American rapper, 19 year old Silento, well known for his infectiously popular hit dance track, “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)”, performed at post-race concert during Electric Run 2017. The young but talented artist aims to introduce new breath to the hiphop scene. Silento switches up from rap to singing and infuses hip-hop with hints of R&B. Indonesian pop princess, ELS, was performing onstage together with Silento, promoting her newly released single “Slide”. Elisakh Hagia, or known as ELS, was the only singer and dancer from Indonesia who performed at the largest dance competition in United States, Urban Street Jam 2017. The young artist who first learnt singing through Youtube,and then started training with professional vocal coach, Lucky Tampilang, had been collaborating with popular young artists and kicking off her music career. It was a wonderful opportunity to interview these uprising young artists just before Electric Run 2017.
Concertkaki: Hi Silento, hi ELS, nice to meet you and welcome to Malaysia!
Silento & ELS: Thank you! Nice to meet you too.
Concertkaki: As this is your first time in Malaysia, are you excited about it?
Silento: Yes, I’m feeling very excited to see some fans I have never seen before, and give them the performance they have been waiting for.
Concertkaki: We heard that you have just came back from Jakarta and it’s a sold out show. Can you tell us more about it?
Silento: Yes! It was so crazy! When I went into the venue, I heard everybody screaming, like the whole building was shaking. It was so overpacked. I can do nothing more but to thank my fans for everything.
Concertkaki: As you and ELS arrive Malaysia together, we expect both of you guys would be performing “Slide” onstage together?
Silento: Yes, we are.
Concertkaki: Can you tell us more about the collaboration between you?
Silento: Well, I’ll let ELS talk about it.
ELS: So, I emailed him 2 years ago and I asked him to collaborate together. Someone showed him the email and yeah.
Silento: I was in Dubai, and I got a call from Uncle Mike, shout out to Uncle Mike, and he told me about ELS and that she was 9 years old. I was always up to working with kids who are younger than me, cause I inspire them a lot. They send me the song, I knocked out the verse, and as soon as left Dubai, I flew to LA and shot the video.
Concertkaki: That’s very good to hear. Next, how do you get started in the music industry?
Silento: I got started in the music industry just by living in Atlanta.There’s a lot of music, dancing, singing, rapping going on.”
Concertkaki: What can we expect from Silento in the future? What are your upcoming goals?
Silento: In the future, for me, you can expect the unexpected, because I’m doing everything different. So creatively, you won’t even expect.
Concert kaki: When you were growing up as a kid, were there any particular artists that were your major influences?
Silento: I really like Justin Bieber, I love Justin Bieber. I like rappers too, as long as it’s inspirational. I like Usher, Robin Thicke.
Concertkaki: Is there anything else that you would like to say about Silento? Anything that would help your fans to know you better?
Silento: Well, I’m 19 years old and I recently graduated from high school. The only reason that I don’t have another song , guys, is because I stayed in to get my high school diploma. So don’t you give up on your dreams, you can pursue your dream and achieve them, even in school. I’m just here to tell you guys, stay in school, stay positive and chase your dreams. They can be accomplished at a young age and don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t do it, cause I didn’t.
Concertkaki: That’s all for the interview. Thank you for your time and we’re looking forward to your show after the Electric Run later on.