COLORSxSTUDIOS

Where does your artist name, Potter Payper, come from?

When I was younger, people used to call me Potter. My glasses and hair at the time made me look a lot like Harry Potter. When I started rapping, it was best to just go with the name that most people knew me by. The Payper part started as a mistake when someone uploaded my song ‘Paper Chasing’ to YouTube. Thinking that the title was just ‘Chasing’, they wrote Potter Paper as my artist name. It just kind of stuck. I thought if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I don’t mind a bit of paper being attached to my name.

What is your first musical memory? 

My mom and dad lived in different homes; the contrast between them and the music people listened to was apparent. In my estate in East London, people would play music all the time out of their windows and cars. It was mostly 90s hip-hop, like 50 Cent, Eminem, and Snoop Dogg. They also played some R&B artists like Ashanti. My mom was heavy into reggae and dancehall music, while my Dad, being Algerian, played North African music as well as garage, Drum’n’bass, and early grime. As a result, growing up I had a wide spectrum of influence from various genres. I wanted to be like the guys in music videos, with their jewelry, cars, women, and houses. To me, they represented the guys on my estate who were earning money. Those guys imitated the videos, and I imitated them in return. It was like a third-hand imitation. Either way, that influenced me and made me who I am today.

How would you describe your current sound?

My music is all about authentic storytelling. I share stories from the places that most people’s eyes don’t get, or most people’s feet don’t walk. People know about poverty, social inequality, violence, murder, and drugs, but when I rap, it’s like a documentary that shows listeners another side of things. I could rap about anything, but then it wouldn’t be my sound. My sound comes from my heart and experience.

Who are some of your biggest influences?

What American rapper, entrepreneur, and activist Nipsey Hussle stood for really inspires me. In general, I’m inspired by people that don’t quit, people who stand firm in their beliefs and won’t be moved. I’m inspired by people that come from similar situations to me, who have been in and out of the social care system, or in and out of prison, but still manage to maintain a positive and purposeful life and give back. Good people do bad things all the time, and bad people do good things all the time. I’m inspired by the bad people that do good things.

Some of your early mixtapes include ‘The Philosophers Chrome’ (2010), ‘Training Day’ (2013), and ‘Training Day 2’ (2016). How have you developed as an artist since these projects?

Incredibly. It goes beyond my artistry, I’ve grown as a human being. I can’t even listen to my first mixtape anymore, but it reflects who I once was and how far I’ve come. I’m like a fine wine just getting better with age.

Tell us about your single ‘Corner Boy’. What was the inspiration behind the track? 

The local corner shop is a staple of London life, so the concept behind the track is typical street British culture. In a corner shop, you see a complete cross section of society, from kids buying groceries to people congregating, older kids smoking, dealing drugs, or the police standing nearby. One of the lines from the song is: “I swear I seen it all at my corner shop.” On the same day, I’ve seen seen a man help an old lady move her bags, and someone get stabbed. The shop owner, better known as “the boss man”, builds relationships with his community and he sees people grow up. He might even see your kids grow up. The track is all about those relationships and communities.

What is the highlight of your career to date?

One was performing at the MOBO awards. That was massive for me, because I used to watch it from my jail cell. I would watch all the legends that I listened to growing up winning awards. I was so proud to perform ‘Gangsteritus’—a track that meant I could be myself and didn’t have to conform—on that stage. My friends, who are still in prison, called me the next day to say they saw me on TV. They couldn’t believe I was there. It was a surreal moment.

Another highlight was performing with Ed Sheeran at Radio 1’s Big Weekend. He brought me out, and we performed in front of 80,000 people. To stand on the side of the stage and watch him perform songs that I’ve listened to my whole life, and to then go on and perform myself was insane. It’s given people so much inspiration and hope that they can achieve so much, musically or otherwise. You can be a star, you can be successful, and you can be free.

Tell us about the song you performed for COLORS.

It’s the intro to my album. I tried to write it in a way that tells my whole story without glamorizing it. In the past, I made a lot of poor decisions that affected a lot of people. I didn’t want to play that down or act like those experiences didn’t happen. The intro was written from a place of raw expression. Everyone will understand the words coming out of my mouth, but the deeper meaning is for the people that can relate to my experiences. My A COLORS SHOW is for my core fanbase that have been with me since my first mixtape and have seen me go from zero to hero.

Is there one lyric in the song which is particularly meaningful or important to you?

At one point, I say: “There’s one of me and there’s five of them. I bring my knees to my chest and I rise again.” Metaphorically it’s about dusting yourself off and getting back up when you’re down. In a UK prison, if you get into trouble, they use control and restraint. There’s only one of you and there’s always five prison officers who get you on the floor and instruct you to lie flat on your belly with your hands behind your back. Then they say: “Bring your knees to your chest and stand up.” You can’t use your hands, and if you don’t act accordingly you’re back on the floor again. That lyric pertains to that protocol. When someone recognises that situation, whether they have been in prison or they work as an officer, it creates a shared experience and provokes a conversation about the establishment through my music.