BAS - A Man of the People
When this New York rapper reached new heights, he was lucky enough to have people around to keep him grounded.
Sunken on the leather sofa of his dressing room, Bas basks in the fleeting moments of downtime he has before addressing an overflowing crowd in Toronto. Flanked by his extended family and friends, including his brother and tour DJ, Moma, Bas is as at ease in this city as he would be in his native Queens. Or Paris. Or Sudan.
“The running joke on tour is that everywhere we go, I have cousins,” Bas clarifies. “They help out.” It’s a unique luxury that he can afford. A rapper on the rise usually travels with a lot of company: friends from the old neighborhood, new “advisors” and female fan corrallers. Bas, on the other hand, rolls with family and fellow members of the Fiends crew, an artistic collective with branches stationed globally. They’ve helped foster Bas’ growth, and Bas in turn has stayed rooted to his values and not the trappings of the whirlwind rap lifestyle.
Bas has seen his fair share of the more decadent side of hip hop since being signed to superstar rapper J. Cole’s imprint Dreamville Records. He released his debut album Last Winter in 2014. Usually this would be a defining moment in a musician’s career, but Bas sees it as part of a continuum.
“I don’t feel like I got to make this one first album that tells my whole life story,” he explains. Last Winter encapsulated a special moment in time for Bas: the days leading up to signing to Dreamville and being propelled to worldwide fame. Rather than view it as an exalted moment, Bas feels it’s a mere chapter in the great saga that is life. “The day I turned in Last Winter, I started working on the next joint. I feel it’s one continuous story that I’m gonna keep breaking up as time allows.”
Speaking to Bas, you immediately observe a calmness in him. He’s aware of how his life appears on paper but knows there are more pressing matters to tend to. His music mirrors this ethos as well. Tracks like “Mook In New Mexico” is a call to his listeners to “be alert.” “Put your young ass in debt/Now they got hands on your cheque,” he raps, breaking down the common foolish habits of youth.
These are words that a young person might gloss over if it was their parents droning at them. From their favorite rapper, though? Bas hopes the message gets across. “I have more serious intentions I’d like to use my words for. Meeting fans and having them tell you, ‘this touched me in this way or that,’ you really start to understand the power that you have. It makes me put much more thought and effort into the content.”
But don’t let him get too preachy. At the end of the day, Bas just wants to hang out with his people, new and old. And he has no problem going to them to share a moment. “Me and the Fiends will mob through a festival and meet fans and take pictures,” he explains. Breaking the encasement of celebrity is important to him. “The fans are literally the lifeline so the least you could do is build with them. I don’t know why more people don’t do it.”
Whatever degree of success Bas achieves through the music, maintaining his authenticity is his top priority. “The more your true character shines through in your artistry, the more you connect with the fans. They’re not dumb. They see what’s genuine and what’s not. I’m just trying to be myself in the music.”
Last Winter is available now on Dreamville/Interscope Records.
Sunken on the leather sofa of his dressing room, Bas basks in the fleeting moments of downtime he has before addressing an overflowing crowd in Toronto. Flanked by his extended family and friends, including his brother and tour DJ, Moma, Bas is as at ease in this city as he would be in his native Queens. Or Paris. Or Sudan.
"The running joke on tour is that everywhere we go, I have cousins,” Bas clarifies. “They help out." It's a unique luxury that he can afford. A rapper on the rise usually travels with a lot of company: friends from the old neighborhood, new "advisors" and female fan corrallers. Bas, on the other hand, rolls with family and fellow members of the Fiends crew, an artistic collective with branches stationed globally. They've helped foster Bas' growth, and Bas in turn has stayed rooted to his values and not the trappings of the whirlwind rap lifestyle.
Bas has seen his fair share of the more decadent side of hip hop since being signed to superstar rapper J. Cole’s imprint Dreamville Records. He released his debut album Last Winter in 2014. Usually this would be a defining moment in a musician's career, but Bas sees it as part of a continuum.
"I don't feel like I got to make this one first album that tells my whole life story," he explains. Last Winter encapsulated a special moment in time for Bas: the days leading up to signing to Dreamville and being propelled to worldwide fame. Rather than view it as an exalted moment, Bas feels it's a mere chapter in the great saga that is life. "The day I turned in Last Winter, I started working on the next joint. I feel it's one continuous story that I'm gonna keep breaking up as time allows."
Speaking to Bas, you immediately observe a calmness in him. He's aware of how his life appears on paper but knows there are more pressing matters to tend to. His music mirrors this ethos as well. Tracks like "Mook In New Mexico" is a call to his listeners to "be alert." "Put your young ass in debt/Now they got hands on your cheque," he raps, breaking down the common foolish habits of youth.
These are words that a young person might gloss over if it was their parents droning at them. From their favorite rapper, though? Bas hopes the message gets across. "I have more serious intentions I'd like to use my words for. Meeting fans and having them tell you, ‘this touched me in this way or that,’ you really start to understand the power that you have. It makes me put much more thought and effort into the content."
But don’t let him get too preachy. At the end of the day, Bas just wants to hang out with his people, new and old. And he has no problem going to them to share a moment. "Me and the Fiends will mob through a festival and meet fans and take pictures," he explains. Breaking the encasement of celebrity is important to him. "The fans are literally the lifeline so the least you could do is build with them. I don't know why more people don't do it."
Whatever degree of success Bas achieves through the music, maintaining his authenticity is his top priority. "The more your true character shines through in your artistry, the more you connect with the fans. They're not dumb. They see what's genuine and what's not. I'm just trying to be myself in the music."
Last Winter is available now on Dreamville/Interscope Records.