Personally, I can’t quite fathom the appeal of going viral. Imagine one day enjoying the tedious joy of obscurity to then instantly becoming a foundation of culture, a figure of significance to others. Fame has always been an unsettling concept, which is now only enhanced by the impact of social media. For a creative, virality is merely the beginning of an uphill battle to success. How many countless forgotten names have come and gone, overreachers lost in the calvary, decaying in the fields of ‘what could have been’ or ‘if only’. In the modern musical landscape, one sub-movement that has been avidly recruiting artists in its crusade to prominence is lo-fi drill, or sample drill. It’s hit and miss quality wise, but it’s unyielding repercussion on youth culture and trends is only increasing. One name who upholds individuality and creativity within the genre is Arz, the teenage star boy with a limitless projection of prosperity. 

The North East London rapper had his first viral moment last year thanks to Alone With You, a song that showcases the talent of Arz and epitomises the emotional resonance of his music, a feature that sets him apart from the vast majority of the UK rap scene. It’s a heartfelt, refreshingly poignant love song for the new generation of consumers. Since the soaring success of the track, Arz has gone on to work with fellow hotly tipped UK names like Kidwild, Chanel Loren and El Londo, flaunting an impressive versatility and pushing his credibility beyond the hollow world of social media. Last month, Arz unveiled his latest tape No Features, a project that acts as a statement to his peers, his fans and the industry. It’s surprisingly eclectic in mood and is tightly focused thematically, with Arz delivering a series of expressive and full-bodied performances across the 7-pronged track list. 

While busy at a writing camp , Arz took some time out to chat with me, discussing going viral, standing out from the condensed scene he finds himself a part of, and his slick new tape.

How did you start making music, and why?

I’ve always loved music, and have been listening to it since I was young. I’ve never stuck with one genre, so I’ve always liked to listen to broad music. I’ve always wanted to make people feel how I feel when I listen to certain songs. I’ve always wanted to be that for other people, basically. That’s pretty much why I started, it’s the best reason possible. 

After starting to make music, you now have such a defined sound – how did you find it? 

Even now, I feel like I’m still not there with my sound. I’m still working on my sound, and I think that comes from me always wanting to be different. Whenever I go to the studio, I kind of know what I want and I know what sound I like, but that’s a process. Sometimes I go to the studio and say “put that here, put that there” because that’s what I like, but even now I’m working on my sound and trying to figure it all out. 

If you had to define your sound in its essence, how would you?

Emotive. It feels like the one word for it: emotive. Also moving, mostly because I’m always trying to do some storytelling. 

The music scene is now starting to let people rap about their feelings, why do you choose to write emotively and use emotive beats?

I think that I’m quite a sensitive, emotionally aware person and I understand that well. Also, I've been in a few relationships at a young age and I feel like I know a lot about emotions from that. It’s just easy to talk about. 

The scene you might get drawn into – the lofi drill scene – it’s mad busy and lots of people are trying to do it. Why do you think you stand out from it? 

There are levels to it. I feel like it’s about lyrics, so lyrically what is everybody saying? I feel like a lot of people say things, but they’re actually not saying much. When I make a song, I’m actually saying something real. I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I just keep rapping like I’ve always been rapping. 

How have you worked on your writing to get it to that point? Or has it always come naturally to you? 

It’s natural, but it’s just about time. I’ve been in the studio so much, so I’ve had time to practice and make my writing better. I hope I’ll keep getting better and better. 

So, you went viral with Alone With Me, was it an overnight fame or did you see it coming? 

It wasn’t really sudden. I dropped stuff on Instagram where I was just rapping in the car chatting about relationships, and that was getting mad love. That was around the time people were getting on Tik Tok. I put it on Tik Tok, and that’s when it started going crazy. 

How did it feel, going viral? 

It felt nice, I felt appreciated. I was talking about my relationship and what was going on in my life, so I found it nice. 

That success and acclaim, did you envision it? 

Yeah, I always thought about it. Making money and popping off, I always envisioned it. 

You’ve got several songs that have done really well, whereas most people who go viral only really have one song that does that well. Do you feel any pressure to continue this level of success? 

I don’t feel pressure to do better in terms of numbers, it’s not that important. I’m making my music because I want to make it good. As long as I can keep putting out music, I’m good. The numbers are cool when you’re popping off, but I’m never going to make songs just for the numbers. If one song does well, I’m not gonna just repeat that song for the numbers. It’s about being an artist and the branding. 

The tape is different to anything else you’ve done. It’s emotional but it’s light-hearted and playful. What was your creative process throughout it?

There were like 15 songs I wrote that could have been on the EP. The whole year I was just banging out songs that could have gone on the EP, so it got to the point where I just wanted to get them out there. Some of them were really old, so I just wanted to put them out. I recorded them around the place, some of them in LA, another in Miami. 

Why no features? Obviously, it’s called No Features, but what is the meaning behind that?

Because that’s just the way I’m living. I like myself and making music by myself. It just felt right to just make my own stuff. It just made sense. 

What would you say you’re trying to convey thematically? What are the main themes?

Literally just independence. Just live your life, like no features is how I live my life so I just went with that. 

There’s a lot of romantic themes underlying the work.

Always, being a romantic – that’s my shit. 

If you were introducing yourself to a new listener who’s never heard of you, and you could play them one track to introduce yourself, what would you play?

For Now? or 18+ cause they’re just bangers. I feel like they’re songs where you get a bit of my personality.

Where do you want to take your artistry? 

I don’t know, I just wanna make great music and I want to tour. I want to tour a lot of countries. I want to be an inspiration to people, to young people especially. 

Why do you make music? 

I love it, the feeling I get listening to other people’s music, I want people to listen to my music and feel that way. 

What’s next for you? What’s coming in the next year? 

Maybe a headline show, and more tapes for sure. More tapes and bigger ideas, we’re gonna move forward and think bigger.