The Big Hash Tells All on Aries Mixtape
The Big Hash delights his fans in South Africa and beyond with the release of his highly anticipated mixtape, Aries: A Precursor to Heartbreak Hotel. Many who have been following the dynamic artist since his breakout year in 2017 have been gripped by the maturity reflected in his music, even at his tender age. However, Hash feels that he has made many mistakes along the way, which he is hoping to rectify going forward; “ it was a rollercoaster ride for me, I won't lie. Like I don't think I did it right the first time around. Um, I feel like I wasn’t focused enough as much as it pains me to say this. I think I was immature because everything came too fast and right now I've mastered the art of protecting my energy and protecting my peace, you know?”.
Dropping out of school to pursue a music career a journey that many don’t take has seen Hash become a prominent name amongst the newer generation of fans and music lovers in South Africa. His self-assurance saw him share the stage with the likes of global hip-hop stars Post Malone and Meek Mill.
With the release of his debut project album Young in 2019, The Big Hash saw his success reach new heights, connecting with an audience that would generate 1 million streams in its first week of release. This earned him a number single on the Apple Music charts.
Unfortunately, his big moment was overshadowed when he entered a legal battle with his former record label. The war between the two saw his single “Peace of Mind” get removed due to the ongoing legal situation at the time. He then went back to releasing music on Soundcloud with the hit song “Heavy is The Crown” featuring Blxckie and YoungstaCPT.
As of October 2021, Hash was officially cleared to release music once again on streaming platforms, and the journey to getting Aries to his fans began. The mixtape features fellow industry heavyweights Blxckie, YoungstaCPT, Ayanda Jiya, Rowlene, and DaVionne. The mixtape runs for 34 minutes long and sees Hash further reinforce his legacy within the South African music scene.
Upon the completion of his latest offering, The Big Hash shared, “I’ve cried, I’ve bled and I’ve worked tirelessly to get to this point and there’s no feeling like finally being on the other side of it.”
Aries doesn’t only serve as another release for The Big Hash but comes at a turning point in his career. At a time when everything seemed to be against Hash, he kept his head down and focused on making the best body of work he could for his fans.
Dive into the making of his tape as well as his forthcoming album and why music is so personal to The Big Hash in our full interview below.
This interview has been lightly edited for the purpose of clarity and context.
Daniel: There’s actually so much to speak about, before releasing your mixtape you were facing some legal issues with your previous label. Having come into the industry as a new artist, you going through that and looking back now how does that make you feel?
The Big Hash: I won’t lie and say that I wasn’t told any of this [in reference to the contract]… I think I had faith in the people that I was working with that they wouldn’t try and harm my career in any way shape or form. It’s bitter-sweet seeing certain things happen but you don’t process any of them until after it actually happens. Right now where I’m at I am relieved that all of this happened at such a young age, there are so many other artists that still haven’t gotten out of such a bad situation and they find out later in their lives, and then it’s too late for them to undo certain things. I am very fortunate to be given the gift of time and go through this now while being able to pick up so many lessons along the way at this stage of my career.
While this process was ongoing did you have anyone reach out to you? Giving you advice or maybe even a few artists that also went through a similar experience wishing you well?
You know what’s crazy? I know so many artists who have gone through similar situations and I have reached out to them, they haven’t reached out to me but we formed a bond over that. I’m really not alone in a situation like this there are so many other artists that people don’t even know of that are currently going through the same thing that I have. It’s so common which is very unfortunate, just being in the place that I am with so many responsibilities and the burden of the weight on my shoulders it’s just good to know that I can reach out to others instead of waiting for them to reach out to me. At least I have a certain group of people that I can talk to about certain things, I can’t name drop any of the artists because they are going through their own issues and very privately of course. They will come out one day and be better and stronger for it, but yeah man it’s comforting to know that I’m not the only one to experience something like this.
How did this affect your relationships with fellow artists and peers in the music industry?
I would like to believe that people are friends outside of the music business but that’s unfortunately not how life works, the industry itself is a very tough place to build genuine friendships or relationships with people. You’ll think of a certain situation in one way and they might see it in another way which makes keeping up with communication very hard. I am at a place in my life where I made peace with whatever comes, I don’t chase after certain friendships or relationships anymore. A genuine connection is a genuine connection and if it’s not then it’s not, I have very few genuine connections that I’ve made with artists outside of the music but also those who I have a connection with they are very loyal and go through their own troubles but have come out better for it.
When ‘Peace of Mind’ got taken by your former label and you knew that fans have been waiting for new music from you… what was that like?
It made me look stupid… I couldn’t do or say anything to anyone before clearing up a lot of things and there was just so much of a mess that me being quiet really helped fuel the negativity that other people were putting out there. It’s the saddest thing in the world to know that people are rooting for your downfall and your independence is being taken advantage of even to a point where your songs are being taken down which is just further proving their point. I couldn’t say anything until things were sorted out it’s a very unfortunate situation because I was keeping my fans in the dark about a lot of things. It’s very unfair for them because they are only here for the music, just in the same way which I am. Music is all I know, all I believed in, it’s the life I chose and I’m making myself look stupid by not saying anything while the label is also making me look stupid by taking down my songs. I’m very diplomatic in the way that I move so the whole situation seemed very contradictory, it was a very sad time for me… Everything I ever did was for my fans and now that I finally found some momentum with the song, it got taken down from all streaming platforms and I didn’t say anything for months while trying to move on with all these SoundCloud songs (that weren’t doing anything) it was very frustrating…
I’m sure that you wouldn’t want anyone else to experience what you have done through, going forward would you be open to speak about your situation regarding the label in order to help other artists?
Because I have experienced it and I would never want a fellow artist to go through it yes. It’s crazy because I have seen situations like this play out before and I always had faith that it was not going to be me and I had faith in the people that I chose to work with. I want to be the voice of reason for so many other people that have been taken advantage of in these record label deals that aren’t fair to the artist. If anyone walked up to me and gave me a perspective of their situation and asked me for advice, I would gladly give it to them. If I could help in any way shape or form, I would definitely do that.
I think it’s time we get into the music, talk to me about how the name Aries came to be?
Well initially it was called Aries because of the timeframe that I wanted to drop the project. It was during Aries season and how everything was supposed to come together but the label intervened and wanted to stop my entire operation going forward. At the time, Aries season had passed and I still couldn’t release anything. I could have changed the name, but I kept working on the project thinking that I would still release the project at a certain point. The more I worked on the project and the songs I realized that I had so many Aries traits within these songs. For example, how hot-headed I am comes across in the music, how passionate I am, how much of an emotional being I am, and [how] when I love, I love hard. It signaled so many things that could represent the star sign that I chose to stick with the name and that’s how it came to be.
With the features on the mixtape, what was your thought process behind getting the various artists on these songs?
There are so many people within the industry that when you are hot, they are rooting for you but when you’re cold they don’t know who you are. The whole world hit a reverse uno on me and I didn’t know how to process any of that. So me being able to use certain personal relationships that I’ve built with people over the years, a person like Flvme with whom I’ve collaborated the most out of any artist in the country, we probably have about five or six songs together in the last 3 years alone. Then you get a relationship that is built on respect with YoungstaCpt, him showing so much love early on in my career, really gave me so much hope. Developing relationships with newer artists like Blxckie, who I didn’t even know had been following my career for years. It’s really crazy to think about because he is literally the biggest artist in Africa right now, even bigger than me and I’m so proud of him for that. The collaborations really helped with the creative process because there were times where I was stuck and it didn’t click for me until those features actually gelled together and it made the project what it is today. It’s really crazy because you come to understand that whatever you go through certain people will respect you and those people are very important people.
The mixtape itself is filled with a lot of content and you draw from your personal life experiences and then put that into your music. One of my favorite songs off the mixtape is “Still Breathing”, explain to me how the song came about?
Wow! I’m not sure if you know but the day I was creating “Black” which turned into “Count My blessings”. [These songs] are the same song essentially with the same beat but two different titles. There was a pack of beats that a producer sent me and I was stuck on this beat for so many months because it reminded me of an old-school Drake song. It got to a point where I didn’t know what to say until something really hit home - don’t think too hard about what you’re going to say but focus on what you’re feeling right now. For me to be able to write some of the things that I wrote on that song, it felt very personal to me. As much as it took me months to write that song, I was challenging the wrong energy, I was trying the whole singing thing on that beat and it just didn’t feel right. Then it clicked for me, I was just supposed to express myself and let people know my story because it’s pointless for me to think about tweeting something and then deleting the tweet because I was going through legal issues and I didn’t want any more drama (but no one was hearing my side of the story). I was in a really dark place in my life and I really took it ‘there’ in that song. It took me four days to write that song, just to restructure and re-edit it. It was pretty mad and I’m happy with the final product and I’m glad that you are too.
Do you think with the release of this mixtape, that it’s a chance for you to write a new story?
Most definitely, because this is me really stepping out on my own. I’ve never released an independent project since 2017 and it’s crazy to think that 4 years later I have finally stepped out on my own and really reassessed my entire life and learned how to do things for myself. Honestly, I feel that I’ve been doing more for myself in the last year than all those years spent together with the label. Now I have my own website and I have my own merchandise. It’s gratifying to know that I don’t need anyone but myself to believe in what I believe in because not everyone is going to believe in your dream and not everyone is going to co-sign what you are doing. You need to go out on a limb if you want make the stretch you now? It feels like a new story for me because I am in charge of my own destiny right now and whatever happens going forward is own me. For so long now I depended on other people but now depending on myself it feels great because if I ever let myself down its because of me and nobody else. At least I am in charge of my own destiny.
Would you call this project your coming of age?
Coming of age? That’s interesting… You know what? See, this why I love having conversations like this because I’ve never heard that perspective before. I’ve never heard someone say that they can hear that this is a very personal project. For me it was just me being myself and someone can actually say that it’s a personal one? To me personal is relatable and for me to hear something like this it just reaffirms what I’m doing right now or where I’m doing right now is the right direction. I honestly wouldn’t call it coming of age but I would call it a return to form. I felt like ‘young’ was my coming of age and ‘young’ was more of a moment in my life where I was so determined to succeed and really be the youngest out here doing it. On this project I wanted to reach out to somebody that could relate to my pain and feel the burdens that I was carrying. I was in such a weird space at times I didn’t feel like I was creating the project but instead I was living it. So that’s why I say that this is a return to form and ‘young’ was more coming of age because it was the height of my career at that point but I still haven’t hit my peak yet I thought that I did but this is only just the beginning because now I get to rewrite my story the way that I choose to.
Musically, what’s after Aries?
So Aries is a prelude to an album that I’ve been working on for many years now or the concept of it. It’s an album called Heartbreak Hotel. I am actually executively producing it with Zoocci Coke Dope. The album is going to be done as soon as possible. I feel really great about how the year is gonna go and I don’t want to stop this momentum that I have. So many stop-start moments have happened in the last 2 years that it’s unfair to the people that have been supporting me for the last few years. The last thing that I want to do is disappoint them, so I am definitely going to get the job done. I’m very excited about what’s to come and I’m very happy with what we’ve accomplished so far and everything that we are going to accomplish. Heartbreak hotel is my main focus for now.
For your fans? What should they take away from the project?
Firstly, I have a strict no skip policy. Like you’ve got to listen from start to finish. I didn't create that thing so you can put it on shuffle and, and miss the whole order of the project. As you said, it's a very personal project for me. I have so many thoughts that I try to convey. I want to be understood and not only that I want to be real. I want to be as real as I can and for people to walk away with something that they'll play in 10 years.
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