Da' T.R.U.T.H. - 'contentment is the ability to be critically satisfied with what you have'

By Sudipto Biswas

I’m not gonna lie to you, when we got this submitted to us we were freaking out a little bit. To have someone like twice-Grammy-nominated artist Da’ T.R.U.T.H. do an interview with us was something we knew our community would love to read. With his gospel-inspired brand of hip-hop, the artist is back with an absolute banger of an EP. With cuts that Common would be proud to put his name to, Da’ T.R.U.T.H. delivers stunning flows on NEVER FAIL and drops T.R.U.T.H. bombs all over CHASING GHOSTS. We sat down with him to discuss his new project CHASING GHOSTS and his incredible career that seems to be rising to new levels.

When did you decide to pursue music as a career?

It took a really long time before I even thought about music as a career. When I first started making music, there was no industry for what I was doing. Now, Christian Hip Hop is a Juggernaut that rivals its secular counterparts. For some years now, we’ve been able to do well for ourselves in selling and streaming music, concerts…,but it has not always been this way. Much like mainstream Hip Hop at its inception, our genre (CHH) had to fight for its place in the world. That said, when I first started rapping, I didn’t think of what I was doing as something that I could make a career out of but rather a tool that I could use to fulfil purpose. However, over time, once Christian Hip Hop began to gain traction and I discovered that it could be lucrative, that’s when I began to pursue it as a career. So I started rapping in 1995 but didn’t see it as a full blown career until about 2004.

What was it like being nominated for a Grammy not once but twice? Did people change towards you after that moment?

To be honest, neither one of my Grammy nods meant much to me at the time. Again, as a purpose driven person, I was really narrowly focused and didn’t care much for awards. I actually think that I would appreciate the nominations more now than I did then. In fact, I want a Grammy for my next project. I’m in the process of working on my new project and feel like this one is going to be Grammy worthy. People didn’t change towards me but my stock did seem to go up in certain spaces.

What advice would you give to artists who are just starting out in music now? What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever had?

I would say learn contentment. Contentment is the ability to be critically satisfied with what you have and where you are. Now, I don’t want anyone to confuse contentment with complacency. Complacency is settling for less. It is having the capabilities to reach higher and go further, but settling for where you are. Therefore, when I say that it’s important to learn contentment, what I mean is that we cannot look to the right or to the left. We cannot determine our success by measuring ourselves against the achievements of others. Stay focused on what you do and where you’re going as an artist. Horses that pull wagons and carriages wear blinders to prevent them from being distracted. As an artist, I have to do the same and have tunnel vision if we're going to be the best versions of ourselves.

What is the biggest inspiration for you in life and how does it translate to your music?

I am mostly inspired by movies, conversations and books. Literally, all three of those things inform my music. Sonically, my music is oftentimes theatrical (movies), content is deep (books), yet, still very personal (conversations).

What are your goals musically for this year?

Well, after 24 years of performing and 10 albums in the catalogue, I still love to create. But, musically, I bore easy so I have to continue to push myself by exploring different sounds, flows and genres. I am currently working on an international Afropop/Reggae/Hip Hop record and It’s actually been pretty cool stretching myself in this space.

What’s your favourite pastime to relax when you’re not making music?

MOVIES and I love spending time with my wife and kids. They bring me great joy.

Who is your dream collaboration or biggest inspiration musically?

I really want to do a song with Jon Bellion, He’s freaking amazing!!!!