Interview: OhWordMac Talks About His "Pangea" Video and Upcoming "Writer's Block 2" EP
OhWordMac is a St. Louis based rap artist who recently released the visuals for his track “Pangea”, which will appear on his upcoming EP “Writer’s Block 2”. We connected with OhWordMac for an exclusive interview to find out more about “Writer’s Block 2”, the origin of his catchy name, what he looks for in beats and much more.
After reading our Q&A with OhWordMac, follow him on IG and Twitter and stream the first “Writer’s Block” EP to hear some more DOPE music by this hella talented artist on the rise.
Your moniker "OhWordMac" is very catchy and memorable; how did the name originate?
The name "OhWordMac" is kind of like a catchphrase for me; I knew the name was different and catchy and wanted to differ from my peers. I had so many rap names growing up until I decided to go with my government name (Chris Mac) and realized how common my name was. The "OhWord" part came along about a year or 2 ago and at the time, it acted as a response to whenever I'd go ape shit on a song, like "Oh word, Mac? That's how you feel?"; that and the fact that Hip-Hop and poetry is made up of the placements of "words" (which I'd say I'm pretty good at lol), tying it along with my name.
You are bringing a lot of energy to the Hip-Hop game with your music in general and very DOPE new video "Pangea". Who directed the visuals and who was your co-star?
Thank you, big shout outs go to my guy Shawtie Bandz aka Elevated Eyez for shooting and editing my video; I actually directed the video myself (where to shoot the video, who/what to do in it, etc.). My hype man in the video is my lil cousin's friend that I had just met that day. It was funny because I intended on shooting the video alone until my cousin and his other friend wanted to make their cameos (which they ended up back out of last minute lol). Bro definitely complimented the video with his hype as well, so shouts go out to him too!
What did your time as a member of Money Bag Renegadez (MBR) teach you about how to succeed as a solo artist? Is it harder to be in a group or on your own?
Being with MBR, I realized that I would have to be on my shit if I EVER decided to go solo (being in grind mode x2). There was a time during the group where I felt that I didn't have an identity and didn't know the direction we were going to take, career wise. I started working on some songs by myself and found out quickly that I was very introverted and worked at my best when I was alone; but the downside of that was not networking with other artists and getting my name out there for others to know about my music.
There's pros and cons with being in a group just like when you're a solo artist. With a group, I can bounce ideas to other members and broaden my creativity, but it also limits what I could've visioned a song to be, opposed to creating the song on my own.
I'm glad and appreciate the opportunity I had with the group; however, going solo brought more originality and confidence out of me.
How will your upcoming EP "Writer's Block 2" be different than your first EP which dropped back in February? Also, will "Pangea" be featured on "Writer's Block 2"?
I'm not going to lie, “Writer's Block 2” (WB2) will be like night and day compared to the “Writer’s Block 1” (WB1). Production wise, I went to the studio for ALL of the WB2 tracks, opposed to mixing and mastering my own work with WB1. Also, all of my beats are paid for, since I plan on releasing this EP on all streaming services. I felt like WB1 was a project that I played around with; not saying I didn't take the project serious, but I didn't have a vision for it other than releasing it on SoundCloud as my "first solo EP". With WB2, I took more of an affirmative route with how I want the EP to be released, how many songs I want to shoot videos to, etc. because I have a strong vision about this EP compared to the prequel. And yes, Pangea is definitely on WB2, along with 5 other tracks.
What do you look for the instrumentals that you select to write to and record? How can producers get in touch with you if they want to share their beats?
When it comes to production, I really like what the new wave has going on. The distorted 808s, the samples, everything about music that doesn't sound like your "regular mainstream" track is what I live for.
When I was growing up, everybody wanted to be or rap like a specific rapper, and would then lose their originality trying to follow the next man; I like to find new things and put my twist on it. It's like finding a deserted island; yeah, you know someone was here previously, but once you add your own structure to the land and mold it into your own island, you have more appreciation for your work knowing the effort you put into it. That's why I enjoy reaching out to low key and YouTube producers because they come from all over the world and each of them have that one distinctive quality that differs them from the rest.
Any producer looking to work or send me beats can always hit me up on Instagram or Twitter for my email and we can go from there.
Will "Writer's Block 2" be featuring any other St. Louis based artists or producers? If so, who?
WB2 does not have any features, but 4 out of the 6 tracks are produced by St. Louis producer Beat it AT. I actually recorded all of my tracks at his studio. Sometime in the near future, I want to cook a collab EP with bro because I know with his production skills and my uniqueness, it would definitely stir up some trouble in the rap game.