[advertising]

By KRYS GRANDMOND
Staff Writer

Though not a household name yet, Kyprios is an artist that has been making waves across the country. From Muchmusic, to MusiquePlus, to a tour with Busta Rhymes, this Canadian hip-hop artist is sure to make a permanent name for himself in the music world soon!

I had a chance to sit down with Kyprios at a Swollen Members show last year. While he hadn't realeased anything at the time, Kyprios, known to family and friends as David Coles, was still a crowd pleaser. With his recent signing to Sony Records, the 25 year-old Vancouver native still had lots of work to do!

Sit with me as I take a look back on an interview done in my earliest stages of music journalism. And see how a small name then, is finally starting to grow!

Krys: Where are you from?

Kyp: Vancouver.

Krys: But I thought ... he said ...

Kyp: Yeah he introduced me from Victoria.

Krys: (laughs) So you're currently signed?

Kyp: Yep.

Krys: What label you with?

Kyp: Sony.

Krys: That's cool. A place I'd love to work at. How would you classify your music?

Kyp: Basically it's hip-hop with a little bit more musicality to it. There's more bridges and choral changes and there's more live instrumentation to it.

Krys: Yeah, I noticed the upright bass.

Kyp: Yeah the upright bass. We were going off CD tonight, but almost everything you were listening to tonight has been played live.

Krys: What was the name of the song you performed tonight? The hook, chorus one?

Kyp: This Is My Hit.

Krys: That's an awesome song.

Kyp: Thanks.

Krys: Were you happy with the response you got tonight?

Kyp: Yep. Yep. Considering I'm on SO low energy.

Krys: I think that was a pretty energetic show!

Kyp: I'm really sick, but I think the crowd really held me in there tonight for sure.

Krys: You're currently touring with Swollen Members?

Kyp: I am. This the last night I'll be with them.

Krys: What's that been like?

Kyp: It's a circus! It's a carnival. It's entertaining. It's ... I've known them for so long so there's years of foreplay, so ...

Moka Only: YES THERE IS!

Krys: (laughs) That's awesome. You made reference to war in one of your songs. What are your views?

Kyp: Well, to be quite honest, I speak in my songs kind of what my view is, but, I don't know. When people from the media ... It's kind of like getting a plumber to do an electrician's job. You know? I think that you should be talking to the people who are studying economics and history, more than talking to an artist. I mean, can give you my personal opinion, but it's not worth as much as theirs. Nor is it as imformed. That being said, as me not being the most valuable source, yeah, of course ... I'm not for it.

Krys: Yeah, I think that's pretty much the view of most people here. Are most of your songs about current events and issues?

Kyp: MY current events and issues.

Krys: It's a lot of things that are on people's minds a lot. You know, racism, war, everything.

Kyp: Right, right.

Krys: Do you think most artists avoid these topics? To try and take their listener's minds off it?

Kyp: Some do, I think some do. I think that if music can provide escapism, that can be very healthy as well ... There's the DJ! (talks about faulty equipment)

Krys: Do you think people need to hear about it? To try and deal with it rather than ignore it?

Kyp: Absolutely. Yep. I think so.

Krys: That's a good answer. Alright, well that's about all I have to ask. You guys put on an awesome show tonight.

Kyp: Thanks very much.

Krys: I'll keep watching for you.