Sit n' Talk with Toxic.

Fearless is the word I am choosing to describe the Washington based rapper called Toxic. Unapologetically original. Get ready to hear something that might raise your standard of what you expect when you listen to rap and hip-hop music.  

Some rappers just rap about things-Toxic seems to live and breathe the music he writes. With well over four albums in four years of recording and heaps of single releases, Toxic puts the pro in prolific. If someone who wasn't familiar with Toxic's music asked me to play something for them, I'd  tell them to brace themselves and probably make sure they were sitting down when they heard it. 

Raw, yet charred. Fast overtones with bass-heavy, booming slow undercurrent. His voice is smoky and harsh but not abrasive or dissonant. Eerie dark and well-mastered, distorted production choices carrying the listener the whole way, it bangs. 

Ego? Not really, but confident? Absolutely. He's good at rapping and he knows it, lapping competitors with relentless uploads and expertly mastered songs. Thick vocal layering and top notch features like Lord Saiyan, Mavo, JPEGMAFIA, Sam Ryan, Prince Hyph, BIGBABYGUCCI, Tytuus, and more. Of course there's some epic producer credits to namedrop here as well: Cansino, King Yosef, STILL, Kellbender, Maxx Bett, Prxz,  and many more. 

Catchy, yet new hooks woven into each line. Not to mention he's a member of DHD (Devil Horns Down) and collaborates with loads of well established underground rappers and professionals. With his entire discography on Soundcloud and with no music videos, he remains fairly mysterious, but in the music scene in the Northwest, he's well known for his performances and death defying delivery of hit and after hit...don't you know this is Toxic?

Where are you from? Where are you now?

 I’m not really from anywhere. I was born like 20 minutes outside Portland and kinda just bounced around the PNW my whole life but I live in Tacoma at the moment.

How long have you been publishing your music? 

Since like 2014 I think. I’m not sure the years kinda all just blend together at this point. 

Which artists have people compared you to? How does it make you feel when people compare you to other artists? 

I used to get compared to Da$h and RetcH a lot, not so much anymore. No, I’m not a fan of the feeling it gives me to be compared to another artist, but in the end it just pushes me to be more like myself. 

When do you decide a song is finished?

I don’t. I’m usually mixing a song right up until the very last second. If i say a song is dropping at 6PM... It’ll prolly be 6:30.

What was high school like for you? 

I dropped out halfway through 10th grade. Sold drugs, got in fights. Regular shit. 

How do you connect with your name as Toxic? Is it a play on words (Talk Sick)? a reference to relationships, or drugs even? Care to explain the title?

HAHAHA! No it’s not a play on words, it came from the Brittany Spears song. But as time went on it became a safe space for me to be aggressive and channel some of my more debilitating traits that were probably going to put me in prison if I didn’t find a way to deal with them. So it started as a joke, and kind of grew into my own individual form of therapy I guess.

Almost all of your releases have been through Soundcloud and Youtube. Do you consider yourself a "Soundcloud rapper"? How do you feel about Top 200 artists in Hip-Hop right now?

 Crazy you ever even saw anything I’ve put on YouTube, most of it was only available as an accident, it’s all private now. But I just consider myself a guy who makes music. I think it’s not my place to define what type of rapper I am. That’s why i put music out, to see what people think of it...and me sort of. And as far as top 200 music: I don’t really listen to anything that’s not Future, if I’m being honest.

Ever had any crazy fan encounters/stories?

Nah, just other dudes acting super sus to me because of people I’m friends with.

What is the significance of the Didikai fest? How did booking that gig come about?

Didikai has supported me and Tytuus and really all of DHD for the last 2-3 years straight. Naturally, we became close with the brand and Sienna, and now it kind of just feels like a family that is responsible for some of the best memories of my life. Probably wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Didikai. 

You have a huge portfolio of music recordings, how often are you writing and recording? 

Literally everyday. I wrote one with (King) Yosef right before this interview. 

Do you write your lyrics when you're not listening to beats or recording? Do you even write them down at all?

I try not to write, or to at least be as lucid as possible when I’m making something. I haven’t written a hook down all of 2018 

How do you feel about ghostwriters?

I think they’re great. Everything is about context, and if you make the choice to lean heavily on that style of entertainment, I think it becomes inappropriate to make certain claims about yourself, you know? Can’t be the best rapper alive if you’re not even the one writing your best records. Still though, a good song is a good song. 

What makes certain producers and rappers easier to work with than others?

2% of rappers are easy to work with... and as far as producers? The answer to that is to pay them.

Are you ever worried about being type cast as negative by anyone? 

You have album/mixtape titles like "I Hate Everything," "Chapter black," "Kill me," and most recently "Sorry Mom,"...Can you speak on the inspiration for these projects?   

Not at all. People can receive my music however they please, I’m not too worried about anyone’s opinion other than the people I work with. 

As far as the inspiration for those projects? I’d rather not speak on it. Like I said people can think what they want. It’s out there if they care that much. 

When did DHD first form? Who are the its founding members? What role do you play in the collective?

DHD formed about 2 years ago I wanna say? I’m not necessarily a founding member, I’m pretty sure that title belongs to CATXSCAN and GAUZE. I found everyone through (King) Yosef’s YouTube page back when I was looking for type beats in 2015 and for some reason they decided I wasn’t a weirdo and liked my music as well so I paid for a train ticket for Tytuus to come record with me for a weekend, we made a bunch of songs and he happened to have a show with basically everyone in the Portland scene opening for Chris Travis the following weekend so I said I’d come, he asked if I’d do a song with him, and I unplugged my mic in front a sold out crowd hahahahaha but no one cared cause I was smoking weed with Chris Travis all night so I think they assumed I was his friend, and like 2 days later, I heard they were making a collective and I got asked to be DHD. 

How do you feel about police?

Fuck 12.

What’s up with your diet? How does food play a role in your music making process?

I’m a fairly unstable human being and my diet probably has a lot to do with that. I either sit home, eat ding dongs and spicy noodles or I’m over paying for something I’m pretending is healthy. No in between.

What can fans expect from Toxic in the near future?

For things to get better.

For more Toxic content:

Twitter - @MrWeedro   

Insta - @mightbetoxic

Soundcloud.com/mightbetoxic

Questions for the King: Talkin' shop with King Yosef

King Yosef is a force to be reckoned with, qualifying as a producer, vocalist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He's worked with some of the biggest names in the music industry with credits ranging from XXXTentacion, Ski Mask The Slump God, to Sam Ryan, Tytuus, Vann, Fifty Grand, A$AP Ant, CATXSCAN, Dane O$even, and many, many, more. Way too many to list actually. This guy plays an important role in both pop and underground music that is being released right now. 

Do yourself a favor, listen to his 2017 album "Fortune Teller", followed by his most recent release "GUILTY." in 2018. Youtube search him, and you'll find a plethora of exotic visuals shot by the legendary Ryan McKinnon, featuring some of the best popular and underground rappers and performers in the game right now. King Yosef combines monstrously deep heavy hits, with toxic vocals, and evocative lyrics that will both inspire and haunt you. Crossing several styles and introducing unheard of unique blends of Rap, Metal, Goth, Industrial, and Hip-Hop. But it can't be limited to even those descriptors, it's its own thing, listen and you will discover that it's impossible to find a cut by King Yosef that won't raise the hair on your arms or break your neck. 

 At just 21 years of age Yosef is a professional. Both polite and fierce, his commanding musical presence echoes respect among artists and producers. If you haven't heard his personal library of beats and bangers, you've more than likely heard one of the dozens of artists he works with. 

I've had the good fortune of being able to have a few interactions with him over the past few years, and some of the artists from his portfolio. So, I was able to snag a few moments out of his recording schedule to ask a handful of questions...

How long have you been learning music and production?

 I started playing music at 10, so 11 years ago and making beat seriously at 16 or so. 

Where are you from?

Stupid white trash town called Medford, in Southern Oregon. I actually lived in a way smaller town outside of it, but it's irrelevant.

What’s your favorite meal?

I'm a mashed potatoes or veggie hot dog guy.

What do you enjoy about making music the most?

It's one of the few times where I feel a good amount of worth. I'm fairly shitty at everything else, so music is my realm to feel strong in.

It's a double edged sword though because music can also feel like the most defeating thing in the world with how much pressure I put on it.

How has your life changed since you started pursuing music?

I've only ever made music really, since I was young this was just what I was gonna do. so I don't know how my life has changed, it's just always been a further version of this.

the better thing for me to ask myself is how would my life be without music. 

When people ask you what type of music you make...how does that make you feel? 

What do you say?

I don't know what kind of music I make. I wear my influences on my sleeve so once you dive in you can gather what I'm doing.

I always explain that its like, industrial stuff but with metal and hip hop and some goth stuff.. ish?

Your music is very diverse. Why have multiple “genres” on one album?

That's just the shit I like. I feel like I can't always summarize my feelings lyrically on the same type of beat a hundred times either.

At the end of it all, it's more of a testament to being a musician, that I can write and that I want to showcase it. I've been dedicated to making music for so long, it'd feel like I was selling myself short by not writing all I want to write. I have separate accounts where i post even more music because sometimes I write too far out of the

"king yosef" box.

Any off the wall studio experiences with any of the artists you work with?

I ended up on tangents with artists a lot where we end up deep on youtube showing each other weird music we both like and not working. nothing too crazy honestly. I try to get all of my musical

ideas out instead of getting too distracted.

What is it like being able to work with some of the best bands, photographers, and rappers in the music industry?

Bizarre, eye opening, disappointing, fulfilling and a bunch of other feelings. I'm really past the awe of it all and more on the factor of making real friends, instead of just working with

people for a day and never speaking now. So, now that I've really started learning about a lot of people, Im forever grateful they're my friends. a lot of other people are just fucked up or 

doing all of this for the wrong reasons, and its disheartening when you take art so serious.

What are some of the messages of your music?

My main points are always to wear my heart on my sleeve in my music. Everything I'm trying to say comes from a genuine place. I'm genuinely depressed, genuinely angry, all of it. Also I call out fake artistry when I see it. I know within it that a lot of people probably feel the same way about me but, its all opinions.

How do you feel about the metal scene in the northwest?

I'm really far from affiliated with it anymore. I used to play a lot of shows, but a lot of times its the same shit, same people, playing music that was popular 8 years ago.

Which I'm not talking down on, but that started to feel redundant for me musically.

What is your opinion on recent hip-hop artists and music?

I think some of it's great, I think some of it is just a giant persona put on for entertainment. Depends on the day, my opinion changes constantly. I think things are changing for the better now.

What kinds of things should someone expect after deciding to work in music? 

If you really want to be good, healthy self doubt is necessary. Expect not a lot of friends for a while, a lot of people belittling your passion and having to constantly remind yourself that it isn't the normal path, so you gotta work a lot harder than you think.

The pay off is great though, seeing people fuck with your music makes you feel good.

Do you get fucked up when you work alone or with other artists in the studio? 

I don't know whether this means sobriety fucked up, or mentally, but a lot more likely to get in a weird mental space than I am to drink or anything when I write. My feelings aren't as honest when I'm fucked up and my vision of myself isn't as clear, so I steer away from doing that. I fuck with drinking some beer outside of that though.

What skills and assets do certain artists possess that make them easier to work with than others?

Knowing your program is important, knowing when it's time to tap someone else in on a project is great too, understanding music outside of the realm of what you're trying to make

helps too. Just educating yourself and being self aware is the key point.

Do you have any advice for bands or rappers?

Make YOUR music. Learn as much as possible, listen to as much as possible. Soak up influences, ideas, and make them your own. You either have to make music that last or last with the music.

trend hopping just leads to a quick fall off.

For music and more info about King Yosef visit kingyosef.com