Shaquille Links Introduces Us to “Sky Trap”
“If I Hurt You, I’m Sorry” is a 5 song EP considered to be Shaquille Links’ debut project. The themes surrounding the EP tackle the elements of love and lust, the struggle between his mind and heart, and most importantly his growth as a person.
Shaquille better known as “Links” has a long history with music. His love for music started at a young age and since then he hasn’t looked back since. Music was always a career he wanted to follow even when it wasn’t the most popular career choice at the time.
Links recalls seeing AKA release Run Jozi and the buzz around the song growing up. “People need to remember that South African hip-hop wasn’t as popular as it is now. Around 2014 there were guys like AKA, KO, Emtee, and Da Les who were truly flying the flag for hip-hop here in South Africa nobody my age thought that being a rapper was cool at the time but these guys showed that it was possible.”
After leaving school in 2018, Cape Audio College was where Shaquille would ultimately come into his own musically. The creative environment that was generated by everyone in his class inspired him to lock in and focus on crafting a sound that he could call his own.
Studying sound engineering at Cape Audio College helped in the long run, especially with the creative process behind his debut ep “If I hurt you, I’m sorry”. With Shaquille being a sound engineer by trade he pays very close attention to the difference between how his music sounds through headphones and speakers. “When creating music, you always have to keep the listener in mind. I always ponder on the listeners’ experience because I’m so accustomed to creating assignments for college that is sonically pleasing, I just have to carry that over into my music as well.”
The release of his debut project titled “If I hurt you, I’m sorry” will signal a new era in South Africa hip-hop. Shaquille has never been one to follow trends. Although he is extremely grateful for what trap has done for hip-hop as a whole he does believe that a change is needed. “These days everyone sounds the same, whatever is trending right now artists want to gravitate towards. With that type of mentality, the music scene gets flooded and listeners become bored of the sound quickly. When I say my release is different I meant it. It’s a genre on its own. I call it Sky trap.”
For more on Shaquille’s creative process and so much more, read our interview below:
This interview has been lightly edited for the purpose of clarity and context.
Daniel: Since 2014 South African hip-hop has come a long way and evolved so much, when did you first pick up that you wanted to do music?
Shaquille: It started way before that. I had a Grade R orientation day, where we would come dressed up as what we wanted to be one day. I remember that I took a photo of Pharrell Williams and had this cut-out board that said the sound engineer. I wanted to be a sound engineer.
Wait at such a young age how did you know what a sound engineer was?
Well, I use to watch videos of American producers like J Dilla and Pharrell cook upbeats in the studio and instantly fell in love with the idea of being a sound engineer. It even got to a point where I started watching videos from the Neptunes too! Pure euphoria!
What made you want to become an artist?
I saw Chris Brown’s burn it down music video. I was so fascinated by the way he was dancing and essentially the way he performed that I wanted to become this great entertainer myself. One day I want people to see my music and feel the same way I did when I saw burn it down.
So, you leave high school in 2018, to become a sound engineer the following year, how was that experience for you?
I matriculated in 2018 and started at Cape Audio in 2019. I came to Cape Audio with bags of enthusiasm and was greeted with the same energy by my peers. I knew a few people already like Kashcpt so settling in wasn’t a problem at all. The energy was just amazing, everybody was there for the right reasons-the love of sound and music.
What were the studio sessions like?
It was a very family-based environment. We all loved music. Before we’d record anything we would normally first go outside and “prepare”. Maybe do a few freestyle sessions just to catch a proper vibe before we hit the studio. Honestly being around so many creative people our lunch breaks even turned into cypher sessions. So all the energy that was created outside the studio environment we would take into the actual studio and create magic.
Listening to the ep, I was taken away by your sound. I wasn’t expecting to hear that type of RnB from you, do you take any inspiration from Travis Scott sonically?
Sonically I have many inspirations. My range is crazy. I’ve been loving music from people like Aretha Franklin, Michael Bublé, and Josh Groban. I just admire how powerful their respective vocals are. Making music is more than just creating it and putting it out. You are selling a show. It doesn’t matter if you’re recording in the booth or doing a performance, you are still selling a show. I do take inspiration from Travis Scott though. Like I have my own melodies and flows but the inspiration from Travis is there.
How would you describe the Cape Town music scene?
The Cape Town music scene is so small. There is a wide range of artists but everyone knows each other. Artists have this tendency to want everyone to run up their streams, comment under their posts and share their work but when it’s time to return the favour it just doesn’t get done. That’s the problem I have.
Being involved in the music industry at such a young age, how mature must you be mentally?
There is so much that can happen. My music first started being covered by publications when I was 16 years old. At the time I knew nothing about music, I could have gotten lost in the sauce and let everything get to my head. If I think about it, I could have even dropped out. In this industry, you need to get up early, do things for people it’s a very demanding industry. So if you aren’t prepared it can consume you and eat you alive. So you need to be very mature
Talk to me about the process of making If I hurt you, I’m sorry
It’s a funny story. I’m not sure if you’re going to believe me but I didn’t write any of my lyrics off the ep (ask anyone who has been in the studio with me I don’t write lyrics). I don’t like the idea of typing out something then recording it. To me, that isn’t organic. I would rather feel something and then project it immediately into the mic. It’s all real experiences and emotions.
Experiences can be good or bad, would you say that from bad experiences you make your best music?
Yeah, I would say that. The project itself is based on bad experiences that I’ve grown from. I’m a very sad person in a sense. I take life seriously because I know it’s not all fun and games. I know what it’s like to struggle. My life hasn’t always been ideal to me but I’m making the best out of it with the help of music.
Just by mentioning that life hasn’t always been ideal to you. That puts the whole project into perspective. Listening to How to fly, in my mind you aren’t supposed to sound that good (yet). But life made you mature quickly and in the music that happened too. Define your next release?
With this release, I’m going to be introducing a genre that my friends call “sky trap”. Sonically my music is going to take people on this journey that will make them feel like they’re in space. The delay, the reverb, and the echoes. It really takes you to another place. I can’t wait for people to experience it.
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