“I’m conscious of political frameworks, but I’m really into jiggy shit too”
I had the pleasure of chatting with Midwest born Sir Eddie C, a rapper and creative, with a unique sense of style and take on the world. We bonded a bit over our love of eco-friendly things and dismantling oppressive systems, but also got to explore the story behind his artistry. It’s not everyday that you meet someone like Eddie. He’s got charisma and our conversation left me feeling inspired.
Who are you?
I’m me. I’m a human being that’s really trying to figure out life. Not just in the internal sense with my personal self, but what this whole thing means. I’m trying to develop a full understanding of what it means to be human and I do that through my music and art.
I’m originally from Belleville Illinois and I was born in the suburbs in the 90’s when there weren’t a lot of black people in my town. I understand what it feels like to be the only black person in your homeroom.
I can for sure relate having gone to a private school in St. Louis with similar demographics. What was that like for you?
Growing up in the suburbs is a big part of my story and made me learn how to acclimate. The school I went to for k-8 education was semi-private and then all of a sudden my high school wasn’t. I went from a very small insulated environment into something so different and that shaped a big part of my identity.
I’m a hip hop artist, but I don’t really like to classify my music as that because I feel like people get caught up on what type of hip hop it is. If I say that I’m a conscious hip-hop artist people might think of Mos Def and if I said I was a trap artist then people might think of Migos. I call my type of music everyday people music.
I feel like the best form of artistry is what’s truly representative of all people. When I make music I don’t want it to be just one thing.
People who are super conscious still want to turn up.
I want to make music about whatever I’m feeling at the time, people are so multifaceted and have dimensions that make them up. I would be doing the audience a disservice by not giving them the full me. Sometimes I might rap about a break up and sometimes I’ll rap about turning up and sometimes I want people know how fresh I look.
I have a song called “Lil black boy” that discusses black boy joy and how it doesn’t just come in one form. There’s a lot of us — like my homie that just gets dumb fresh every day to be care free. That’s why I call it everyday people music because it’s accessible to you because I'm touching on so many different things from the subject matter to music type.
Who are some of your top artistic influences?
Lauryn Hill was a major influence on my love for music — she was one of the first hip hop artists that I was aware of as a little kid. Of course, Basquiat too. I like playing with different styles, some of my favorite influences are Jay Z (My favorite growing up) Cudi, Wale, Kanye West, and Gym Class Heroes
Can you tell me about your journey to having a plant-based diet and caring about the environment?
I became vegan to look better at first *laughs* it wasn’t really a health conscious thing. I gained a lot of weight in a relationship and realized my diet had to change. It helped me get more energy — and run and do things I normally wouldn’t have the energy to do.
Eventually I started to think about things differently and think about human consumption in the world. Like how the Amazon was on fire due to cattle raising. Our environmental impact is directly linked to our diet. It’s something that was superficial at first but became a lot more to me and being conscious about our impact on the world.
Do you explore these topics in your music?
Eventually I want to talk about veganism and environmentalism. Right now I want to reach a larger audience and be accessible with lyrics, but eventually that’s what I’d love to do. I want to incorporate those meaningful messages.
Sometimes the vegan community might feel exclusive to people and I want to speak to people where they’re at. People might think veganism isn’t for them because it seems “uppity”, but it’s super important for black people in the inner city to not be in food deserts and to have healthy food that’s accessible. Sometimes only the “nicer” places have vegan food, so it’s important for our community too.
How can people start to promote change?
For me, I gained a lot of this knowledge through education and being in welcome spaces with people who were okay educating me on the transition to veganism. Things can only happen if we use our voices to demand access, for everyone.
Word.
You can follow him on instagram @SirEddieC and check out his music on Spotify and Apple Music.
Make sure to follow ya girl on instagram @GreenGirlLeah