Her Campus had the pleasure of interviewing one of Hampton’s very own upcoming Hip-Hop artist James Hooper. James is a 3rd year, 5 year MBA major from Sayreville, New Jersey. We asked him some questions to get a feel for his craft and what he planned to do with it, here’s what he had to say.
HC: What is the craft you’re most famous with?
CC: The craft that I am most famous for is my music.
HC: Do you have any mixtapes, singles, and videos out ready for purchase or for people to listen to?
CC: Yes, I am working on a project entitled “Rose” with my producer Kelly Kell and it will be released in the year 2017. I also just released a song Sunday called “Dear God” and it’s available on Soundcloud. https://soundcloud.com/jaims_music/jaims-dear-god
HC: What’s your future goal?
CC: To become a professional recording artist. It’s been my goal for a while now. It’s annoying because I feel as though everyone wants to rap nowadays. It makes it harder for the ones who are serious about it, but I’ll find my way.
HC: Do you consider yourself underrated?
CC: Underrated. Very underrated.
HC: What musician do you aspire to be or do you get your sound from?
CC: Well like right now? I have to say Drake. He’s the best in my opinion. But I also get influences from artists like Schoolboy Q, Tory Lanez, and Travis Scott. Those three honestly helped me to shape the sound that I have right now. I just add my own style to it as well and I think it allowed me to develop something completely new.
HC: What does music mean to you?
CC: Music is my passion, and outlet I use it to avoid doing dumb stuff. School is cool but it’s not always easy for me to focus. I love music. I can do that all day, everyday so I might as well.
HC: Are you in any upcoming events or projects showcasing your music?
CC: I try to perform around campus, and I’m constantly releasing new music. So within the next couple of weeks more music will be coming out. I have a video coming soon for Dear God too. I’m trying to go to New York and collab with my boy who’s a director. That would be dope.
HC: When and why did you start doing music?
CC: I started it because I liked it and then it grew into a passion. I started junior year of high school, so I was like 17. Everybody gassed me cause I was probably the last person you expected to be a rapper and I wasn’t half bad. If it wasn’t for the support of my bros back then, I probably still wouldn’t be doing it.
HC: What all can you do?
CC: Rap. I can’t sing. Actually, I can’t sing well but if I add some auto-tune it sounds pretty good.
HC: Are you a one man show or do you have a team?
CC: Nah, I have my producer Kelly Kell. And I work with two engineers Zay Blaze and Jack Union. The team is great. The music will prove it.
HC: What’s something that people don’t know about you?
CC: My father passed away in 2011 and he’s apart of my drive. I’ve expressed it in a few songs and I’ll probably release a song about him soon.
HC: Describe your music using one word?
CC: Dope.
HC: What is something you want people to take away from your music?
CC: I want people to understand that they don’t have to lose God in their music. They can still be religious and be relatable. It doesn’t even have to be Christian rap either. I don’t know if I mentioned that earlier, but each of my songs ties back to my faith. Without God I wouldn’t be where I am now, so I have to give him the honor.