Ghostpoet, AKA Obaro Ejimiwe, makes music that drip feeds simultaneously upbeat and lo-fi sounds of longing and dubstep. His slurring, nostalgic vocals drop over a hypnotic pulse of beats and beeps, and the result is unique and frankly addictive. Back in London after living in Coventry during his university years, Ghostpoet’s sound brings us into the heart of a new movement in UK music. Recognised by everyone from Gilles Peterson to NME, The Guardian and RCRD LBL as one-to-watch, Ghostpoet recently signed to Peterson’s seminal record label Brownswood, which put out his debut album ‘Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam’. The title reveals both Ghostpoet’s admirable propensity for self-awareness and his talent to deliver a mellow sound, tinged with thoughtful melancholy – without sounding miserable. For someone who is driven by a deceptively simple goal – to “be as creative as possible in as many different ways as possible” – he couldn’t have been more successful. As a result though, it gives us the unjust if not downright impossible task of assigning a genre to the debut that spans the range from hip-hop to dubstep and beyond. The manifold influences and genres fall into place, however, when you learn that his creative process is equally diverse. “My music is just kind of everything I’ve listened to up to this point,” he says. “I’m constantly soaking up knowledge.” Or as he puts it in his song ‘Longing For The Night’ – “got some A levels / ain’t dumb…” I saw other people all across the country doing what I was trying to do and they were in the infant stages like me.

Ghostpoet says it as he sees it and his voice is the voice of a generation: smart yet unpolished, creative yet self-aware. A voice that was made possible through the very digital platforms that define his generation. He credits Myspace as the push he needed to get stuck into the music industry. “I saw other people all across the country doing what I was trying to do and they were in the infant stages like me. People like Mika and Quez and Sampha and Delz; people who were just starting out like me and it was just like: ‘Wow, they’re doing that. Maybe I could give it a go’.” It’s this kind of honesty, this charming uncertainty, which assures his audience of a raw, real experience when he performs. It’s also this that makes chatting with him feel like you’re just hanging out with a mate at home. Despite all the musical accolades that are beginning to launch in his direction, he is still very down-to-earth. When asked to describe what he does – that singular question in any interview that typically helps define a job, a role, or at the very least an artistic style – his response is simply: “I make experimental music of sorts and I try to be a happy individual.” Not an erroneous statement by any means. But nevertheless wonderfully understated. If you cite life itself as your major creative influence, then you’re free to derive inspiration from whatever you make of it. “I live life, experiencing it through my eyes and through other people’s lives,” he says. “Through stories and snippets of peoples conversations on my daily travels.” Which although might seem banal, effectively synthesizes the experimental with the commonplace and thus guarantees accessibility for his entire audience. And all this from a man who, had fate decided differently, might still be earning a crust in customer service and using every spare second of every day just “thinking about making music.” Similarly accessible is Ghostpoet’s website. There, no avenue is overlooked: two of the available audio platforms include Soundcloud and Bandcamp – the perfect ways to scope the debut album out if you haven’t yet had the chance to hear him play live on one of his seemingly never-ending tour dates. Protein caught up with the easy charmer before his gig at East London’s Land of Kings festival, in turn fresh off a UK wide tour with Metronomy. It’s clear why we’re not the only ones who see in him a musical force to reckon with. Stay tuned.

If you cite life itself as your major creative influence, then you’re free to derive inspiration from whatever you make of it. “I live life, experiencing it through my eyes and through other people’s lives,” he says. “Through stories and snippets of peoples conversations on my daily travels.” Which although might seem banal, effectively synthesizes the experimental with the commonplace and thus guarantees accessibility for his entire audience. And all this from a man who, had fate decided differently, might still be earning a crust in customer service and using every spare second of every day just “thinking about making music.” Similarly accessible is Ghostpoet’s website. There, no avenue is overlooked: two of the available audio platforms include Soundcloud and Bandcamp – the perfect ways to scope the debut album out if you haven’t yet had the chance to hear him play live on one of his seemingly never-ending tour dates. Protein caught up with the easy charmer before his gig at East London’s Land of Kings festival, in turn fresh off a UK wide tour with Metronomy. It’s clear why we’re not the only ones who see in him a musical force to reckon with. Stay tuned.
http://www.ghostpoet.co.uk/