The DMV Daily Interviews: Solomonilla

From Calvert County To LA: Meet Solomonilla, A DMV Artist with An Unconventional Sound 

 

 

Solomonilla is an all-around artist with skills as a rapper, producer and engineer. Hailing from Maryland, but residing in Los Angelos he has been putting out music at a consistent rate with music videos on ELEVATOR, singles and a slew of projects on his primary and secondary SoundCloud page 99overall. Were in the third quarter of 2018 and Solo has announced a forthcoming album, and dropped three EPs. He’s an ever-evolving artist with a strong sound that’s equally hard hitting, catchy and smooth.

 

Twitter is a powerful tool for connecting with creatives. I first discovered Solomonilla when I heard him on a record by another DMV artist named King Rose. It was called “Alive” and featured an impressive outing from Rozay but even alongside a talented artist like him Solo stood out. His voice was powerful and refreshing in a rap world where new artists seem to hijack and reform the style of whoever was hot the year before, I loved the track so much that I had to write a post about it and it wasn’t long before we ended up following one another.

Solomonilla isn’t boxed in by expectation or self-imposed limits always delivering music that reveals new levels of creativity and as a vocalist, producer, engineer and even videodirector he brings his thoughts and concepts to life with great effect, releasing gorgeous visuals that compliment his creative vibe.

 

Let’s start it off simple, where are you from and what do you do? 

I’m an artist/producer from Maryland, currently living in California.

LA seems pretty sweet. What was it like growingup.in Calvert County though? I feel like it has to be the exact opposite of living out there? 

Yeah, shit is way different out here. Growing up in Calvert County was really dry. It’s got good people like most places but the overall energy there is just draining. Nobody really supports or wants you to do anything outside of the norm. It’s changed a little bit since I left and I think it has a lot to do with me, and what I did. I sort of inspired them. But it’s still a place that is just really behind the times. It’s very small. You just have to get out and experience the world. That’s the type of place that it is and LA has everything I enjoy, Great weed, weather, beaches, and scenery.

What type of kid were you in high school? 

I was mean as fuck. I would skip, get high, and do whatever. There’s a video on YouTube of me performing in a play I directed for my school. Because if I didn’t I would have failed so I snapped and wrote all the lines and the raps too. That inspired me and let me know I had some talent. It gave me something I never experienced and I loved it performing my art felt really good. The video is Solomonilla Oghetto, it’s kind of funny to watch now.

What got you in jail? What were you thinking when you got arrested

I was selling and got raided. They found me with only 18 grams but took my phone and charged me with all the deals they could find in it. They eventually made it illegal to do that but it was too late and I got charged and was facing 5-10 years. I went through 4 lawyers and ended up getting a choice between 3 years no probation or 30 days in jail & 3 years’ probation with 5 years back up time. I chose the 30 days & 3 years. I was thinking I was gone, shit was real fucked up at the time. I was going through it. And after the trial they still followed me everywhere. Which is why I left

Did you move out to LA alone or did you already have connections out there? 

I moved out here with my shawty, she been with me since way back, got me out of jail, all that good shit. We had zero connections until I dropped a few songs and linked up with a few people. Rosecrans Vic really put me on

How did you and your manager (Hef) meet? 

I was doing a show in Virginia and at that time I’d always pull up there and bring a whole crowd. He was there and immediately contacted me after the show saying that we needed to talk later that week.  so, I pulled up to his crib to meet him and the rest is history.

Rapping, producing, mixing, what else do you do? 

I engineer all my music, I make videogame scores. I design my covers, direct videos, and mix for a few voice acting gigs

What artists inspire you the most? 

Lil Wayne, Curren$y, Kanye, and The Black Eyed Peas

Proudest moment as an artist? 

Not even sure, my whole career so far is something I never expected. I just started and hoped it would move but to think that I’m actually here where I’m at from day one is huge. I had zero background and zero connects in this industry. I was from a small ass town and all I could do was write pretty well.

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