In Her Campus’ series Next Question, we rapid-fire interview talent Gen Z loves about what it’s like to rule over pop culture. This time, Yung Gravy is in the hot seat to answer our burning questions.
Before he was a certified platinum recording artist, Yung Gravy, aka Matthew Raymond Hauri, was uploading songs to SoundCloud from his dorm room at the University of Wisconsin. And although he grew to become a Gen Z household name — his combined discography has over 6 billion streams — the Minnesota native hasn’t let the fame change him. In college, “I was, I’d say, pretty similar to how I am now,” Hauri tells Her Campus in an exclusive interview. “I guess I kind of grew more into Gravy as the time went on. I developed more Gravy.”
When we’re talking about “Gravy,” we’re not talking about your favorite mashed potato topping (or, if you’re from Jersey, the red sauce on your pasta). For the 29-year-old musician, “Gravy” isn’t just a part of his name — it’s the little something extra that he brings to his music. Drawing influences from music of the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s, Hauri infuses classic beats with his own unique flair — and, of course, his trademark cheeky wordplay with bars like, “With your baby mama at the crib, I blow her back out / Shawty Filipino and she call me Manny Pacquiao / Alley oop without the hoop, they call me Jerry Stackhouse / Dazin’ out in public, but your mama made me snap out.”
It’s safe to say that, for the most part, Yung Gravy is on his own sh*t — and that’s probably why he has a massive following of over 12 million people across his social media platforms.
Developing that “Gravy,” though, was a process. During his sophomore year of college, Hauri was balancing 18 credits a semester, studying marketing, working several part-time jobs, and building a few businesses of his own. But despite all of that, he didn’t let his passion for music fall to the back burner. “I just wanted to be a rapper so bad,” he says. “[Working on my music] would be my free time — I shot the ‘Mr. Clean’ music video while I was at school.” The video, and the song, ended up going viral that year — amassing over 76 million views since its release in 2017.
And while the internet definitely had a part to play in Yung Gravy’s success, it’s not to say that it was all by chance. And, if you’re one of the people who say that a marketing major is useless, the rapper’s viral success and massive following prove otherwise. “I turned my college degree into the music stuff,” Hauri says. “I was doing all digital marketing classes, and I just submitted my Yung Gravy work for everything. It was cool ’cause I got to teach myself everything, and then learn how other people did it, and hone in on my sauce.”
Hauri eventually earned his degree a semester early in 2017, moving on to bigger things like Billboard success, award shows, and partnering with massive brands like Urban Outfitters for their Good Game Campaign — a nationwide campaign celebrating the energy of college gameday culture and the excitement of returning to campus. Most recently, for this partnership, he performed at a sold-out venue at CU Boulder alongside co-headliner Rebecca Black.
And for the college students in attendance, Yung Gravy’s success is proof that you can take what you learn and turn it into something huge. “Whatever you learn the easiest is probably what you’re the most interested in, and whatever you’re the most interested in will come to you the easiest,” he says. “So, find a way where you can take that, and push it, you know? I loved hip hop and all kinds of music, so I combined those [with my education] and spread it.”
As a college student, what was your favorite struggle meal?
Very often, I would get Chipotle and get double of all the free things, and eat half of it. And then, the next day and the next evening, I would make eggs and have half scrambled eggs, half Chipotle with hot sauce. But I would sauce it up with little crispy tortillas and make it good.
Do you have a non-negotiable song on the pregame playlist?
I’m talking to the youth right now. I don’t want to put the wrong songs in their ears. I’d say, “We Don’t Love ‘Em” by Hoodrich Pablo Juan and “No Hook” by Quavo and Lil Yachty are great.
Frat versus bars: Do you have a preference?
I went to UDub, and the frat thing wasn’t huge. I haven’t had that many frat experiences, really. A couple of bad ones. The only frat I ever performed at was Pike at UGA.
What happened?
That was one of the worst and best shows I’ve done. I think 10 people fainted before I started playing.
Why?
The show was going to be outside, and they got like 5,000 people to RSVP — and then they had to move inside because of the weather. It was in a basement, and it was so hot that there was like sweat dripping from the ceiling. And people were fainting. I had to go barefoot on the stage because it was so slippery. It was wild, but it was lit.
So… bars?
Yeah. Bars. But I don’t want to hate on frats.
Do you have a dream collaboration?
I think Frank Sinatra would be cool. Or Amy Winehouse.
Anyone alive?
Mac DeMarco, maybe? I’m close with 100 gecs, but they won’t do a song with me. Some artists are just on their own sh*t.