Paper (also known as Paper Mag) is a New York City-based independent magazine founded in 1984 by Kim Hastreiter and David Hershkovits. The publication focuses on fashion, popular culture, nightlife, music, art, and film. Paper conducted an interview with American rapper and singer Angel Haze in 2014 and 2021.[1][2]
Articles[]
2014[]
On December 18, hip-hop artist Angel Haze tweeted, "So sorry to Island/Republic Records, but fuck you." And with that, the 22-year-old proceeded to make the nightmare of any record company come true: Frustrated by the seven month delay of her much-anticipated debut album, Dirty Gold, Haze uploaded all 16 songs to her website. Most artists stuck in label-delay cycles sit quiet and play the game, but anyone familiar with the Detroit-born rapper knows that just isn't her style.
Dirty Gold's March 2014 release date was quickly changed to December 30, 2013, and although market record sales for the album have been dismal thanks to the leak, Haze isn't phased. "At the end of the day, it's not a massive deal to me," she says. "Nobody puts an album out in the last week of the year unless you want to look like you had the worst debut in fucking history. I don't really give a fuck."
Born Raykeea Wilson, Angel Haze was raised in a cult-like church called the Greater Apostolic Faith, which banned music entirely. At age 13, she came out to her mother as a lesbian -- though she now identifies as pansexual -- and was kicked out of her house. At 16, her family moved from Detroit to Brooklyn, where she was exposed to the secular world. She began making a name for herself online uploading unfiltered vlogs and songs to her YouTube account.
Although her debut is more pop-leaning than her 2012 mixtape Classick, every song on Dirty Gold has Haze spitting dark, deeply personal lyrics inspired by her difficult early life. "Black Dahlia," a letter to her mother, was easy to write but difficult to record, seeing as how she could barely get through it without breaking down. "['Black Dahlia'] is filled with everything I wanted to say to her," she says, "but without the malicious 'I hate you for fucking my life up' tone to it."
Haze's strained relationship with her mother is a frequent theme in her music. She blew away critics and fans with Classick's scorching revamp of Eminem's 2002 track "Cleanin' Out My Closet," in which she gruesomely chronicles surviving childhood sexual abuse from ages 7 to 10 -- something the song says adults in her home knew about, but did not prevent. "I feel like I came out of the gate projectile vomiting all of my demons," she says. "Music is very cathartic to me, so doing that song was more of a spiritual cleansing." Though Haze almost never performs the track live, that hasn't stopped hundreds of fans from coming forward to tell her it essentially told their life stories -- the majority of whom are young men. "It opened my eyes to a lot of the stigmas we place on boys and abuse in general," Haze says, "and how they're allowed to suffer."
Haze also set the Internet ablaze with her powerful freestyle remix of Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' gay-rights anthem "Same Love," part of her #30Gold series, which had Haze uploading a new freestyle every day for 30 days last October. Putting her own spin on a different popular song each day was a way for Haze to prove that she's "much more multifaceted than most people think." But she was reluctant to record "Same Love" at first. "I didn't have a coming out story," Haze says. "My mom was like, 'I found this stuff on your computer,' then told me I was going to burn in hell and then whatever."
The track, which features Haze spitting the lyrics, "No, I'm not gay / No, I'm not straight / And I sure as hell am not bisexual / Dammit I am whoever I am when I am it," raised more questions than provided answers for many fans. To Haze, pansexuality is based on the idea that "sexuality and sexual attraction aren't black and white," a looser-ended concept that she knows is harder for some to understand. "As far as people saying I have the ability to fall in love with a toaster or something, I think that's really funny," she says. And as for love, Haze says she's open to all. "I chose to never deny myself the simple pleasures of life. Whether that be looking at someone or fucking someone who's beautiful, it doesn't really matter to me," she says. "I want to do what I want to do and I'll fuck with the consequences. But I'm not going to deprive myself."
2021[]
It's been a while since we've heard new music from you. What happened in between then and now?
Lots of things, but I feel the most important thing to name is growth. I started my career as I was about to turn 20, and I still had a lot of growing up and facing myself to do. I've been pretty much everywhere you can name in between then and now. Woke up in some not so nice places and mentalities, lost some people I loved in horrible ways and had to find the courage to face all the things I'd accumulated inwardly over the time.
Long story short, I did. I feel amazing about it. I healed my relationship with my family (Hi, Mom. I love you). I started painting, which is something that comes into play a lot more in my life now. A different way to express my struggles. I also started doing more philanthropic things, learned some instruments, produced some songs, started sculpting and building things with my hands. Then finally, I started to talk to God again and ask for a way through to myself. The work has been tremendous, but the results are palpable. There are so many greater things in the world to access after pain and I'm proof of that.
How do you think this single is a reflection of who you are as an artist, right now?
The single is just an angle of Angel. It's just about the different sort of strength I've found, in all my voices and in all the many selves I've been. Feel like a fucking transformer. "Never Seen" is an intro to a new Angel. The fucking phoenix.
Who'd you work with on "Never Seen"? What was that collaborative process like?
I worked with Wave IQ on "Never Seen." It was a hilarious experience because I'm such a character and Q in his own way is this mad scientist. So we had a lot of moments, like the one in the beginning of the song where I'm telling him what to do and he's telling me not to do that [laughs]. He has an incredible ear and really helped me to make sense of all the voices I have. And this woozy drum heavy reflection is insight into that world. For you, what is the song about, lyrically? For me, the song is about fucking shit up, birthing new light, being a jiggy ass n*gga and just how fly I am overall. I have bills to pay! Pay up n*gga. You know? I have a different fire, a greater hunger than ever before.
Your new EP is titled Girl With the Gun. Tell me about that title and what larger message the EP aims to tell?
Girl With the Gun is a character I created in order to tell a different version of my story, but also to get through some of the tougher moments in my life. I painted the cover after reading an old manga I love. She has the power to rise up and tear down anything in opposition to her dreams, anything in opposition to her love for self or anything else and, more importantly, she has the means to protect all that she is — especially the gift.
With the EP, I wanted to tell a story of change and love, as well as doubt, fear and the overcoming of the self. I also wanted to light my heart differently. Music is a power tool; you can use it to highlight so many areas and qualities of life and I wanted to make sure I was clear with my intentions. My favorite song is "Girl With the Gun," specifically, because it tells you everything in such beautiful notes.
How do you think music – especially hip-hop – has changed since you first broke out in 2012?
THERE ARE SO MANY WOMEN! I love it. For the first time, I feel there is a healthy space to compete in and that I won't be forced to lighten more extreme and masculine colors in my personal make up. I think it's amazing that there are so many people trying so many new things, and part of that gave me the courage to go back to the Angel that wanted to experiment and be playful with music, rather than so serious. I love the landscape, so many flowers blooming.
We finally have a lot more mainstream representations of queerness in music today. What're your thoughts on that and are there any contemporary LGBTQ+ artists you're inspired by?
I don't want to sound cliché or like a dork but I live for Lil Nas X. There is no language to describe everything he risks by being true to himself, but he does it anyway. It's so inspiring to see someone constantly and hilariously thwart the attempts to kill his joy and self-love. I root for him all the way.
How do you think your music-making process has changed since you first started making music?
I realized it can be used more creatively, and I mean that in the sense that when I started making music, it was a cathartic outlet for where I was. It was how I dug myself out of the hole of home and self-hatred. I used it to create a way out of my own hell. I think the problem is that once you have a formula, you kind of stick to it because you know what results it'll produce. The thing I didn't realize before that I understand now is that every level requires different formulas. My mom used to tell me that life and death is in the power of the tongue, and all that means is what you say comes to pass, even if you've already experienced said thing. Your life is your tongue's mirror, so I learned to use my music for my benefit and to free myself. Not just to escape.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Christine Kim - Angel Haze (2).jpg (324 KB)")
References[]
- ↑ Cills, Hazel (February 24, 2014). "Why Angel Haze Is the Brave New Face of Rap". Paper. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014.
- ↑ Moran, Justin (August 27, 2021). "Hip-Hop Trailblazer Angel Haze Is Back!". Paper.
Template:Interviews