GRID (Grass Roost Indie Development) Series Geelong is designed to bridge the gap between emerging artists and the music industry. The program, supported by the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria, saw five emerging artists each produce a track, with mentoring help from a team of producers, engineers, songwriters and industry experts. One of the program’s participants is Baraka The Kid, a Geelong afropop and hip-hop fusion performer.
How did you get into music?
I first got into music at a very young age, coming from a family full of very creative people. My mother used to sing in choir and so growing up, we attended church a lot and we were very involved in a lot of activities, including singing.
When I was 15 years of age, I begin to notice that music just came easy to me (more) than most things, and so I decided to make it my main focus. Plus, there is a saying that I live by: “If you go after your passion, you will always have peace in your heart”.
How did you get involved in the GRID Series?
I was very hesitant to apply until I received a number of calls from different people, who it seems I left a good impression on, who thought of me when the opportunity came along. A few weeks later I met up with Ariel Blum, the organiser of the GRID Series and we had a great conversation over an afternoon tea. It’s funny because at the time we didn’t talk much about the GRID Series but more so just the music scene in Geelong and what it was missing but also what direction the music industry is currently heading towards and how it is becoming easier, but also challenging for an independent artist to break through into the industry. The rest was history, and now we’re here.
Who was your mentor and how did you work together?
When you’re in a room full of great minds, I don’t think you can choose one mentor. Everyone who was a part of the program has had an impact of my life in one way or another. From the likes of Claire Moony, Jerry Poon, Rich Moffat, Monique Matosic, Ariel Blum and Joel Ma, I have learned and gained so much more wisdom from each and every one of those individuals. Gaining the opportunity to work with Joel Ma in the studio for the creation of my track was incredible, just to see him creating the track and implementing every little detail was so eye-opening.
Tell us about your single All My Life – where did the inspiration come from?
All My Life is a heartfelt song that takes listeners on a journey through my upbringing and my sincere appreciation for my mother’s unwavering love and protection. It’s an introspective song that I could have only written now that I can truly reflect and appreciate the sacrifices she made for me to have the opportunities she never had. All My Life is a song I wrote to show my appreciation for her love, and to let her know that it’s now my turn to protect her.
There are parts on the song where I switch between English and Swahili to showcase both sides of my life – one side is my heritage and birthright and the other is the language of the people who accepted me into the communities. When I started working with Joelistics (Joel Ma), we just sat and shared stories about each other's culture. This made me dig deeper and go back home to ask my mother questions. She became the inspiration for ‘All My Life’, and even helped me write the sections in Swahili.
What’s next for you?
I would like to think that it’s time for me to take it back to my roots to start expressing a lot more of my culture with my music - not that it hasn’t been a part of my music before but it’s something I would like to prioritise now. Currently I am working on an Afro pop, Afrobeat EP that will fuse hip-hop, pop and R&B together to create a different type of energy.
Find out more about the GRID Series Geelong participants here.