Rapper Tasman Keith is starting 2019 with a bang; this year will see him tour, release more music, a documentary and with a little support from the community where he grew up, potentially crack the Triple J Hottest 100 with one of his hit songs.
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The song, titled “Mission Famous” whose lyrics were written by the young musician, tells a story that he didn't think would ever be heard.
“I didn't write Mission Famous with the intention of getting it on the radio, but it turned out to be my first EP and single to get on high rotation on Triple J,” he said.
“The song is basically about the musicians in the community out there who were talented and famous in the mission, but not famous anywhere else.”
“Mission Famous can be voted into the Triple J Hottest 100 countdown right now; people can get online and vote at the Triple J Hottest 100 site.”
The talented musician started young, with talent shows and musical sessions with family members, it wasn't until the age of 16 that he began to take music more seriously though.
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“I grew up listening to Micheal Jackson, performing songs at talent shows, doing the moonwalk. I used to rap with my father and cousin,” the musician said.
“I didn't start taking music seriously until I was about 16, I’m always writing stuff down. Sometimes I’ll use it right away, or I might not use it for 6 months.”
Regardless of the outcome, the lifelong performer is happy with the way his career is shaping up.
“If Mission Famous doesn't get in the 100 this time, it’s cool, I think it would be a good story though, our community coming together and helping get this song on a national stage and showing something positive of Bowraville. There is a lot of negativity about the place; I hope to change that perception one day,” he said.
Not content to sit still the boy from Bowraville has a big year planned, and this is only the beginning.
“I've got tours planned, a documentary on Bowraville coming out, the documentary is great, it’s told by us, in our words. To my knowledge this is the first high-quality documentary told from our perspective, the crew who came in were just like a fly on the wall, they caught us in our natural state, it’s not staged or anything like that.”
“I've got more music planned too, it's going to be a big year. I hate sitting still; I want to work as hard as I can. I always do more than I need to. I’m working on probably 14-15 songs at the moment, maybe only two of those will be released,” the rapper said.
Tasman Keith has the ultimate goal of making it to the international stage, but not for the reasons you might think.
“I want to be able to feed my family, look after them, and try to tell my story, and the story of my people.”
“I want to show the world where I’m from.”
Keep an eye out for Tasman Keith's tours and music, which is available online at Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music, Sound cloud and virtually all platforms where music can be found nowadays.
While everybody can vote for “Mission Famous” to make the Triple J Hottest 100 by going to the website at https://hottest100.abc.net.au/ or by clicking here.
Get on it quick because voting closes January 22.