Interview : Harold Harper

For forever, really, adults have been telling kids to "Be a leader, not a follower." It's a saying as old as time, and I can feel my eyes sarcastically rolling back just reading it. It rings true, though, especially when it comes to music. In order to make it, you have to stand above the rest and show that your sound is unique. For Tampa, Florida-based producer Harold Harper, he plans to do just that.

BORN and raised in Tampa, Harold still resides in the city that he says is enthralled by its culture. "It's really a melting pot in terms of culture." He says being in Tampa is a little different from everywhere else in Florida, which rings true for many states with multiple big cities. "Orlando is like the souped up version of Tampa." Coming from a city rich with a diverse culture, it was only a matter of time before Harold's creativity began to kick into gear. "I first started (producing) when I was probably 13 or 14. I had broke my foot playing football, so I had a lot of free time. What got me into producing was watching old Soulja Boy videos, and I saw he used FL Studio. Then I just downloaded it and started learning the program. I used to be a huge Soulja Boy fan." (I can't relate to this in terms of producing, but third grade me fucked HEAVILY with "Crank That".)

BESIDES Soulja Boy, Harold has been artistically influenced by "Alice Glass, Gerard Way, SpaceGhostPurpp, and Southside". He's also been lucky enough to collaborate with a few people, most notably BIGBABYGUCCI. "I make every genre of music so when I work with him, I can fully express myself because he's as versatile as me musically." BIGBABYGUCCI has been a frequent collaborator with a lot of the artists that we've interviewed, solidifying his role as a major rising player. Harold has also worked with Forever World, another group that has established a presence on Burbs. He got involved with the group because he "...used to work with Lil Coupe and then I sent beats to BBG, then eventually started working with my boy Austin Skinner."

HAROLD is the leader of his destiny, and he's taking full control when it comes to achieving his goals, and he's set out a few. "I wanna live in Seattle eventually... I love that kind of weather... Everyone wanna live in LA... They just followers." Harold is making it known that he's not a follower, and this has helped push him into a new level of originality. One of Harold's goals is truly unique, as he's trying to make a different type of sound. "...recently I've been doing scores because I wanna score a film eventually." Traditionally, producers aren't seen as movie composers, but Harold is determined to change that. He wants to keep making beats while trying to score a movie, and he wants to be the absolute "...best producer of all time..." When it comes it comes to being a composer, Harold wants to be a revolutionary. "I also wanna change the way films are scored. I feel like its boundaries when it comes to what type of music you should use for what scene and what type of music is on the soundtrack in general."

Harold clearly has a vision, and if he stays committed to being the leader of his destiny, there's no reason why he can't become the best producer/composer around. The sheer determination to succeed will propel him forward in his career, and he will carve out a name for himself. "PHASE 1 coming soon."

You Can Follow Harold Harper on his Social Media Below :

Twitter : @haroldharperjr

SoundCloud : Harold Harper