Shout out to Carde’, a talented emcee from Tallahassee, FL, who connected with us for an exclusive interview to discuss his new single “Working & Paying”, as well as his upcoming debut album “Reasons”. We also got a chance to talk about the Hip-Hop scene in Carde’s hometown and find out why he prefers his music to be inspirational and uplifting.

After reading our Q&A with Carde’, be sure to connect with him on social media and the Quality Key website. Also, be on the lookout for Carde’s upcoming album “Reasons”.

Big ups to you on the release of your new track "Working & Paying". Tell us about inspired you to write the track and what message you want to get across to the listeners.

What inspired me to write “Working & Paying” was a reflection on my own life, as well as a few observations of my current surroundings. Artists tend to be so infatuated with the idea of success that sometimes they put too much faith in people or systems that ultimately fail them. Hope became less of the goal and hard work became the forefront of my strategy to success.

Listening to "Working & Paying" on repeat really has us excited to hear your upcoming album "Reasons"; what can we expect from it, and do you have a release date yet?

You can expect a diverse palette of songs, each song should be completely different from the next. I attempted to give listeners at least one of everything in the hopes of expressing clearly how malleable I am. That being said expect some love songs, conscious rap, and more!

Is "Reasons" your first project to be released?

“Reasons” is my first and only official project released.

What are your thoughts about the music scene in Tallahassee? Are locals generally supportive of homegrown talent such as yourself?

In Tallahassee, locals are generally supportive if you fit the narrative that they want you to. Here trap music is predominant. I love trap, I am just not a trap artist. That being said, there are a few supporters of other sub genres of rap, but here in Tallahassee, most people want you in the trap box.

Why is it important for you to have an inspirational and uplifting message in your music?

It is important for my music to be inspirational and somewhat uplifting because music is one of the most consumed products in the world. We are always in tune, sometimes individuals shape morals, values, and ideologies based off of the music they listen to so there is truly no harm in making something that feels good and sounds good but is also good for your mental.

I may not have all conscious songs but after listening to my music you take something into your mental outside of the realm of drugs and violence, which is a predominant subject in the hip-hop genre.

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