Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with BigTreeSteve

BigTreeSteve is a quadruple threat who should be on everybody’s radar. The emerging artist raps, sings, produces, and writes, and is creating a vibe through his music. Using his craft to shine light on the world, BigTreeSteve is a confident storyteller who knows exactly who he is. Pop Culturalist caught up with BigTreeSteve for an in-depth conversation.

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
BigTreeSteve: I’ve been surrounded by music ever since I was a toddler. My parents played all kinds of music in the house like reggae, hip-hop, funk, and rock. My grandfather was a big jazz and soul guy.

I started playing instruments when I was about eight years old, and I was active in youth orchestras and bands and all that. It was my first love, and I knew I wanted to be making my own music, even back then.

But when I turned twelve, I learned about production and making beats, so I started messing around with software on my family computer. A couple years later, I had a friend in school who rapped and we formed a little group. It was terrible, not gonna lie. But one day, he encouraged me to start rapping and I said “why not?” The rest is history.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
BigTreeSteve: I like to grab small pieces of everything I listen to and make it my own—different styles, genres, and sounds—and just add it all together. Nine times out of ten, the product is something hella unique and beautiful. I take a lot of influences from ’90s R&B and pop as well as elements from electronic music from the ’00s. Like I said before, I’m also an instrumentalist. I learned a lot about tone and breath from playing brass. So I take that and incorporate it into my voice when singing.

PC: What is your creative process like when you’re working on a song? Has it changed over the years?
BigTreeSteve: I’ve been rapping for almost five years. As my sound has grown and matured, I found new and different processes to write more efficiently. A lot of the time, I start with a melody. Just singing random gibberish. [laughs] Once I have something that sounds good, I just start freestyling. Eventually that turns into structured bars with a consistent topic, you know? I used to sit down and write a whole song with a hook and multiple verses and then try and find a cadence, but this way I feel way more attached to the melody and how it’s performed. This method is how a lot of my most popular songs came to be.

PC: Tell us about your new single, “Litty.” What was the inspiration behind the single?
BigTreeSteve: “Litty” is a song that holds a mixture of emotions for me. I made this song a couple days after one of my friends had passed. He was a positive guy. I knew he wouldn’t want everybody to just be sad, so I paid my respects in the hook and kept the energy high and up-tempo. “Litty” is really about just doing what you love and living life the way you deserve. I talk about real life stuff like how I fear being racially profiled and killed by law enforcement more than I fear getting into some beef with randoms or haters, and even past relationships with women. Kinda just me being transparent like “this is what’s going on in the world right now.”

PC: If you had to choose one song that best encompasses who you are as an artist, what would it be and why?
BigTreeSteve: Probably “Gotta Go!” It really showcases my signature sound and the vibe is perfect. I sat on this song for like six months because I wanted to make sure it sounded the way I wanted. I experimented a lot with it and made three versions, all pretty different. I ended up mixing them all together and boom: certified slapper.

PC: As we look ahead to the rest of 2020, what does the year hold for you?
BigTreeSteve: We got lots of new music on the way! Stepping into new genres, working with a couple big artists, and more merch coming out soon too. I’m going to be hitting every outlet of media with content, so buckle up.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
BigTreeSteve: Carlos Santana or 112. Deptford Goth too.

PC: First album you bought?
BigTreeSteve: Views by Drake.

PC: First concert you attended?
BigTreeSteve: I saw Lecrae perform in SF when I was in sixth grade.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
BigTreeSteve: Blonde by Frank Ocean. A beautiful-ass album. It made me open up emotionally.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
BigTreeSteve: SOB’s in New York.

PC: A must-have on the road?
BigTreeSteve: My Nintendo Switch. They just dropped that Mario 3D All-Stars bundle.

To keep up with BigTreeSteve, follow him on Instagram and Spotify. Pick up or stream “Litty” today.