BY: KRIS ANDERSON
PHOTOGRAPHY BY: JAELIN COLLIER
“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. “Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.” Psalms 37:23-24
Sometimes in God’s plan for our lives we have to take one or two steps back to take ten steps forward. Circumstances that we initially see as stumbling blocks and hindrances, many times are in truth, correction from God as He disciplines us to remedy our direction in life. Letting go of the things that we may think are right for us is hard, but holding on to them makes it impossible for God’s plan to unfold for our life. When you focus on God's plan and being a blessing, God makes sure that you are always blessed in abundance. One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus; we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular. However, I've had the opportunity to interview a unique individual who doesn't dabble his way through life, but he confidently accepts what God has plan for his life. I present to you Zay Blaze The Artist.
The UpNext: Who is Zay Blaze?
Zay Blaze: "Zay Blaze is a singer and a rapper. But on a deeper level Zay Blaze is just a regular guy. Zay Blaze is the side of me that is able to express the things that I am not able to say in person. I’ve always been a relatively nonchalant person so Zay Blaze is my main way of being expressive emotionally."
The UpNext: How did your journey with music start?
Zay Blaze: "I got my start by committing to music at a young age. I told my mom instead of doing sports in fifth grade that I wanted to be a singer. She told me that she would support my dream, but I would have to stick with it. However, in my head I was like “I know I’m probably gonna give this up in a couple months”, but this was always something that just stuck with me. It became a part of my life and who I was destined to become."
The UpNext: What was the trigger point for you to start writing your first song?
Zay Blaze: "Wow, that’s crazy because I actually still remember my first song ever like word for word. My trigger point was somewhere in the time span of me being a huge Chris Brown fan. I would watch his performances, listen to the songs and I really imagined myself being like him. So in my head I was like “Alright let’s do it, I’m going to be like Chris Brown.” From that day forward I started writing songs and haven’t looked backed since."
The UpNext: Who inspires you the most in the music industry?
Zay Blaze: "To be honest my friends inspire me the most. Seeing other people that are so talented doing what I do inspires me to keep going. Because I know we are all in this together, and I love seeing them do different things and try different methods to get to the same outcome."
The UpNext: If you could do a collaboration with anyone dead or alive who would it be?
Zay Blaze: "The first person that comes to mind is Smino, because he’s so off-center and versatile that you can’t help but be engaged in everything he says. His style is so unique and I would like to get in on that and work with him in any way possible. One of the songs on my last album actually was intended to have a Smino feature but as you can see that didn’t happen."
The UpNext: How was it attending a HBCU while pursuing your love for music?
Zay Blaze: "10/10! Would highly recommend that young African Americans should attend a HBCU. I came across so many dope people in my time at Hampton University. If I hadn’t built those relationships with the people that I came in encounter with or experience the things that I’ve experienced in the past five years. I could honestly say that my music would not be what it is today. So I guess you can say that I’m thankful for the HBCU experience and I would never look back to change anything about my journey."
The UpNext: Have you ever gone through a writers block?
Zay Blaze: "I’m actually constantly in a state of writers block. That’s why it usually takes so long for me to make music, because I am so meticulous in the art that I make. I can’t just do anything. When I’m experiencing writers block, I found out the best thing for me to do is go for a walk on the beach or do something else and just allow the topic or the lyrics to come to me rather than trying to make something up on the spot. I’ve learned that if I force it then it won’t be as good as it could’ve been if I just let the art come to me."
The UpNext: How many artists have impacted your career so far?
Zay Blaze: "Literally every artist that I encounter impacts my career in one way or another. Whether they are an artist that I like or dislike there’s always an element of influence to be taken away. Other artists are usually a good indication of where the music is going these days and how to keep up with that gradually."
The UpNext: What’s some advice you would give someone who’s interested in creating music?
Zay Blaze: "To anyone that’s starting to make music, my advice would be to just jump in and do it! Make sure it’s something that you genuinely have a passion for. There are a lot of people that make music because it’s a cool thing to do. For instance a lot of people will be halfway through their college career and decide something easy to do would be to rap. That’s honestly not what it’s all about. All of the people around me including myself have been doing this since we were young. I started in middle school back when it wasn’t the coolest thing to do and I used to get laughed at for just trying. However, regardless of what other people said or did to clown me I had to remind myself that this was something that I wanted for myself! The real question is.. DO YOU CARE what they think?"
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