EVAN HOLT



Cover Art by Kevin Shanklin

Evan Holt is a young rapper whose name has already been mentioned on popular media sites Complex and Hypebeast so if you haven't heard of him before, you need to keep reading...
Evan began writing his own songs and rapping while in high school in Louisiana, and now based in Atlanta, he is using music as a way to vent his thoughts and experiences, working with producers WhoAreIThelonious Martin, and others to weave melodic beats with honest lyricism all delivered with that fantastic Southern twang. What drew me to Evan was his determined approach towards his music, and how in a world full of internet rapping sensations - he stood out. There's no fronts or gimmicks with him, just realness and classic tunes that will definitely get him places. 




What's the best thing about being young and living in America? 

I turned 21 in August, we have age restrictions on when you can drink, smoke, buy guns, whatever, so now that none of those rules apply it's a whole different world. I still have a couple more places to visit, but I want to get out of America.

What's the worst? 

Our government at a local level. I hate police. I like to drive fast, ride dirty haha but that's my business. I think our justice system is unfair. Things here are backwards. The government should work for it's people but nothing here is really in our favor.


Who and what inspires your music?

The who would be women. My mind works best when everything in my life is balanced. I will indirectly find a way to talk about girls. I love 'em. The what is everything else from life to stuff people have told me. I try to put it all in music, sometimes I feel like I'm too personal. 

A lot of your songs tell a story, does writing lyrics come naturally to you? 

Not exactly the way I want it to be but most times it just depends. I don't know how to count "bars" so I write with no real structure. I may play the beat 1000 times before I ever record. I never taught myself how to study but I'll know the song word for word when I'm finished. I wish I could do the same in school. 

If you could go back in time to when you were just starting out, what advice would you give yourself? 

I have never had anyone tell me to my face my music was bad. I feel like a lot of people are scared to just say what's real and become yes men/women, and then I have to question myself, I want to be better. I don't need people's opinions but self assurance is never enough. People on the internet have a little more to say and there was a time when I would look for that assurance from them. I spent way too much time giving a fuck about them when I started. When I finally had their attention it didn't even matter so I would tell younger me and anyone else, make shit for yourself. Be very selfish and continue to just be you. I never stopped I just forgot. 



What are you doing when you aren't recording? 

"I can't afford to not record" - if I'm not recording, I'm driving. Atlanta is inconvenient. Wasting money. Everything but what I should be doing I feel like. I want to be recording all the time. I write a lot more than I record. I try to live in between. You can imagine a life for yourself or use the one you have. 

And finally, what's coming up next? 

I've been thinking about getting married a lot. I'm not sure yet. I'm working on a lot of music. I want to do something new, I've been bored of myself. When you do something for so long and feel like it's not going the way you plan you have to fix that. The worst enemy is self, and nobody knows me better than I know myself. I don't know when but I have a lot of music in me still. I am not getting married anytime soon haha. Expect something new all the time.

Check out Evan's soundcloud and twitter

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