Riz La Vie - Created to Create
interview by Isabel Padilla
New Jersey native Riz La Vie is the new genre-defying artist that you need to pay attention to (and add to your current music library). Since releasing his debut EP “Found” in 2017, Riz La Vie has continued to create music at the intersection of dark hip hop and poetic soul. With his passionate singing style and emotion-filled lyrics, he is able to draw an audience together that shares the same inner drive to overcome life struggles and blossom in times of adversity. In the midst of a crazy year, Riz La Vie has released his newest single “She Said,” a song about the “power of word,” further highlighting the artist's ability to turn introspection into song.
A big thanks to Riz for delving into his motivations, creative ambitions and spirituality as it relates to his personal life and his body of work.
Thomas Gavin
Give a brief explanation of who “Riz La Vie” is! (As an artist and as a person)
RIZ LA VIE is the spirit of feeding the life you would like to live incrementally, day by day. I am a reflection of this idea as it continues to grow, feed, free, and fulfill me.
Where does your passionate and from-the-soul singing style come from? What inspired you to sing?
Like many, I grew up with a single mom and a rougher-than-I-would-have-preferred childhood, but I eventually came to value and cherish those hardships. I always cultivated my words and expression, but when I drove around delivering Chinese food in my droptop Saab is really when I spent all day yelling at the top of my lungs and finding my voice under the open sky.
How did growing up in the New Jersey/NYC area influence the fusion of R&B and hip hop that is evident in your music?
I grew up in a household and in an area that taught me to love and value all people and all music. Music and expression is often the sum of our experiences, and through empathizing with others’ experiences, you become a more well-rounded individual and procure new lenses to view yourself through. Hip hop music has always been the music I’ve clung to and created because it’s felt like music of struggle or overcoming and healing struggle by addressing it in various ways. I want to make music for people who’ve struggled and are struggling; to unlock, unknot and heal that struggle — for them and for me.
What was the writing process like and inspiration behind your new single “She Said”?
“She Said” was the first song I wrote on piano. That’s why the chords are simple. Even while and after fully producing the song, I kept them that way because it was what was real to me and my abilities at the time, and kind of speaks to the simplicity and complexity balance I like to reflect in a lot of my music. I wrote the song, and it became this idea of meditating on the power of the word and how tangible what you say can become. My mom and a few of my role models, [as well as] some of my relationships and lovers have taught me a lot about how impactful my words can be, and have shown me how impactful others’ words can be on you. It’s an exploration of the power of the voice.
"I want to make music for people who’ve struggled and are struggling.”
Something that stands out to me is your lyricism, and its poetic nature. How do you go about marrying together your lyrics with more classical hip hop beats?
I continue to listen to music I enjoy and find “good,” and I continue to make music and write regularly. Those things keep my “blade” sharp. Then when I go to make a song, I allow, I release, I let go. I just let my blade cut however and whatever it wants. Over production, or creating production that my ear likes and I feel allows for me to feel most natural and inspired. Rhythm is so important. Melody to me is just spoken rhythm and allowing. So the words and the instrumental really do most of the work.
What song would be the best introduction to Riz La Vie?
I would start at the first song on my first project called “Soap,” and work your way up through the projects from there. You’ll experience yourself in a lot of different ways.
What is it like performing for NYC crowds? And what are you looking forward to for your future shows with Two Feet?
NYC is home, so it’s like an extension of myself performing for them. We like to get loud — we like to throw our bodies around a bit. Unlock. We’re always so close together that no one’s really afraid to stand in close or get gritty, which I like. I’m looking forward to the Two Feet tour. I always just want to be in a room and have everyone in that room have the opportunity to feel what I’m doing and get a sense for my energy, and let it do what it does for them, if anything. This is that, with a few more people in the room. Really grateful.
Hannan Hussain
What songs are in your current rotation?
“Break Shit” - Jasiah, “Fist fight” - Nascar Aloe, “Hardest To Love” - The Weeknd, “You Been In a Mood” - BIGBABYGUCCI, “Hush(skit)” - LUCKI, “Geekin’” - Mia Gladstone, “Tommy’s Party” - Peach Pit, Arca, Men I Trust, FKA Twigs, 645AR, Björk, “Oprah’s Bank Account” - Lil Yachty. Doja Cat. Lightnin’ Hopkins, H.E.R., Her’s. Wolfmother. The Strokes. Music I find in skate videos. So many.
I love your sense of style! If you were to collaborate with any fashion brand or designer who would it be and why?
I like Dior. I like YSL. But I would work with someone who makes really customized or handmade pieces with a lot of embroidery and sustainable or eco materials. 4x1111 maybe. Just customized some black airforces for a few fans called “moon force ones.” Things like that are always the most gratifying to wear.
On Spotify it stood out to me that you wrote “I hope it gives you the confidence to go within yourself and find the light that u’ve been hiding from you.” How do you spread this message of fearless self expression to your listeners and followers?
“Find the light that u’ve been hiding from you” is like saying: we are all creations. Our creator has given us not only the spark of creation but the spark to create. Our gift from the universe is our ability to create and our gift back to the universe is creating. Many of us tell ourselves we can’t create what we want to. Whether it’s the life you want or the meal you want or the breath you want or the feeling you want present in your life or the art you want to experience or grades or intelligence or abundance or whatever it might be. We have this source with unlimited capacity to give and all it requires is us to shine a light on what we would like given and, hopefully, the natural inclination to also give.
“Our gift from the universe is our ability to create and our gift back to the universe is creating.”
How have you been keeping creatively engaged during this quarantine?
I started learning the guitar Dec. 31, and because of a lot of traveling and not having a guitar for a bit I had to ease up on it, but 2 weeks before quarantine, I bought an acoustic, and then when quarantine began I borrowed my bandmate Coco’s [Gibson] SG so I’ve just been playing that every day and writing songs, learning my own songs, and others’ songs that I love. Been getting better in the DAWs (Digital Audio Workstation) and just working on ways of unlocking and unblocking my creativity. I have a whiteboard with activities on it that I like to do, so I’ll just set a timer for 30 minutes and do one of those activities, like read or draw or do yoga or write a song. That’s how I stay productive with myself. I dedicate an amount of time to one thing and let it take me over for a bit, and it’s pretty refreshing.
If there's anything additional you'd like to add, feel free!
You have two eyes to see outward. The thing they call the “third eye” — or third eye chakra — is for you to see within, and see all the limitless potential within yourself. When people joke, “Oh, their third eye is wide open,” [they are] literally saying, “Wow, that person is able to see their own self and be aware of their shortcomings and their strengths and their abilities and work on them.”
Use this time to spend a few minutes a day turning inward and asking yourself small questions and waiting to hear the answer. Listen closely to yourself. Trust life. Use your voice and pen to bring into existence the things you wish, for your highest good and the collective highest good. Value each day, but don’t overwork or overstress yourself. A lot can happen with just a little bit of dedicated time. If you don’t sleep, you can never really wake up.
Have you noticed any changes within yourself since this time has started? — maybe dreams? Find me and let me know.
Thank you, love you
- RIZ
feed yourself good thoughts + breathe to the bottom of your ribs.