Exclusive RESPECT. Interview with Warchyld

Raw, gritty, true hip-hop artists are rare to come across in our generation as it seems everyone puts on a persona of being from somewhere they are not or taking part in activities they actually do not. One artist that has been pure from the beginning of him stepping into the music industry is Warchyld. The Philly artist uses the environment he grew up in to entertain and educate, rather than glorify it. In his recent original mini documentary, The Price of Fame, he highlights the struggles of once being apart of the streets and how he made a different path for himself. Warchyld is also affiliated with SMS Audio and Pelle Pelle which adds even more clout to his already self-made name. RESPECT. chopped it up with the hip-hop artist to dive more into his accomplishments and find out what is next for him.

RESPECT.: You recently just released your mini documentary The Price of Fame. What made you want to release this and have people really step into your life?

W: Being honest, I’ve been doing music for a long time and from doing music in Philly, everyone has a video, everyone raps, even football players-literally everyone raps. A journalist from Brooklyn by the name of Bonsu Thompson was interested in my music and story and wanted to capture it. I never thought about doing a documentary but we sat down and talked about it and made it happen.

RESPECT.: There were a few times you ran into trouble (highlighted in the documentary) before actually realizing this life is not how I want to live for the rest of my life. Why did it take you awhile to wake up and start being better?

W: The first time I got stabbed I was young so I didn’t realize the value of life and the streets were my father. Street mentality was my mentality. Street cats had me in the street and I didn’t know any better. My gun felony really made me realize I wanted better in life and that I didn’t have to prove I’m this or that. I had to mature and I started doing music and then I destined myself to be one of the biggest hip-hop artists of my time.

RESPECT.: Since you are making a positive impact on your community with your music, what are some ways you would like to give back?

W: I haven’t gotten into big community engagement but I would like to go to high schools in New York and Philly to speak. My involvement now is basically having the documentary and making positive music. I want kids to know that it’s more to life than the streets-at the end of the day it’s more than one way to live. I have two felonies and couldn’t get a job but now I’m mature and I just have to live with the strikes against me and I can’t erase them. The mini doc is a good way to start the spread of awareness.

RESPECT.: How did your affiliation with Pelle Pelle and SMS Audio begin?

W: My team reached out to Pelle Pelle and they’re a big influence on the hip-hop community so it really made sense and they loved what I was doing and my growth as an artist. We started working together and rocking their jackets at my shows. It has become more of a family thing than a sponsorship, and really becoming one with the culture and being about that. For SMS Audio, I was looking for someone else to have apart of the documentary and I reached out to G-Unit and they agreed to hop on board. I only use SMS and they have the best sound and audio when it comes to headphones.

RESPECT.: Will you be doing a collaboration with Pelle Pelle and creating your own clothing?

W: I want my own Warchyld edition Pelle Pelle jacket. The jackets are very expensive and when you only make one the cost is higher than if you made them in bulk. I want to make a memorial jacket for Chinx-that would be great for the culture.

RESPECT.: What is next for you when it comes to music?

W: Right now I’m gearing up for my new single, “Church For G’s”. It has a Bone Thugs-n-Harmony vibe and the theme of the track is where gangsters can go to be forgiven and confess sins. Murderers are still human beings at the end of the day and want to be forgiven just like any other sinner. “Church For G’s” is meant to be for no judgement. I also worked with DJ Cosmic Kev for my next mixtape, Save Your Words. He’s not doing anymore mixtapes and I will have Freeway on there, so it will be legendary and I’ve been holding it back because of that. I have other projects in the works but I’m really focused on the single “Church For G’s” for now.

Be on the lookout for new music from Warchyld, but for now check out his mini documentary, The Price of Fame below.