Talent: Theo Fab
Photo: Rise UP Duo
"Culture definitely has an impact on everyone's musical cosmos. The people around you, their heritage and traditions have an impact on who you are, what you listen to, what you produce. I grew up in South London, where I was influenced by Nigerian and Jamaican vibes, but also by much more. In that area I learned that everything connects, that everything shapes your musical taste, making it limitless."
Every note can tend to the future by speaking to the past, Theo hints to us, every beat can be African, Caribbean and British resulting homogeneous and coherent, above all revolutionary: theories that this all-around musician began unconsciously drafting as early as childhood.
"As a child I absorbed what my parents transmitted to me. They were very attached to music. The first memory I have of my passion for this art form was on one of my birthdays: we listened and changed CDs all the time that day.... Then the relationship evolved steadily. On the one hand I think about listening to the radio in the car on the way to school, and on the other hand I think about today, about the number of days invested in researching labels, producers, and new tracks on the web. Everything has evolved so fast".
And in this overall evolution two other factors have played, play, and will continue to play a crucial role in Theo's human and professional construction: cross-cultural friendships and his record label.
"Being in contact with many people engaged in different fields helps to broaden my identity, to enriches it. Illustrators, visual artists, graphic designers... Thanks to them I explore new dimensions and nurture my relationship with music. Having my own record label allows me to focus on an entirely personal space and work. I’ve always been of the opinion that working for a major label is somehow equivalent to working for someone else's dream. Growing yourself and your own musical vision, I think is the right and challenging thing to do."
"Lots of things are coming," Theo Fab concludes, outlining a near future in which clubbing, afterparties, and boiler rooms will once again be at the center of collective existence, sketching a new post-pandemic world in which music will reclaim the social and collective scene, in which "I will be able to throw hip-hop parties, release new songs, and go back to seeing everything as before. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time. I can't wait".
