Saba on making art out of grief

December 5th 2018

  • Saba :: Interview on Arvos with Tanya Ali

Chicago rapper Saba is in town kicking off his massive international tour and dropped by the studio this week for a chat on Arvos with Tanya Ali.

Saba’s critically acclaimed ‘Care for Me’ was an Album of the Week in April. ‘Care for Me’ is a manifestation of art from grief, with the death of Saba’s cousin and close friend Walter Long Jr being central in the creation of the record. In mining such intensely personal subject matter Saba has found that the more honest he is with his own life and experiences, the more people connect.

“I’m rapping about my family and the street that I grew up on and my cousin and all of these things that just happened to me but it seems like people get a feel for who you are and they see themselves in your stories”

His home city of Chicago is a major part of Saba’s identity and music. Considering the wealth of hip hop artists the city has produced (Chance the Rapper, Noname, Common, Lupe Fiasco, Kanye) Saba says Chicago’s music reflects the city’s wider art scene and the lives of the young people who live there.

“Everyone from Chicago takes so much pride in the city but at the same time so many young people are grieving in Chicago. We’re put in positions where we grow up so much faster just because of where we’re from”

Check out the full interview up top to hear Saba discuss the different sound of his newly released stand alone singles, South Side vs West Side Chicago, his experience as an unsigned independent artist, and his plans for 2019.

Listen in to Arvos with Tanya Ali every Monday from 3pm.

Contributor

Read more from Danni Stewart