WORDSPJ Some
CREDITS
Creative Director - Derrick Odafi
Producer - Hassan Gazali
Photographer - Finn Waring
Photographer Assistant - Cordelia Bagley
Stylist - Ignacio de Tiedra
Stylist Assistant - Khem Memphis Sharu
Art Director - Shania-Mae Wright
MUA - Sam Lascelle
Hairstylist - Lauraine Bailey
Gaffer - Joe Nkadi
Video - Tim Nathan & Daniel Kelly
BTS - Anthony Namba
Creative Assistant - Shorayi Mauluka
Production Assistants - Jennifer Onwuta, Ana Bia, Nabra Badr
Creative Production - New Wave Studios
NW: Hi BK, we would love to start by asking how you are right now?
BK: I am in a growing state. I’m honestly just observing, and just working on my album, I think I’m just ready for new stuff to come out. So this is also exciting. Like for me to be a part of this too. You know what I mean?
NW: Yes of course, who is Bktherula and how has she helped Brooklyn Rodriguez?
BK: I would say that who I am and as an artist are very similar. I feel like Bktherula helps me in a sense of just remembering that. I guess I am who I am, and not in a prideful way. If I can envision it, I would see BK talking to me, and I’m sitting down or sad about something, and then she would just come to me and be like, ‘Yo, what are you doing?’ And I’d say, ‘What do you mean?’, then she shows me the life that I have, and the things that I’ve done, and then I’m like,’ oh, yeah, forgot.’ I would have to get up again and shake off whatever is trying to keep me in this cave of emotions.
NW: Yes, to sharpen your mental state, and helps you thrive on that side.
BK: Yes!
NW: Being an Atlanta native, how has that place influenced you, not only as an artist but as an individual?
BK: I was actually just talking to my friends about this yesterday. I honestly don’t think I could have done it anywhere else other than Atlanta. I’ve grown up with my videographer, my engineer. He’s engineered every single song that I have and I grew up with them since I was 15. We just did a lot of stuff, we went to underground shows where they were playing my music and I couldn’t have done it without them. I also couldn’t have done it without being here in Atlanta, I felt the energy here, the culture here, everything has morphed me into being who I am today. I’m recording my album in Atlanta with the same guys once again so it’s just like the cycle repeats itself here all the time.
Bktherula Completes LVL 5 On Her Mission To World Domination.
We delve deep into Bktherula’s world, exploring the connection between video games, her toy collection, and her extraordinary rise in the music industry. Our editorial shoot, inspired by the fantastical worlds she cherished in her gaming adventures, encapsulates the essence of her artistry. It’s a visual journey that bridges the gap between the digital and the tangible, showcasing the multifaceted talent of this Atlanta star girl.
We peel back the layers of Bktherula’s creativity, from her childhood love for video games to her present-day status as a musical powerhouse. Discovering the evolution of an artist whose commitment to authenticity and innovation continues to captivate audiences worldwide. Bktherula’s story is one of inspiration, passion, and unbridled creativity – a testament to the boundless possibilities that arise when we embrace the intersection of our passions and let our artistic visions run wild.
Bktherula’s artistic choices have always been daring. She doesn’t follow trends; instead, she forges her own path. Her audacity to venture where others hesitate has made her a unique voice in the industry. It’s this unapologetic individualism that has won her a dedicated following. In Bktherula’s universe, there are no Levels 1 and 2. We dive straight into the third dimension. “LVL5” alludes to the levels that came before, presumably Levels 3 and 4, which have profoundly shaped her perception and her music.
It’s a testament to her commitment to pushing boundaries and striving for excellence, unburdened by conventions.
WORDS Derrick Odafi
"I also couldn’t have done it without being here in Atlanta, I felt the energy here, the culture here, everything has morphed me into being who I am today."
Full Look , LEO PROTHMANN
Silver Chocker, CHANEL
NW: Are there any specific places that are emotionally connected to you in Atlanta?
BK: My engineer’s studio for sure. There’s a lot of different things that happen, different events etc. I like this one tattoo shop. I used to go all the time. And yeah, I would honestly just say the entirety of the city, Midtown, by Lenox mall and shit like that.
NW: What was on your individual playlists growing up?
BK: As a kid growing up, whenever I first started getting into music, it was actually a lot of dubstep. It was a lot of Datsik and Defiance. And, some Skrillex in there. I was listening to a lot of old school, hip hop, because that’s what my dad was listening to. I started getting into the alternatives and stuff like that. And then I started getting into the underground. It ranges from a lot of different places. I was listening to a lot of dubstep, like, all the time, all day, every day. That was like back in the Nintendo DS days, where they had the little notes and stuff.
NW: When did you discover dubstep? Where did that come from?
BK: It was definitely YouTube, watching my favourites. I used to watch a lot of gamers back then. I would watch a couple gamers and their intros. They will have their name floating or something. Usually the songs that are playing behind those intros would be dubstep songs. And I’m like, ‘yo, what is the song’, or even on the DS, whenever they had that notes feature, and it was just a lot of people making flip notes. That’s what it was called. They would use a lot of those songs as well. Me and my brother were in the gamer world a lot. And that was the genre of music that all the gamers were in. We religiously listened to that type of music, for a long, long time. I still do you know, but I think that’s what kind of shapes my music today because my music today sounds like hip hop on a weird level, like a gamer. Alien type of level. I think the reason why I sound like this is because I listened to a lot of dubstep.
NW: Speaking of gaming, which is a very important part of our cover shoot and your album, LVL5. Tell us more about your gaming era, what kind of games were you into?
BK: My dad passed down the PlayStation two to my brother. I was always into that type of stuff. But you know, they’re gonna give the boy that console. Not thinking that I would have too much interest. But we were both playing that, like it was really ours. And we had the PSP. My dad did give both of us a PSP. We were just playing Dragon Ball Z on the PlayStation 2. We were playing Corvette on the PlayStation two, Crash Bandicoot on there, and it just opened my eyes to a lot of different games that I love. Then my brother got an Xbox, that’s when shitstarted getting real. That’s when Call of Duty came into play, Halo came into play. I would always be like, ‘Yo, can I play the game,’ on the low type of thing. I had the 360 and I was playing it but then she started getting too old, I went to the store and I bought my first fucking console. I started playing all types of shit. I got every Call of Duty known to man there, Tomb Raider. Also started from the Wii though. My brother and I were gifted a Wii and a Nintendo DS. So I was playing Legend of Zelda, Mario Kart, and Street Fighter. You know what I’m saying?, even Duck Hunt and shit like Sonic and Resident Evil and shit like that.
NW: The big question is Xbox or Playstation? Which is your go to console?
BK: Xbox… Well honestly, PC bro, I’m gonna have to come in and say that because I just got my first PC and I’m never getting another console again. But if I’m choosing I would choose Xbox but the reason why I would choose PC is because I can still play the Xbox on my computer.
NW: Yes, for real gamers it is definitely a PC for sure.
BK: It’s like there’s not a limited amount of games that you can play on there. It’s not an exclusive thing. PlayStation is good for exclusive games, but it’s only a couple games. It’s not enough to choose one console or the other. So yeah, definitely a PC
NW: One video game that you would like one of your songs to feature in cyberpunk? Why is that?
BK: Cyberpunk is actually my favourite game. I don’t know why I haven’t mentioned it yet. I feel like it just looks like how my music sounds. Even the tasks that you have to do, it just reminds me of my music. There’s this one time, I was playing the game and I went to the club on the game. I was hearing music in the background and it sounded like the future and I was like, ‘Oh my God,’ this just sounds like my music, like me. I just imagined that was my song. I also have Tony 77 tattooed on me like, like the game.
NW: Have any video games sparked a song that came out?
BK: I would say it was not a song that came out, it just reminded me of something that I already have out, a song called Crown. Whenever I was in the club was like ‘Damn, that sounds like Crown’, but I think what inspires my music is the small sounds like the sound of like, I don’t know, opening like a the car or whatever. It makes this weird, futuristic sound or just how it sounds when you’re standing in the middle of the street. That inspires me more than the actual music in there. Sounds I’ve never before heard. Inspires me more than listening to other music.
NW: What were some of your favourite characters that you’ve seen in some of these video games?
BK: Well, I mentioned Tomb Raider, Lara Croft. That was like a big inspiration. the way that she dressed and I just really liked that type of style…Crash Bandicoot. My favourite character from Mario Kart was Rosalina. And Knuckles from Sonic. Yeah, Knuckles had swag.
NW: Another thing that’s interesting about you is that you have a toy collection.
BK: Yeah, I do. I do.
NW: How does tapping into your inner child influenced your music? And yeah, tell us a bit about your collection, and why it’s so special to you.
BK: Tapping into my inner child, I just feel like it really never left, honestly. And I think it helps my process with music because I’m just being me. You know what I’m saying? The second you fall away from what you actually are, you’ll just compute, you’re gonna compare yourself to everyone, you’re gonna be really insecure, you’re gonna doubt yourself. And you’re gonna feel like something’s missing, which is why when people usually get famous. They obtain all this money, all this fame, and then they still feel
like something’s missing. Because they left a very important part out which is who they really are. At that point in life, you’ve already lived so much life you don’t know where to find that shit no more. You have to really look hard and dig deep to find it again. So I think you should just never lose it, so you won’t have to look for it.
But about my toys. I’m actually sitting right in front of it. I’m really into horror movies. Like
extremely into horror movies. So I have a lot of my favourite horror movies. I have like a toy of the none. Hellraiser I have a Candy Man toy. I have the Grady twins toy, Coraline. The Walking Dead, Five Nights at Freddy’s Halloween. I have a whole SpongeBob collection. A whole saga: SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward and I have the Krusty Krab and Sponge Bob’s house and stuff.
NW: Is that your favourite cartoon?
BK: Yeah, that’s one of my favourite shows. I can’t lie. That’s it. I have a couple Tech Decks. I have a Run DMC toy and Andre 3000… I’ve got a lot of Minecraft shit. I actually like miniature arcade games. I have Miss Pac Man, Galaga and cyberpunk toys. I have a chunky toy that moves.
NW: LVL5, what a lot of people might not know is that the album has a very spiritual kind of messaging, what sparked that direction for you?
BK: I think that I am just trying to spread a message of there definitely is a spiritual war going on, all at all times. In the smallest little things that we go through. And, sometimes we feel like the world is against us. And why are all these bad things happening? It’s actually just as simple as is spiritual warfare, the light and the dark. That’s really it. When you do crazy good things, the dark is not happy about that. They’ll do anything to take you down. So that’s why when people say life is like a roller coaster, you go all the way to the top, and then you go all the way down. You don’t have to go all the way down. The reason why people are going all the way down is because they’re not aware that there’s a spiritual warfare going on.
So, they just kind of let the devil take them down. It could be like small things like you going up. Everything’s cool. But let’s say you don’t drink, right? You’re going up, you go to one of these parties. And they’re just like, ‘here, take a shot’. You take the shot, that’s what’s making the roller coaster go down. It’s a decision that you’re making. But you just have to be aware of what can take you back. And that is the dark. That’s the spiritual warfare that I’d be talking about. There’s signs and there’s certain things that you can see, that will literally tell you what’s about to happen, but you just have to see the unseen. And in order to do that, you just have to really tap in.
NW: You recently released an acoustic version of that song. What message were you trying to convey with that?
BK: For the acoustic, I wanted to give more of a personal side of me honestly, because I feel like some people think I’m either extremely aggressive or not serious. I wanted to do that, you know what I mean? Let me really show them, tell them how I feel without having to tell them how I feel. So it’s the same songs that are already out. When I’m saying something completely in a different way. It sounds different. It feels different. When I started off, my first song was an r&b song. I’m more into that. I know how to do that way more than what I’m doing now. So it’s like, alright, just let me just show them another side of me, was my thought process. And I did it, I did all three songs back to back. We just planned on releasing it like that, it was probably the easiest thing I’ve done. I wanted to kind of get a little bit more vulnerable with them.
Black Leather Top and Skirt, LICK RIKA
Leather Arm Belt, MONIKA BEREZA
Latex Leg Cover, ELISSA POPPY
Black Boots, NATACHA MARRO
“when people say life is like a roller coaster, you go all the way to the top, and then you go all the way down. You don’t have to go all the way down. ”
NW: You recently walked for designer Mowalola. How did that come about? What’s your relationship with the designer?
BK: Mowa? We’ve been cool for some years. What I do know is when we really started hanging was working for Ye. And we got close. We were all staying in the same hotel, so we were hanging every single day. I would just knock on her door and bother her like, ‘hey, Mowa’. At the time, she was really like my big sister. I was really kind of alone in that workspace and I was only 18. She was always there for me, like, whenever I felt some type of way or, because it was stressful, she was just helping me. She always believed in me. A Lot of people don’t know this, the reason why I started working for Kanye was not for from anyone else, but Mowa actually. Mo played my music to him, and he really liked it.
NW: What was that experience like walking in her show and like other shows that you’ve done as well
BK: I enjoyed it. It was probably one of the most memorable moments of my life. Honestly, I’ve always wanted to walk a show, you know what I mean? Do I have some learning to do? Yes. My walk wasn’t that good because I was actually very nervous at the time. It’s not like going on stage. It’s a completely different feeling. People are looking at the clothes, they’re not looking at you. How I walk can determine if someone likes it or not, honestly. So I got to perfect that. But it was pretty cool. I couldn’t even complain about anything that day. The other models around were very, very sweet. Mowa would come in and check on me and, yeah, and it was just it was cool. That was my first time. And I would definitely walk for Mowa again.
NW: What somebody likes your favourite brands that you like?
BK: I really like Trapstar, I’ve been a fan of them. I think it’s because, every time I go out there [London], they’ll be showing me new shit. New shit that I don’t see on the website. I don’t know why. I’m actually wearing a Trapstar shirt right now. It’s actually a part of my daily wear.
Oh, Carol Christian Poell, and I’ve been wearing a lot of Doc Martens. Converse.
Dress, TRACY CUI.
Ring (Right Hand), KHIRY
Rings (Left Hand), AGMES
Nose Ring, ARTIST’S OWN.
Khaki Vest, LEO PROTHMANN
Leather Skirt, HAN KJOBENHAVN
Bracelet PEBBLE LONDON
Boots, NATACHA MARRO x ILARIA LEPORE
NW: This issue that we’re releasing is called the performance issue. What does performance mean to you?
BK: I still think experience fits for that, honestly, it’s, that’s probably one of my favourite things to do, and every day I practice to get better. Practising, just listening to my music and seeing how my body moves to music, and just taking it to the stage. And also, like creating a connection with the fans in the crowd as well. I would say.
It’s fun. It’s probably that I want to be known as one of the best performances. That’s another goal that I have.
NW: What aspect of performance do you want to tap into a little bit more?
BK: Stage design, I need stage design! I need just something a little bit more. But I think that every day, I’ll just strive to be like one of the best performers. I just, that’s the dream that I have to look at Trav [Travis Scott]. Trav goes on stage and people go crazy, even Carti. If we really get in there, Carti goes on stage, and the crowds are different from how other people go on stage. It’s not the same. Our attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. And there’s so much music that comes out. So people don’t really listen to the same body of work over and over again anymore. To have that type of control, to the point where you can go on tour three, four times with the same body of work. 1000s of people are still pulling up plus 1000s more. Yeah, that’s what I want to do. That’s what I’m gonna do. I just have to perfect what I’m doing. But I’ll get there for sure. Wherever you’ve been at once or twice, like, you’re not gonna get that experience, not anywhere else. So you come back for that, for that feeling, for that energy.
NW: What do you want yourself to be focused on 10 years from now?
BK: I would say, don’t don’t stretch yourself out too long. When your time is done, your time will never be done. You don’t have to keep up with the next gen, that’s why the Next Gen is the next gen. It was a good one. When you know, you know? It’s definitely gonna be like an evolution thing. I’m not just sticking to wherever it is like you’re delving into other aspects of your journey.
NW: Maybe a toy museum 10 years from now?
BK: It’s definitely gonna be something different. I have a feeling that this is just the beginning of everything that I was supposed to do. I might even be fucking motivational, I don’t know, I see myself talking a lot. I see myself really helping out younger kids and stuff like that. It’s just a matter of growth that I need to do. I can really be great at a lot of different things. I could branch out into a lot of different things. I think music is just a first step, because it’s my love and I’ll never not, I’ll never stop loving music. Even when I retire. I’ll probably still have a studio. But I’ll probably just retire from dropping but I’ll probably still be recording.
“I see myself really helping out younger kids and stuff like that. It’s just a matter of growth that I need to do. I can really be great at a lot of different things.”
