Three years on from the release of his ARIA certified gold album, Cinematic, this time the rapper left everyone waiting, including his record company. “I think I’ve given the people at Warner [Music Australia] heart attacks actually, on a few occasions,” he says. “I only got the masters a few weeks ago, and it was cutting it close to the release date – but it’s all good.”
With Two Degrees finally out there for the world to enjoy, the charismatic yet humble 30-year-old sounds relaxed and excited about hitting the road to play his upcoming album launch shows and a handful of festivals over the summer – but he insists he isn’t always so cool, calm and collected. “There’s always that anxiety I feel right up until the album comes out, and I felt it especially leading up to this release because it was such a long process,” he says.
“I’ve been working on demos since the start of last year and it’s been really full on. I’ve taken my time because I wanted to raise the bar higher and exceed my own personal expectations after the success of Cinematic. I really wanted to improve on that experience and now I feel pretty happy having taken that time.”
The importance of time and knowing how to use it are reoccurring themes on Two Degrees, made clear as Illy explains the meaning behind the title in an earlier press release. “President Obama was asked whether he viewed his presidency as a success, having faced such fierce opposition throughout his two terms. His answer likened society to a ship, where you can’t steer 50 degrees at once, but if you move two degrees then another two degrees, and continue like this, years later you end up in a very different place from where you began. And as long as you’re steering in the right direction and progressing, your impact is made over time. This album is a celebration of moving forward, two degrees at a time …”
“Now, I know that I’m a musician and I’m quoting something by the leader of the free world,” he says. “I know there’s a difference and I’m not that arrogant. But I did see a parallel in that I’m in a very different spot now than when I started my career. I believe that lasting change is something that happens over time, rather than something that can happen in a flashpoint moment.”
Encouraged by the success of his double platinum single Papercuts, Illy’s talent for writing pop lyrics and electronic music is showcased on Two Degrees, while still maintaining his signature hip hop style.
“Everyone thinks in hindsight that it’s easy to see that Papercuts was a no-brainer, but at the time, going out with a track that was completely different to anything I’d done before, was a really big risk. But even when I was coming out of the underground scene in an unknown crew, I was always more involved with melody and different styles than strictly hip hop,” says Illy.
With a total of six unique artist collaborations, including Sir The Baptist, Marko Penn, Tonight Alive’s Jenna McDougall, and up-and-coming Melbourne singer/songwriter Mike Waters, Two Degrees is already touted as being one of the best Australian releases of 2016.
“Having the guts to back myself and finding that confidence is a process that’s taken quite a long time, but I’ve moved slowly and incrementally made changes to my sound to get to a point where I’m making the best stuff of my career.”
Illy says a lot of the credit for the genre-bending tracks should go to his buddy, Grammy award-winning Australian producer, M-Phazes. “Phazes is a world-class producer in my opinion – he’s comfortably the best producer in Australia. That’s not me throwing shade on anyone else, but he’s my homie, we have each other’s back and I feel fortunate. I value his opinion more than anybody else’s because I think he’s deserving of that.”
The album launch can’t come soon enough for Illy. “I can’t wait to play these songs live. I’ve put more of myself in this album than any of the others. I put myself out of my comfort zone in terms of pushing new sounds. I think the title of the album sums it all up – making those changes and being able to look back at the end of it and know that you’ve trusted your gut and that it paid off is a really cool feeling. I’m proud of it and I hope that people like it.”
By Natalie Rogers
