Meet Chudi | Rapper/Singer and Event Host

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chudi and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chudi, why did you pursue a creative career?
I’m first and foremost a fan of great music. My childhood was listening to Michael Jackson, Kenny G and Afrobeats from my parents, Sean Paul and Outkast from my cousins, Usher on the radio and Green Day from early 2000’s movies. Learning the words, the dances, the music video plots: it all meant so much to me. I started writing music at 10 years old when my friend said he wanted to start a band and a switch flipped in my head that has been on ever since. It’s something that I’ve always wanted. I’ve had ups and downs with it, features on mixtapes and MTV and rejections from playing at bars in NYC, times where I took it more and less seriously than others but with the launching of My Friend’s Show, I’ve been able to take the event and my own musical career to new levels.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My music is always a reflection of where I am in life, but explored from the different lenses that make up my background. I’ve been all over and have people I love and experiences that are fundamental to my personality connected those places. That’s why I can sing on a house beat, rap over a west coast inspired sound, make an afrobeats inspired song and have it all fit my cadence, lyrical content and style. It hasn’t been easy to get to this point. Figuring out how to be part of multiple cultures is always rough personally, let alone having it be accepted in your art. You’re putting your personality and inner thoughts on trial when you present your music publicly and it takes a bit of delusion to say “they’re gonna love this”. Luckily, I’m delusional enough to keep going. 10 listeners or 10 million listeners, I keep going. It’s the passion for music that drives it all. I’ve been lucky to have a lot of different types of success in life so far: academically, athletically, financial, romantic; but nothing has given me joy like performing or playing a mix back for the first time. I hope that joy, that cleverness, that mix of influence all come across in my current and future discography.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’m big on experiences and activities rather than specific places honestly. First and foremost, we’re going to a rooftop happy hour and catching up and I’m definitely inviting some other friends to meet up with us later. Hopefully there’s a house party or DJ set to go to, a basketball game to watch, some premier league soccer over the weekend, play some pickup, go somewhere wholesome like an art exhibit so I can tell my mom we’re grown and doing adult things. I think the most interesting part of the city are the friends of friends that you meet and the situations you find yourselves in when you let the night take you where it takes you.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Special shoutout to everyone that has been involved in the formation of My Friend’s Show. The friends in LA that let me sleep on their couch and kept me encouraged while I brainstormed my next move. The Brooklyn group chat that immediately welcomed me when I moved to the city and always makes sure they show up in the ways they can. The Frat that has shown me what brotherhood looks like. My siblings, Toby and Chisom and my manager Afa. Also: shoutout to everyone that ever said anything negative about me or my music. I love proving people wrong out of spite.

Website: https://linktr.ee/chudi

Instagram: @chudi.wav

Twitter: @chudimusic

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyth9EEBaDYkcqFww8f2dUQ

Image Credits
David Payne