Pheelz can really do it all. The multi-faceted creative outlet is an award-winning artiste, has produced multiple albums that have gone on to win Album of the Year and still find the time for poetry and 3D graphics. For Pheelz, this has always been his life. To express himself through whatever creative channel he finds himself – often times, excelling so well at it that some of his dreams take the backseat.
He decided to learn how to produce in other to make beats for his craft; and from there he became Pheelz Mr Producer. But his artistic abilities could not stay hidden for so long (those with keen ears would have heard his backup vocals on numerous chart-topping songs by the biggest Afrobeats artistes over the years).
However, everything changed for him when a clip of “Finesse” went viral of Tik Tok. The song became so big that they had bring forward its official release and it went on to shatter multiple streaming records in Nigeria. It also made Pheelz the first (and only) individual to have a No. 1 song as both a lead artiste and producer.
In this interview, Pheelz shares his beginnings, adjusting to life as an artiste, his latest EP Pheelz Good and more.
TTC: Pheelz is the first person to have a number 1 song as both an artiste and as a producer, and not just the first, he’s still the only person that’s done that.
P: Izz going, it’s going, wow this is amazing.
TTC: How does it make you feel as a producer having a number 1 song that’s Teni and Davido “For you” and of course as an artiste, “Finesse”?
Pheelz: To be honest, it’s a blessing, I just feel really blessed and grateful, I don’t take it for granted at all and big shout-out to Turntable for presenting me this, at least now i have new frames for the new crib.
TTC: Yeah, that’s true, new crib, new car, Congratulations.
Pheelz: I appreciate it, thank you guys
TTC: Would you have your story reversed, probably start as an artist before being a producer?
Pheelz: I don’t think so, I don’t think I will change anything about my journey, I love my story because I’m really grateful to be where I am today and to have gone through everything that I’ve gone through.
TTC: So, whenever you make a beat now, how do you decide if the music should be for you or for another artist, how does it work now?
Pheelz: To be honest, I don’t know, I’m still battling with that, cause there are some songs that I make and I’m like “should I keep this or should I give it another person”, most of the time I keep it sha I won’t lie, but the people that get beats from me still do, but yeah, it’s still a battle that I still have to fight every day.
TTC: Let’s talk about your new EP, “Pheelz good” what was the state of mind when you made this project?
Pheelz: For ‘Pheelz Good,’ I just wanted people to understand my emotions cause in the whole EP, there are 3 emotions in the EP, it’s the same on the artwork as well. There’s the Lover boy, there’s the bad boy and there’s the Jaiye Jaiye boy. So for the Lover Boy; you have songs like “Stand by You,” “Feels like Summer,” and for the bad boy you have songs like “Finesse,” “Ballin,” “Pablo Escobar” and for the Jaiye Jaiye boy, you have songs like “Ewele” and “Electricity.” It is just interpreting those emotions through a body of work and they all feels good.
TTC: You’ve been winning awards, getting nominations everywhere, shutting down shows as an artiste, you won best collaboration for Finesse at the recent Soundcity MVP Awards, how does the continued success that you’ve been having so far make you feel?
Pheelz: I’m still trying to understand everything to be honest because I’m living through it but all in all, I’m just really grateful, because they say “for every new level, there’s a devil.” But regardless of that I’m still grateful to be here, I’m still grateful to be experiencing the life that I’m living, it’s just gratitude.
TTC: What kind of message would you have for guys that have been grinding, or people that want to get to this level of music that you’ve gotten to or people that are just starting?
Pheelz: It would be to fall in love with the process, whatever it is, whether music or arts or business, whatever it is, just fall in love with the process, there’s really no destination or no result that will make you happy, the process will make you happy, that’s where the juice is, there’s no destination that will give you fulfilment.
TTC: You’re very creative person, you make music, you produce, during the rollout for “Finesse”, you launched your own animated studio where you’ll be able to put graphics, what are some of the other things that you try that people don’t know about you?
Pheelz: I make all my visual arts, just recently I put together a team called “Rii Collective” and we’re doing it together but the whole EP I made the lyric videos; my favorite is Ewele so far cause of the fight scene, if you’ve not seen it, go and watch it. I love that video so much. I make all the cover arts as well for my music. Graphics designer, 3d designer, visual artist, painter, illustrator, I write poems as well in my free time, I’m starting a book very soon.
TTC: Were all of these things there when it was still Pheelz Mr Producer?
P: This is who I’ve always been since I was a child, I’ve always been a writer, I’ve always been an illustrator, I’ve always been a creative, all in all, it was never just music, it was just me creating, that’s who I am, yes the world might have woken up to the music and the production but later on down the line, the world will wake up to other parts of me, I think I’m really awesome, I don’t know about anybody else.
TTC: One thing I’ve always wondered is now that you’re enjoying the success as an artiste, looking back then, did you always feel like “oh yes, I need to do this at some point” or was it something you just stumbled upon? Even the success of Finesse just came out of nowhere.
Pheelz: I didn’t used to feel like that, I knew that I was an artist. The funny thing about everything is that the major reason why I started producing is so I could make beats for the songs that I had written as an artist that was the whole reason why I went into production in the first place. But because I got attention with production and that was bringing in the money based on hustling boy, you just got to focus on that one more but yeah, I was always an artist, I’ve been singing since I was a child, I was a choir master from 12 years old, so this has always been who I’ve been from time, I’m not really changing to become someone else, this is me.
TTC: I love asking people this kind of question, do you still use your talent for the lord? Do you still go to Church?
Pheelz : Is the Church the only place to praise God, didn’t He create the whole world? Why are you confining it to just four walls of a church? Bro, I’m doing the lord’s work, as I’m here I’m doing the lord’s work [he laughs]
This interview is an excerpt from a video interview at the TVC Studio premises during the e-Splash show. You can watch the full interview here.