By Eric The Red
This week, I’m taking a step away from my usual metal and rock mentality, and moving into a territory most people wouldn’t expect. Looking through upcoming events on Facebook, I stumbled upon a true gem. Just starting out in his music career, Anonymous Vox (or A.Vox for short) is preparing for his first live show as a rapper. With moving, heartfelt lyrical content and rhythms that make it difficult to sit still, Anonymous Vox is ready to blast his way into your minds.
Utilizing beats and tunes reminiscent of dubstep music, and layering his amazing vocal flow on top, the music A.Vox is producing is absolutely astounding. More along the lines of spoken word poetry than the majority of hip-hop and rap today, his words are awe inspiring. When asked where he draw’s inspiration for his lyrics, he stated, “From experiences I encounter in life. My thoughts in general, I suppose. I think if you’re honest, music, like all true art, is a reflection of self. No matter what I’m talking about, it’s a reflection of my thoughts and feelings about an issue. I write about life experiences. [My song] ‘When the Drop Hits,’ which I started writing while I was in the crowd at my first music festival at 3am rockin out to Bassnectar or Free Nation which was me venting my frustrations about the blatant hypocrisy of government and peoples seeming indifference towards it.” Having lyrics also touching on perseverance and following one’s dreams, A.Vox is out to change the standard in the rap genre.
Not only are A.Vox’s lyrics threaded with meaning, his stage name holds a statement as well. Originally starting out as just “Anonymous,” he created the moniker for his appearance on a friend’s mixtape. “It was originally an acronym that stood for ‘Another No One Nobody but Yahweh Might Otherwise UnderStand.’ I kind of had a double meaning, because I didn’t want to be identified directly and I also thought that it was better that people focus on the merit of the words, than who was saying them (something that, unfortunately, so many people apparently lack the ability to do). There was also the stated meaning which, was basically saying that I was just another nobody, like everyone, that nobody but God himself would understand if it weren’t for the words I spoke as an artist. The Vox is something I picked recently because I’ve always been kind of uncomfortable with the name Anonymous because it’s so commonly used in so many contexts and that doesn’t exactly make for good marketing. Vox being the Latin word for voice, it kind of just made sense in context of the original meaning of the name, and I think it just sounds cool. So the name is now Anonymous Vox or as a some of my friends and fans call me, Avox.”
Even though he’s just starting in his musical endeavors, A.Vox has still faced some pretty daunting obstacles. On the subject of the biggest challenge he’s faced, he said, “As a musician, my biggest challenge is overcoming my own insecurities as an artist and trying to avoid the pitfall of following someone else’s character. Success in music is so often measured by fame and exposure, so it’s difficult to not try to pander to people by emulating what’s popular. Staying genuine and just having faith in yourself and your message, so that you can honestly connect with people who will relate to your music and be REAL fans.” With a positive message and a career that is just blossoming, A.Vox is ready to inspire and motivate the minds of our valley. Be sure to check him out on Facebook at facebook.com/AnonymousVox, and see his first live performance this Saturday, 11/30, at the Hood Bar and Pizza with the return of Boycott Radio and What the Funk.
