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Straight out of Flint, Michigan, and transforming his pain stemming from a global epidemic into an educational track that stats nothin’ short of the facts, Lando Skyy has his eye on the prize and you cannot deny that he is going to capitalize in 2017. Lando released the omnipotent track, “Flint Water Crisis”, amidst the downright frightening collapse and failure of the government which is still continuing today. On the brink of the release of a project that you won’t project, I caught up with Lando to discuss what’s in store, growing up in Flint, life in the Midwest and more.
First and foremost, introduce yourself to our readers. Who is Lando Skyy?
To those just being introduced to myself and my catalog, Lando Skyy is the story of a man embarking on a journey from the bottoms of Flint, Michigan. I am the definition of someone trying to accomplish a dream being placed in a nightmarish situation surrounded by negative influences every corner. In no way shape or form am I better than anyone despite overcoming all the obstacles placed in my way, it shows I am human and you can do it too. In a nutshell, Lando Skyy is deeper than music, Lando Skyy is the voice of the underdog that has had to fight for his honor and respect.
How has growing up in Flint, Michigan, influenced your delivery as a rapper?
Growing up in Flint, Michigan, has influenced my sound and delivery in an aspect that others here can relate to. If you google my city, you will see that a lot of depression and pessimism is the main topic of where I’m from. What separates myself from the rest is I channel that negative energy to turn that into a positive when it comes to my music. It’d be easy for me to hop on the mic and portray an image that I am not because of all the crime associated with my city, but instead, I try to showcase you can rise above being better than that by being yourself and staying focused; everyone’s story is different though. Flint has inspired me to train my mind to stay goal oriented and in that process reflects through my music.
Flint, Michigan, is still without clean water. This is being overshadowed and tossed aside. What are your thoughts pertaining to this?
As a living resident in Flint, I must say it is absolutely absurd how we are living without clean water still to this day. What’s even more sickening is the fact that this has been going on for years and only gained mainstream notoriety for a short amount of period of time, then once again was swept under the rug. To ask the citizens of my city to not only live with contaminated water but also pay for it just shows in my eyes corruption and how we still have a long way to go as the human race, it’s extremely ridiculous and not only do we deserve clean water, we deserve answers and solutions. Outside looking in, it’s easy to feel empathy for a second but that doesn’t change the fact it’s still going on. I know people with kids who are suffering from being infected with lead because we have no choice but to bathe in it. It’s nice people reached out donating water bottles and everything, but that doesn’t fix the issue, that’s only a band-aid that’ll eventually peel off with the wounds still being deeper than ever.
You’ve got a new project in the works that is gearin’ up to be released at the top of the year. Tell us about the creative and recording process behind it.
Yes, I do have a project that’ll be released titled “Stuck In Ways” in January 2017. The title really comes from an old track I recorded 2 years ago but lost due to a virus on my engineer’s laptop. I decided to title my project that because once it released I don’t want to stay stuck in my ways, I want to move forward yet still show you where my head was at during the time of [those] certain events of my life. As far as my process goes, I just let the instrumentals speak to me and focus on the hooks as much as I can before applying pressure to the verses. I never want to compromise myself but do realize the ultimate goal here is to be a successful artist in an industry where many collapse under pressure not finding the perfect balance. I am old school, I still use pen and paper because I just feel like I express myself better that way rather than writing on phones and tablets. I treat songwriting as my second 9 to 5, when it’s time to lock in I just do what’s expected of me and hope one day reaches the world and they can relate.
If you could collaborate with any three musicians in the world, who would you choose and why?
This question always stumps me because of course I’d love to collaborate with way more than 3 artists just because the talent out there is so inspiring. But if I could work with 3 living artists to this date I would have to for sure say I would love to work with Drake because his music truly speaks to me and during ‘Comeback Season’ is when I started taking rap officially serious. Second, it would have to be Jay-Z just because in my eyes, he is the greatest to ever touch the microphone as an emcee. The way Hov carries himself as an artist and businessman is a pinnacle I hope to reach and can honestly see myself doing in the future. Last but never least would have to be Eminem. Not just because he’s from Michigan like myself, but his music is so raw and genuine which really helped me get through any obstacle in my life. Whether it was a heartbreak, loss of employment, just deep down depression, Eminem has always made it possible for me to see the light at the end of the tunnel and is a legend to the game and deserves recognition from everyone, even if you hate him.
Any upcoming tour or show plans that you can fill us in about?
My engineer Tyler Guest and I are currently working on booking some tours in the near future but it ain’t final until it’s vinyl so I’d rather just surprise my followers with that information when the time is right.
What do fans of Lando Skyy have to look forward to in 2017?
Fans of Lando Skyy have a lot to look forward to from myself in 2017 and that’s excluding the release of ‘Stuck In My Ways’. They can expect solid music always but not just the same sounding song as the ones I have dropped before, I am always perfecting my craft and figuring out new ways re-invent myself to sound different that way the listener never gets bored of my releases. I plan on doing a lot more features and not being so elusive when it comes to collaborations because I know there is a lot of young talent out there with great ideas that can eventually turn into an amazing body of work. You can expect me to never give up and always expect new music and visuals. One particular thing I want to focus on is being more engaging with my fanbase so they can connect and grow with me, I want you to listen to me and feel like I can kick it with you if you’ve had a bad day, a good day, if you’re in love, if you feel like grinding, or just want to straight up bull shit and party. I promise to my fans big things in 2017, just remember patience is a virtue for a reason.
Last but certainly not least, any closing messages for your fans and followers?
To all of my followers and supporters across the world, just know I have the deepest love for you because without all of you, I would have never made it as far as I have and this is only the beginning. I encourage you all to chase your dreams and never let anyone try to steer your vision off course just because they can’t see it. Perception is reality and I just want all of my fans to know that they are extremely appreciated and I can’t wait to make you all proud.
Check out Lando Skyy on Soundcloud and Youtube
