“When I make music, it's kind of like a chance for me to reflect on a lot of things. It's a chance for me to do that”

Images Shot By @septembrrline / Instagram

If there’s one thing I value the most about life, it’s appreciating growth and allowing change to occur. When Jeriah and I set out on this mission with VERVE, our primary focus was to focus only on Capetonian creatives. How things have changed…

We quickly found ourselves exploring creatives work beyond the Western Cape and suddenly found ourselves peeking outside of the border, documenting the works from creatives in Namibia and Botswana. It was at that moment that we realised VERVE was bigger than just the Mother City. VERVE was bigger than just South Africa.

After discussions concerning where our mission now aligned, we just knew there was no way we could limit ourselves to just South Africa. I especially understood this once Jerry introduced me to the works of Ascension Pleas - a rising musical collective from Botswana. Within that group, we discovered Briann Bc, a musician filled with so much potential and hunger, itching to make his mark in the world of music.

After some planning and organisation, we were fortunate enough to have a call set up with the rising virtuoso, with the aim of understanding his story, his sound, his views as an artist, and his opinions on the buzzing creative scene in Botswana.

To kick this conversation off, paint me a picture of what life was like for you that inspired you to pursue a career in music

“Well, I have a lot of siblings. I have two older sisters, one older brother, and one younger brother. So, growing up, my older brother was doing music, performing. He knew I wasn't into it, but he got me a guitar when I was really young, and I used to just like to shelve it.”

“And then one day he came back because he used to go to school in Malaysia. He came back, and he showed me a video of him performing in Malaysia, and he's singing in Setswana. Obviously, in Botswana, we speak Setswana. Yeah, so he's singing in Setswana, and all the Malaysians looked like they understood what he was saying. They’re like Asian people. Like, you might not even find them speaking English. They're all singing his song, and it's an honour because they’re in Malaysia… And they're singing in my language, but like, they're not my people.”

“And I just remember that blowing me away. And after that day, I wrote my first rap. As soon as I saw that video and as soon as he switched off the video, I said, I'm writing my first rap today. And since then, it's kind of been like a thing of also the way that I speak. People always associated my way of speaking with rapping. Even the way I was dressing resembled that of a rap artist.”

“And I guess over time, I kind of just kind of got the mold of that. My early inspirations in terms of sound, I was definitely listening to my dad because he is really into jazz. So he used to play jazz every Sunday after church. He just used to blast it as loud as he could. My mom is really into Pop music, but like early 80s Pop, the classics. Dolly Parton, Gladys Knight, and those legends. I still have some of her records in my room. Yeah… She just used to play that all around the house.”

“So that's the kind of stuff I grew up on. But obviously, being me growing up in the early 2000s, it was all Lil Wayne, you know, the Truk Fit era. That was kind of like me, and watching channels like Trace and stuff like that is where I got my music from. So those were like my earliest references. But aside from that, that's how I got into it. Like that's really like my story in terms of my influences and what it made me.”

From everything you just told me, it seems like you definitely had a musical background. Music was always around you growing up in your home, right?

“Yeah, for sure. I think it also got cemented by the fact that I went to a boarding school in Zimbabwe. That’s when I was in F one, that's like grade 8 on your side. I got shipped to a boarding school and I had nothing to do, except making music.”

“And I feel like I fell in love with music during that period of my life. Also, the freedom of just being in a different country by yourself is just like, what else are you going to do except freestyle with your homies, and it was fun.”

In my personal experience growing up, I used to dabble a little with beatmaking. However, I always struggled with learning the art of rapping. How did that creative gift come about for you?

“It's not for everyone. I'm not even going to blame you for that. I believe this is me and these are my beliefs. People are given certain attributes. Like, I'm very slow when it comes to sprinting, I'm not a fast sprinter. So I'm always looking for cool ways to work around it. I just feel like my thing that I was given was the ability to put words together.”

“I've always kind of been able to do it, even when that day when I said I wrote my first rap, it was a pretty decent rap for my first attempt. The freestyling thing also came easily. Yes, obviously, I pushed my pen like I never stopped. Yeah, I kept going. But like, I think.. in terms of just like the degrees I've seen people start from and where I started from, just off of like natural talent, I think it had to be God-given. For me, I just believed that it had to be God-given.”

You mentioned freestyling, and in SA, we recently had a whole situation involving the popular Hip Hop artist, K.Keed, refusing to freestyle on a show, which stirred a lot of debates around the topic of the importance of freestyling as an art form in the Hip Hop world. Do you think freestyling still needs to be a thing in the modern rap game?

“You should ask Banzai. Banzai and I have Cyphers every time with each other. It's nonstop. But yeah, I believe freestyling is integral. And not even from a point of view, like you have to be good at it. I just like it, and it's so important in building you up as a rapper. Or just in the culture of Hip Hop as well.”

“It's like beatboxing and making beats. Or like breaking and scratching and stuff like that. It's the building blocks. You don't even have to be dope, but it has to be there. Like, as an artist, it's also like the core of being a Hip Hop artist. I don't think artists should forget that, and how it starts in the beginning. It’s back to the roots, and that’s to be able to freestyle.”

From freestyling with your homies to writing your first raps…when and how did you eventually launch your music career on a higher level?

“I've never been a punctual person. I hate the fact that I'm not timely. Like, it's really something that I work on so hard. So I've been forced and pushed into making music for a long time. And it's funny that you mentioned that period when COVID hit and everything hit. People before then had been saying Briann release music.”

“I had done small features on other people's songs, and people always liked it. And when COVID hit, everything was at a standstill. It forced me to literally make music, and I had no excuses.”

“So my first song ever is a song called “Late”. And it's called “Late” because it was made on the last day of 2020. Everything about it was late. And it was just like a song to kind of just say, guys, sorry for the wait on this release.”

“Like, during COVID, I was just like, you know what? I'm going to learn how to make beats. I'm going to learn how to release. I'm going to learn how to put this on.. You know? And yeah. On the last day, I got it right.”

How would you describe your sound and how do you think it’s evolved over the years?

“I think I'd have to say.. without sounding cheesy, or generic, I'd have to say it's unorthodox because it's ever evolving. Yeah, I am a wordsmith. I am a lyricist. I do care about the things that I say, and I'm praised for that. And there were people who always tried to put me in a box from the jump. I wasn't trying to be put in a box. I was just trying to create.”

“And I think over time, my sound evolved, more or less, because of me. It's a lot of getting rid of self-doubt. I'm happy with the direction that I'm going with because I think slowly through these releases. I also produced, so I also have that side of me where I can do it, because I'm not just a rapper. Even when I sing, I wouldn’t call myself a singer. I wasn't blessed with that talent, but like, I can put myself in that position to sing. Like I said before, my mom grew up on Dolly Parton and all those people in jazz.”

“So I need to express that side of me as much as possible without it being outside of myself. I don't want to say just being a rapper is something small... Rap itself is an art form that should be respected. But I also have other abilities and other skills that I would love to showcase without it being so foreign as a Brian BC brand. You know what I mean?”

“It doesn't need to encapsulate me. I don't just want to be encapsulated as one thing. I'm everything. I'm a rapper. I'm a producer. I’m a creative.”

Let’s touch on your newest single release, titled “3FLY”, alongside Banzai and Clarissa. What’s the story behind it and what does the song mean to you?

“That song is so special to me because it was so unplanned.”

“I’ve got this book right here, and it's by Rick Rubin. It's called The Creative Act. I actually got it in South Africa, funny you know. Ever since then, I've been reading it and I've been sharing it with a bunch of my friends, and I'd read a chapter, then give it to Banzai and my other friends.”

“So, we've just been circulating it around, and I feel like now in the space that we're in, the way we create is less unplanned, and it's more fluid. And that day, I had just invited Clarissa to cook. Banzai wasn't supposed to come. But when he showed up, he ended up playing such an integral role. He was in the corner of the room reading a book about birds until we asked him to join in and contribute. From behind the scenes, he was low-key the real writer for that song.”

“Like, the flow was his and even Clarissa's part as much as her verse was basically. I love the fact that he was shy about it. When he came to the session, he found us in it and he was just sitting in a corner and they were like “dude, no. Like you're here for a reason. Like, you're in this room for a reason. Please, if you have something to contribute, contribute” and the song kept on growing and piling and I didn't want to let them down on my end as a producer as well, which is why the beat also evolved.”

“All of that was just one of the best sessions I had, and one of my photographer friends also came unplanned. He actually even ran from his house to my house just to join.”

“Things like that to me are just really special in the creation of the song. We worked out how the hook's going to be and what the lead was going to be. It's like things happened progressively, and I'm so happy that that song is one of my favourite songs, if not my favourite song that I've ever made.”

You mentioned your photographer, Septermbrr, and his involvement in capturing your unique imagery that matches your sound. What’s the relationship between the two of you?

“I believe in relationships. I love music so much that with me I don't just work with anybody off the first link. I don't want you to just say a price to me. You know what I mean? Like, sure, we can, if you're a brand and you're reaching out, it's fine.”

“Me and Septermbrr have known each other since 2021. So, for four years, which is time. Those are times of just us linking and doing nothing. And it's been a thing where it's like, if I need a picture, it's September that I need, and I wasn't like, I'll let him do his thing. He let me do my thing, and we grew as people at our own rates.”

“And I feel like us colliding was just like perfect timing, you know what I mean? I finally had trust that this isn't just transactional. This is art. Like, he's such a great director as well. It always felt so natural working with him. I love him.”

I love relationships that are transactional in a creative way. What’s the story behind Ascension Pleas, then? How did the collective come about, and what’s it like all working together?

“The collection consists of myself, Banzai, Chubbs, Space Rover, and Hookage.”

“That relationship with Ascension Pleas is so precious to me because it genuinely feels like it looks so planned when you're looking at it from the outside. But in reality, it was just like a bunch of friends who linked up at a show. And then after that show, we all said, let's go to the studio and let's try cooking something up. And we never thought anything of it, but the music did so much for us.”

“I remember we heard that first song, and the more we worked together, it got better and better and better and better, and we were like, we need to keep creating until we flop, and we just haven't done that. And like, to us, it's not even a flop in terms of streams and that other stuff. I'm just talking about that feeling of listening to a song and it being like, "Oh my God, this song is amazing". It just kept happening, and we'd all been fairly acquainted before that, but the music brought us to the point where it's like, these are my brothers now.”

“We hold events together. We sleep at each other's cribs. When we don't have money, it's like, “Yo, bro, can you hold me down?”. We're so bonded. It's so tight-knit now that it's amazing to see, and it's amazing to be a part of it - it's so cool.”

I noticed you guys also have a Block Party happening. For you though, what’s it like performing in front of a crowd?

“I was raised from a public speaking type of thing. Before I started rapping, I was already pretty prolific, just known for being able to give speeches and stuff like that. There are videos of me, and I'm eight, at people's weddings just singing songs. It's just never been a tough thing for me.”

“I love performing, though. I love performing so much. It's my best joy because I also play football, and performing and football are related to me in one sense. For 90 minutes or however long I am on stage or however long I'm on the field, nothing else matches the thing that I'm doing. It's like I become numb. My mind clears, and I just have to focus on saying these words correctly. I have to make the people feel me. I have to put the ball in the net. I have to, you know what I mean?”

You briefly mentioned earlier about artists having doubts about continuing to push their music careers because of the challenges that come alongside that. What is it that keeps you going?

“I'm gonna sound like a broken record here, but bro, community. It's definitely the community. It's knowing that your brothers are feeling the same pain that you're feeling. It used to be bad when I started making music, just because I was solo. And I'd loved that. It's kind of the reason why I can do everything in a sense.”

“Because for a long time, I was like a lone wolf, and I used to really struggle with that because I felt like I had to do that in order to make it. And then when I found my community, Ascension Pleas, I realised there are more people in the music industry like me. This side is just there for me. I was so glad that my problems felt shared. The cross felt like I was sharing the cross.”

“And that's where my motivation lies, really. I have practices like meditation. I have practices like taking walks. I have practices like staying fit that help me in terms of the practical side, just where my brain isn't. You know what I mean? But just in terms of the pressure and everything, it has to be community. Community is powerful man.”

So then being a musician, being an artist, what's the one thing you've learned the most about yourself or you've discovered about yourself?

“That it's okay to be number two, I used to really have this complex when I started making out, like, oh, I'm going to be the biggest. Oh, they haven't seen me yet. I'm the next MJ. I'm going to kill everyone on the mic, I'm going to slaughter, like, one or two people.”

“And I think being in music has just taught me that, just because there are so many talented people that I come across, there are so many people that probably deserve it more than I do, if you're looking at it, like being for real. Even just being in a group, you know, a lot of egos can clash. But you have to learn to put the art first. That means that sometimes you will not get the best slot on a song. Sometimes that means you’re sitting in the worst position in a photo. Sometimes that means you being the last one or the first one to perform.”

“Sometimes that means these small things like that. When I started, I would be like, nah, guys, I'm the guy. But now it's like, it's okay to be number two because you're building with people. You're playing your part. That 5% that you're putting in is so integral to the 100%. That's going to come later.”

“There's going to be a day when it's you shining, and now your friends have to play that position for you. So I feel like that's the biggest lesson that music has taught me, is that like, I don't always have to be the main attraction. I don't always have to be, I just have to play my role. I just have to put in as much as I need to, and that means letting people shine.”

Cover Art For Briann’s 2024 EP, *“TRUST THE PROCESS”*

So then, my next question then, when it comes to music and music alone, how powerful do you think music is to you? Or what makes music such a glorious thing to you when you think about music as an art form?

“Bro, I could talk about this for years, years, bro. I love music so much. It's so near and dear to me. So when I make music, it's kind of like a chance for me to reflect on a lot of things. It's a chance for me to do that.”

“I have so many songs that I haven't released just because I had to get something out. I had to reflect on the situation, or I had to clarify something. Music to me is an organ. Like, I live, I breathe music in a sense that without it, I feel like a piece of me wouldn't exist.”

Pursuing a career as a creative in any kind of field is possible. However, I’ve noticed it’s always a struggle with creatives convincing their parents about why they need to do what they need to do. How do your parents feel about your choice of pursuing a career in music?

“You know, um…at the end of the day, I grew up in a black household. There's always going to be those chats. But I'm blessed in the sense that, as much as we do have those uncomfortable conversations with everything, you know, they have their doubts about what I'm pursuing and things like that.”

“But they still allow me to do it. They'll never be like, no, no studio, no, or cutting me off here and there. Sometimes my friends come to my house, and I can tell it's an inconvenience for them. But they’ll never send them away, and I’m grateful for that.”

“It's something where I've been privileged, honestly, because I've heard those conversations too with people, and their relationship with their parents is sad. With me, as much as I'd love them to like champion in me, I just think that the fact that they're not tearing me down, the fact that there are days where I ask for a favour, they could help. My mom has a catering company, and sometimes I'll ask to use her chairs for an event. And she'll be like, yeah. Or like my dad might just like pitch in, or tell me he knows this guy who owns a place here. Maybe you could talk to him, maybe he could let you use that for a venue.”

“So it’s small things like that that let me know that they have my back.”

You’ve obviously got more music locked up in the vault for the masses to hear hopefully soon. However, at what point do you know or realize that a song or project is complete and ready to go public?

“Music for me is almost spiritual, bro. Like, I'll sit on a song, I'll play some, I'll play it in the shower, I'll go out, I'll play it for myself, but because I want to see how much it resonates with the kind of person I am in the moment. I want to see that the things that I was talking about, am I proud of it? The things that I'm championing in these songs, do they align with me right now? If I perform this song, will I feel like it's something that is expressive of how I really feel? Does it express the emotions that I really think I stand on?”

“You know, I've made entire projects, even where I just feel like I don't relate to that. That came from a bad place in my spirit. That came from anger, that came from hate, that came from things that I don't want to do. I don't want to make a crowd of people cheer. I wouldn't feel proud of that. So when I play for people, I want to see if it's with me before I release it.”

“And a lot of the time, that's the case, but there have been times where it's not the case, for sure. And I've said no, I have to describe this. It's a dope song. It sounds cool, but it's just not me. I don't want it to ever be me.. It's a part of me, and I accept that it's a part of me, but this is not what I want to release to the world at this current moment in time.”

What’s the creative scene like up there in Gaborone and Botswana as a whole?

“Bro… It's a ticking time bomb. It's so insane. Everyone from the young kids to the grownups, like the OGs that we have, like, it's because of the lack of support that our government has in music. You know, there are a lot of resources here; it's not a big country. There are like two million people here.”

“It's so small. Like, everyone knows everyone around the country. And a lot of the resources go towards things like mining or agriculture, things that have really systemically boosted us since the beginning of time. So it is kind of viewed as a leisure activity here. And now with the newer generation, like what's happening now, I think it's almost like a renaissance, you know?”

“It feels like we're in the middle of a ‘fight the power' kind of thing, where it's not only people taking back. Now people are hosting their own events. Now people are making their own magazines. Now people are reaching magazines in Cape Town. It's like, yeah, out doing everything that we need right now. By all means, we've come to the realization that quality-wise, we're so ahead. And it's insane. The amount of quality that we have here.”

“And I'm saying this for all art. The music is crazy, the movies are crazy, the painting scene is crazy, the literature is crazy, and the photography is crazy. It's so insane that we have all the resources. We just don't have the support. And now I think we're all tired as a nation... Especially the artists waiting for that grant. Waiting for that, you know, special moment.”

“We've recently had a change in power at the top of our government after a 50-year regime. If you look at the polling rates, it's mostly the youth that was involved in voting. It was my first time voting.. There were a lot of my friends' first times voting. We just had to see some change.”

“In everyone's mentality, we're now just in a new place. It feels fresh. It's the same place, but it feels fresh. It goes across everything. Everyone's competing at the highest level because I think everyone believes that it's only a matter of time.”

Before we close this chat, is there anything else you want to mention or anyone else you want to share the love with?

“Yeah. Shoutout to IZM for being the most talented group of individuals under the sun. They’ve been integral in my upbringing, Clarisa, Amantle, Septermbrr, and everybody involved in the group. They’re all just the people that I interact with on a regular. I’m so happy with their involvement in my life.”

“And yeah, more to come. Stay tuned, stay active, stay vigilant, and stay blessed!”

The second we ended the call I immediately told Jeriah how important it was for us to check out the creative oasis in Botswana. Briann gave us an insight to how much potential roam around the small population in the beautiful country.

I also found Briann’s humble demeanour so pleasing to see. It’s this kind of attitude that makes me convinced that he’s destined to reach his true potential. I can’t wait to see what we can cook up together in the near future.

For now, check out his discography - available on multiple streaming platforms and keep an eye out for more beautiful art from the dynamic virtuoso.

Botswana To The World - Briann Bc’s Ascendancy

The VERVE RoundUp Vol. 5 - Spring Edition