The year 2020 was difficult. Despite its many challenges, remarkably skillful Hip Hop artist O-Slice made the most of it.
A wordsmith with unlimited energy, the DMV sensation captivates audiences. We had the privilege of watching O-Slice transform a small freestyle cypher into a raucous crowd outside Loudermilk Center during A3C Festival & Conference a few years ago.
With acclaim from Okayplayer.com and others, plus hits “Go”, “10Toes”, “Far From Over” and “Get It Correct” to her credit, O-Slice will never, ever, ever back down from her destiny of greatness.
O-Slice shared some of her time with us by answering THIS questionnaire about her life in 2020 and what to expect from her in 2021.
How would you summarize 2020?
2020 was unbelievable, it was crazy, it was wild, it was frightening, it was hard. It was devastating, it was inspiring, it was wild.
I feel like wild is the best word to describe 2002. It was also exhausting, but I feel like wild is the most all-encompassing word.
Which of your blessings would you say was the biggest?
I would say just making it through 2020.
I was very thankful when [the] new year came along because a lot of people didn’t make it through that year. So, to make it through that year with my friends and family, it really just felt like a blessing. It felt like I was favored, so I feel like that’s the biggest blessing.
Did you read any good books that you would recommend to others?
There was a book by Kawan Glover called Favor: How Stroke Struggle and Surgery Helped Me Find Life’s Purpose.
What was the best song of the year?
That’s a great question. I’m not sure if I have any one song personally because I liked a lot of music last year.
So, funny enough, one of my favorite songs from 2020 was “Can’t Decide” by Amine. So, “Can’t Decide”, “Slow Down” by 20nvr ft. O-Slice, “Clear” by Ayo Temi and Simi Liadi, “Floatin’” by Manny Wellz.
It was a lot of good music. I can’t really pick one.
What were the movies or television shows that you couldn’t stop watching?
There was a lot of music and television I couldn’t stop watching.
I feel like I’ve watched the most TV this year. I literally just finished watching Fleabag on Amazon Prime, and before that I was watching Bridgerton on Netflix, and then I was watching The Crown on Netflix as well.
There’s been a lot of television I’ve watched.
Who were the artists you listened to the most?
Same as usual; DMV artists, anybody from this area.
I listened to Brent Faiyaz last year.
I listened to Mannywellz last year, Matt McGhee, 20NVR, and I’ve been listening to myself a lot – my unreleased work.
What did you Google the most?
I feel like I Googled the Care Act. Honestly, just learning what was going into the bills that were being passed in order to help the pandemic.
Honestly, probably Coronavirus. Anything Covid related, honestly.
Tell us the most surprising thing you heard all year.
Joe Biden winning the election. I hoped that he would. But honestly the way 2020 was going, it could have easily gone another way. That and Kobe Bryant’s passing were really shocking.
Where were you when you learned about COVID-19 and how did you respond?
I don’t remember where I was when I first heard about it, but I was paying attention when it was spreading through Asia because I was planning to travel.
I was apprehensive and nervous because I wanted to go over there for the first time and it just seemed the timing was terrible. So, I kind of kept an eye on it even before it hit the United States.
How were you helped and hurt by the pandemic?
I was helped by… I don’t know. I guess just having to analyze, adjust and then pivot, and continuously doing that all year. Just being innovative, having to think quickly on my feet, having to convert things.
Also, just being less apprehensive to release things. It created a sense of urgency with me and my art where it’s like, things I would normally sit on I’m really going to be releasing all this year. So, I think that’s helpful.
And it helped me get stronger within my team. My team had a lot more free time because they didn’t have to go to their day jobs, physically. So, they had more time to dedicate to what we’re trying to accomplish over here.
I was hurt like everybody else was hurt. You know, I lost a loved one, I was sad for a lot of the year, especially in the summer with everything going on. I haven’t been able to perform. I feel like my first year being a full-time artist, I was robbed of that experience and just being out and trying to figure out.
I mean I still had to figure it out but getting to really experience that in full capacity with the DC venues, the Maryland venues, and performing and just like having a really, big breakout year.
My first year as a full-time artist looked very different from what I could have anticipated and I’m happy I stayed afloat. It’s just different.
Did you vote?
Yes, I voted. The stakes were too high to not vote, personally.
Did 2020 cause you to value your life and the lives of others more than you did already?
I think I always placed a high value on my life and others. I think I’ve always been one of those “don’t hold a grudge because you never know”. I’ve always tried to value life to the highest capacity and not take it for granted, so I don’t think that it necessarily changed that.
I think maybe it made the other outcome feel a little more realistic, because it’s like people are really dying. I think that last year kind of made me really understand death and how final and how real it is. Sometimes you look at it from a far but I feel like, especially with a lot of the celebrities that passed it, just felt like … We always knew that death could happen to anybody but when you see people just being snatched from life it’s like, wow.
It just shook me a little bit harder this year, not a little, like a lot harder in 2020. And I think that it also kind of made me put more value in my actions, and how responsible I am for them.
For example: With the way Covid moves, it’s like if you do something, you put yourself at risk. You might be okay with doing that but you’re not okay with putting yourself at risk and your friend at risk, or yourself at risk and your family at risk. You just kind of have to take more accountability.
So, I think that it made me understand that the things that I do and the sacrifices I have to make are not just for me, but for those around me and the people that I love.
What can we expect from you here in 2021?
In 2021 you can expect just more art. You can expect to see me more. I feel like in 2020 I was in and out of view, primarily because I didn’t want to be in view. I just felt like when I had something to release, I popped out. And even then sometimes I held onto releases because it just didn’t feel right. I didn’t feel right.
There were so many things going on in 2020. The world was unbalanced. I feel like now, I’m kinda getting my footing back and I think the world is trying to rebound from last year.
I think from this year you can expect me to be more present. More visible. But most importantly more art. And that’s it. Thank you for having me! |THIS.
[By Mr. Joe Walker]
[Editor’s Note: You’re welcome, O-Slice.]
