciate the WORDS in a song anymore, but that's the focal point of my music. And more importantly, I want my fans to know that I'm passionate about what I do... and not only is what I'm saying, something that you can relate to, but I want it to capture your attention and be able to respect my standpoint. I said in a song, "You don't have to like it, as long as I'm respected..." & that would be my motive. It's always a plus when they love it though.
Q: How did you come up with the title Honorable Discharge?
A: The name "Honorable Discharge" came from the whole military concept...
Basically my thought on it was taking into consideration the quote "All is fair in Love & War..." And Honorable Discharge is defined as: "A discharge from the armed forces with a commendable record." <<< this may be due to being chronically ill, wounded in battle, etc. & when you're wounded in battle you are giving the "Purple Heart Medal" for your services. So whenever I say "Bullet. Barrel. Bang. Purple Hearts Gang." it's talking about being shot down in my past relationships, which have now made me 'heartless'. So on the cover-art of the mix tape where you see a broken Purple 'Heart on my sleeve...' it's all relevant to the Love & War idea.
[[ ^^^^ eMeX also states, "Hopefully I describe the title idea a little bit better with my music, because it's such a difficult thing to break down into a Q&A type situation... But I guess we'll see about that..." ]]
Honorable Discharge will be available for download on 2.21.11 (Monday).
I will post the link to the mixtape in a different post once it drops on Monday as well as the video so you guys can have a taste of what eMeX has to offer. I can honestly say that you will not be disappointed. So keep a look out and spread the
word! Hip Hop's hero is on his way.
Follow eMeX on Twitter
Check out a freestyle from eMeX below:
Matt Walker #28DaysofBlack from Ariel Edem on Vimeo.
If you have any questions for him you can post a comment here or email me at hollywoodsmusicinq@hotmail.com and I will be sure to get it answered.
Peace & Love
Lamar Arnez
