by Zack Knoll

Gynarva Monroe was one of the performers in the Hip Hop Collective’s first show this past Thursday at the ‘Sco.

ZK:  How did you get involved in the Hip Hop Collective?
GM: I was contacted by Andrés Feliciano. He explained the vision of the project to me and he asked if I was interested. I was, so that’s how I was exposed. The rest is history.

ZK: Cool. So why did you get involved in the Hip Hop Collective?
GM: Because Oberlin lacks hip-hop, and hip-hop is very important to me for several reasons. And anything geared towards correcting that void, I’m all for it. I was a part of the class that put on “The Word ‘N’ The Beat: Hip-Hop Love Notes” last semester and since then I’ve been trying to find ways of getting real, good hip-hop in Oberlin. This was a way so I was all in.

ZK: Sounds like a good way to get involved, definitely. So do you want to explain to me your creative process when coming up with new tracks?
GM: Ummm, I usually like to have the song that I’m writing to on repeat in order to get a feel for how I should approach it and the things that I should write about. But mainly, I just like to be somewhere quiet with a pen and a notepad. Once a theme comes to mind, everything else falls into place. Honestly, most of my thoughts for songs and lyrics come to mind throughout the day by just living and doing everyday things. I either jot them down or put them in my phone. So, when I actually sit down and have to do a song, it’s more of a matter of seeing what material should be used.

ZK: How successful do you think the first performance was?

GM: The first performance went hard. Most of the people had a good time, had great energy and stayed for the entirety of the show. And I enjoyed being up there and I’m sure the other performers did as well. Those two elements were the main contributors to the success of the show.

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Zach Jamieson is a first-year who joined the collective. Zach is mostly known for his work with fellow performer Daniela Rendon, aka Da Queen. Jamieson played a versatile role in the collective’s first show.

ZK: Hey Zach! So do you want to tell me about how you got involved in the Hip Hop Collective?
ZJ: Andres really got me into it; he’d found out about my interest in music production and told me he wanted me to be apart of this group he was starting.

ZK: So then why did you get involved in the Hip Hop Collective, initially?
ZJ: I got involved because I thought it was an awesome idea; the opportunity to get to collaborate with others is always at the forefront of many artists’ minds, and so this was a great chance to be able to meet all the people on campus who were just as passionate about hip-hop as I am.

ZK: So can you try to explain to me your creative process when coming up with new tracks?
ZJ: Well sometimes I just come up with a melody, either randomly or because I’m inspired by something I hear, and then I pick an instrument I think best suits the melody, and build the song around it. Other times, when I feel like making beats, but I’m not particularly inspired, I just start off by programming drums, or messing around with different sounds on the keyboard. Once I find a sound I like, create a melody from there.

ZK: Sounds complex. Where do you see this Collective going next? How would you like to see it change?
ZJ: As it’s really just beginning, I see a lot of potential for growth. We definitely want to continue to collaborate more with each other, as we didn’t get to do that as much as we would’ve liked for this concert. Also, since this was just recently formed, not all of us have gotten to know everyone well, so that’s something that will come as we all continue working together.

ZK: How successful do you think the first performance was? I’ve only heard good reviews so far.
ZJ: I think everything when really well for the first performance. Of course, as this was the first time many of us had performed together, or at all, it wasn’t as smooth as it could have been, but everyone really supported each other and did what was necessary to make it a success. As we continue to perform and work together, I feel as if the performance aspect will definitely improve.

ZK: Great! So how can Oberlin’s next big rap star get involved in the Hip Hop Collective and what kind of talent are you looking for?
ZJ: Anyone who’s interested in hip hop music and enjoys performing, collaborating, rapping, and/or just making music is welcome.

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Samantha Brown is a first-year involved in the Collective. She mostly worked on the dance portion of the show.

ZK: Hey Sam! So do you want to tell me about how you got involved in the Hip Hop Collective?
SB: I’m a member of Hip Hop 101, the “club” that works to bring different hip hop acts to campus, and Andres, the man with the plan, brought up the idea of a concert for a collective of Oberlin’s own hip hop artists (producers and lyricists) at one of our meetings and I was all over getting involved, especially to incorporate the dance scene into the mix.

ZK: Great. It sounds like Hip Hop was already a big part of your life, but why did you join the Collective, initially?
SB: I got involved in the collective because I wanted to represent hip-hop dance; I feel it is underrepresented on campus. Hip-hop culture is also a big part of my life coming from Miami where the dance scene is huge, and no lie-  it also saved my life.

ZK: That sounds like a pretty legitimate reason. How about next? Where do you see this Collective going after this performance? How would you like to see it change?
SB: I see this collective growing to incorporate more members but honestly I wouldn’t change it anyway. We are like a family that supports each other’s art.

ZK: How successful do you think the first performance was? I’ve only heard good reviews so far.
SB:  So successful! I think we did lose audience members because of the length of the show, but the energy throughout was great.

ZK: Great! So how can Oberlin’s next big rap star get involved in the Hip Hop Collective and what kind of talent are you looking for?
SB: Contact me, Brannon Rockwell-Charland, or Andres Feliciano…we’re looking for lyricists, producers, emcees, beatmakers, singers, rappers, and dancers!

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Daniela Rendon – better known by her stage name Da Queen – is another first-year in the Collective whose songs went viral during the fall semester. Da Queen is no newbie to the stage and has previously performed her sick tracks at the ‘Sco.

ZK: Hey Daniela! So why don’t you tell me about how you got involved in the Hip-Hop Collective?
DR: Andres Feliciano, the creator of the Collective, talked to me about it some time ago, before it even came into existence, and invited me to join a Google doc and write a bio about myself (as Da Queen and a rapper). This was around Winter Term of this year and ever since I wrote that bio, I’ve been a part of this group.

ZK: Great. So why did you get involved in the Hip Hop Collective?
DR: I entered the Collective because I wanted to meet and immerse myself in Oberlin’s hip-hop community. I’m new to Oberlin and the hip-hop scene so I haven’t really interacted with all that many people.  I knew that there was other rappers and producers out there but I didn’t know how to meet them. The Collective allowed me to join them and create something magical together, not just individually, which I’ve already tried.

ZK: Walk me through your creation process a bit.
DR: This is kind of hard to explain since my first two tracks were kind of straight-forward (one was about fellatio and the other about vaginal pleasure). When thinking of lyrics, I just wrote what came to mind. If it sounded witty, funny or nasty to me, I let it stay in the song. However, both songs were deeply inspired by two of my favorite women in the industy, Nicki Minaj and Lady Gaga. I wouldn’t say that my style or lyrics are directly linked to them, but their outlandishness and unique style affected me greatly.

ZK: Gotcha. Sounds like you’re drawing from a wide range of inspirational people. Where do you see this Collective going next? How would you like to see it change?
DR: Episode 2. Obviously. Now that we’ve made our mark on Oberlin, creating a space for people to perform hip-hop music, there really isn’t anything stopping us now. The only change I really want to see are more faces and styles in the Collective. I also want to see some rappers work with people they would never match with. We all did our own thing in Episode 1. Now I want us to do the opposite.

ZK: That sounds like it would change things up a bit, yeah. How successful do you think the first performance was?
DR: We did what we wanted to and more; it was extremely successful. People who would have never heard me before now know what I bring to the stage and to hip-hop. This goes for everyone else in the Collective. We wanted people to see and appreciate the amazing things the Collective could do. After seeing the response from the crowd, I knew we did our job well.

ZK: Great. Well, I know a lot of people are interested in getting involved. How can you get involved in the Hip Hop Collective and what kind of talent are you looking for?
DR: The Collective is looking for any Hip Hop talent that is out there. If you make beats, spit, dance, sing or whatever, WE WANT YOU! If you want to get more involved then email Andres Feliciano (afelicia@oberlin.edu) and talk to him what you think you can bring to the Collective. He’ll let you know from there but if you’re good at what you do, then joining isn’t even an issue.

ZK: Cool. I think that’s it, Da Queen! Thanks so much for the royal interview.
DR: Thanks Zack!