WYCH HAZLE
MICROPHONOLOGY 2 sees WYCH HAZLE expanding his visionary blend of sharp lyricism, Afrofuturist themes, and cinematic storytelling. In this interview, he discusses creativity, collaboration, cultural influences, and the album’s ambitious artistic journey.
1. MICROPHONOLOGY 2 arrives after the strong reception of the original mixtape. How did the success of tracks like WISE MAN, NEW WORD ORDER, and PENCRAFT SIGHTING influence the direction and creative ambition of this new album?
The inspiration for the mixtape came from my excitement at the amount of dope underground albums that came out this year. Overall, I feel that set the tone for exploring topics that I wanted to touch on. Ageism in Hip Hop inspired me to write WISE MAN. Older artists are killing it right now. I enjoy them much more lyrically and most times aesthetically. I think NEW WORD ORDER with Mr. Ripley of Rulerz Inc, got the best reception from the grassroots listeners. I plan to do more with them soon.
2. Your music is often described as a blend of Hip Hop intellect, cosmic noir, and Chicago-born storytelling. How do these different influences come together when you’re building a song or developing a narrative?
I honestly just put the pen to paper and vibe to whatever soundscape lights me up. The books I read, scientific things I ponder, my life experiences, and my fascination with what lies behind the curtain just spill into my expression.
I get an idea, come up with a hook, or theme, then go in til it’s done. And,…til it sounds good to me and whoever I’m working with.
3. The collaboration with Watkinz Da General brings a futuristic sonic edge to the project. What was the creative chemistry between you two, and how did his production help shape the world of MICROPHONOLOGY 2?
The first project me and Watkinz did together was MICROPHONOLOGY. I did it with him shortly after dropping DRAMA FICTION 2, which was a serious album on some real life and political shit.
I wanted to get back to just emceeing at a more galactic level. I created an inner superhero for that one. He’s on the cover. A combo of me and Watkinz coming from a dimension where Boom Bap is used to communicate high ideas and deep concepts for building the future.
MICROPHONOLOGY 2 is a continuation of the experimentation and exploration into my different styles and perspectives within my bars. Some braggadocio, but all laced with intriguing references and a nod to black futurism.
4. The album references Dr. James West’s legacy of Black technological innovation. What does that connection mean to you, and how does Afrofuturism inform your approach to music and storytelling?
His story and his invention, is supremely inspiring to me as not just a Hip Hopper, but as a black intelligectual who has been misunderstood, understated, and not properly celebrated for such an AMAZING invention.
MICROPHONOLOGY 2 is amazing Hip Hop. There is something on it for everyone if they hold tight. Street rhymes, concepts, stories, speculative poetry, and more. The same with the mixtape.
5. Beyond music, your work spans poetry, fiction, and visual storytelling through platforms like Wattpad and BLKWIZFLIX. How do these different creative outlets influence one another, and what does each medium allow you to express that the others cannot?
I was a writer before a rapper. My father is author Charles Pugh. I grew up writing short stories in the 80s, mostly horror and Sci Fi because I was a nerd. Once rap came, I needed to know more about the streets…, so I got into Donald Goines, Iceberg Slim, all contemporaries of my Pops, and started kind of blending the two. As a child, I was read Chester Himes stories and ROOTS by Alex Haley. All these readings play a part in the formation of my style and the topics I choose.
I cannot do what I do with scripts, stories, and essays as effectively in just Rap. I strive to, but then lose listeners getting waaaay to detailed over beats without something light in there.
Soon a lot of the stories, which I encourage all Urban and Hip Hop heads to read, will be movies, and or episodes. Keep an eye out for that. BLKWIZFLIX is not your normal, so you definitely won’t see anything like them anywhere else.
6. MICROPHONOLOGY 2 feels both deeply personal and highly cinematic. What do you hope listeners take away from the album after experiencing the full 10-track journey from beginning to end?
First off, I hope they enjoy the sound, the flows, and the places I try to take them with words, melodies, beat breaks, and cadences. I want my range to be seen. A lot of underground Hip Hop coming out now is drug related, or crime heavy. I go in a different direction here, only one cautionary street tale about how violence festers in those raised in violence,…how it comes out when the are triggered.
I want to see more balance in underground rap.
I also want to see more Hip Hop movies. Not about Hip Hop. Just Hip Hop because that’s the culture the characters come from.
Respect the culture.