Upcoming 100: How long have you been in the music industry and has music always been a part of your life?
Difference: I have been involved with the music industry for a year and a half now professionally, but hip-hop has been a big part of my life since I was very young.
Upcoming 100: Was there a specific time in your life where you thought, "music is what I want to do?"
Difference: I remember clearly the actual moment I decided I wanted to pursue music and make it my life. I was sitting in Pappaduex with some of my team and one of my best friends Vic looked at me and said "If you are going to do this... you just gotta do it! You have our support and you know that." And from that day on my mindset changed and I became the artist I am now.
Upcoming 100: What inspires you (or your music)?
Difference: The thing that inspires me the most is that I can immediately touch people's lives with every song I put out. My music hasn't been completely inspirational yet at this point, but I am currently working on building a huge fan base so I can then release songs that actually change lives.
Upcoming 100: Who's on your iTunes playlist?
Difference: My playlist: Drake, Meek Mill, JCole, Mgk, Russ, Wiz Khalifa, Skizzy Mars, Chris Brown
Upcoming 100: The project you are currently promoting, how did the idea for it come about?
Difference: The project I am currently pushing is titled "Get the Work" and the inspiration behind it came from my day to day lifestyle... which involves a lot of business ventures where I "get the work, flip the work" for profit and make enough money to pay for all of my music without a penny of help.
Upcoming 100: There are thousands of artists trying to do what you are doing, what do you think gives you an advantage to break into mainstream America?
Difference: One of the things that separate me from the thousands of other artists is my self-belief. When you venture out and do something different from everyone else, you immediately get judged by the rest of the crowd. It is so easy to listen to the negativity and eventually quit, but the confidence I have in myself is one of a kind and nothing will stop me until I reach my goal. That is a promise.
Upcoming 100: I've heard your latest music and it's amazing! I an definitely tell your sound has evolved over the past few years from previous songs we've heard from you online. What are your thoughts on the evolution of an artist and the evolution of music today?
Difference: Well first of all, thank you for the compliment. Second of all, when it comes to the evolution of an artist it is very different for all of us. I feel like I have evolved throughout the last year as a person and an artist because I have grown to understand my style and my purpose. The day that you really find yourself is the day that your music will transform into something special.
When it comes to the evolution of hip-hop I feel like it has became much more political. Also many artists have completely swayed from the original purpose of music. I feel likfe music is suposed to tell real life stories so that people can relate with it and learn from it, and most rappers don't care about that now a days. They rap about their fame and fortune and most people can't relate to that.
Upcoming 100: Do you have other passions in life? Do you believe passion is an essential part of success?
Difference: I am very passionate about being the right type of person. I take pride in making sure all of my boys and everyone I come in contact knows they are important to me. In today's world, there are so many negative people. And their attitudes have become so contagious throughout every city and every social media platform, but instead I feel like it is our duty to God to spread love and take care of our people in a positive way. So that passion drives me every day and I hope people eventually catch on to that and ride the positive wave with us.
Upcoming 100: With your current success and working with a renowned PR firm such as Starlight PR, what advice would you give to someone just starting out in his or her career who doesn't even have a studio to record but would love to do what you are doing now?
Difference: Well the first thing is first. Save your money every single day, and don't buy things you don't need. Then once you have that money, you can hit a studio and get your track recorded. The most important thing to understand though is that social media isn't the best way to spread your music. You MUST spend the majority of your money on PR companies and label services to push your music to the masses.
Also, the last thing I have to say to the upcoming artists that are reading this... Stick to it, and never let anyone tell you that you can't do it! You can make it in this industry - you just have to stay in it long enough.
Upcoming 100: Where can potential fans find out more about you?
Difference:
Twitter: the_1difference
Instagram: the_1difference
Facebook: @differencetheartist
