Some two years since he originally planned to perform his 2020 album 'South West', South West Sydney rapper and social advocate L-FRESH The LION will finally take to the stage in his home-town region when he plays Parramatta Theatres next week with fellow Western Sydney artist Barkaa.
An album that celebrates his home town, 'South West' features themes of empowerment L-Fresh paying tribute to the hard-edged, survive and thrive, underdog mentality that is the heart and soul of South West Sydney.You've had a number of shows in recent weeks including WOMADelaide; how has it felt to get back on stages performing to a live audience?
It was special to be back performing in front of live audiences again after so long.
It really hit home just how much I've missed being on stage. There was definitely some emotional moments of appreciation where I stopped just to take in the view from the stage.
You're performing a home-town show of sorts as part of Great Southern Nights in Parramatta with Barkaa at Riverside Theatres; is it extra special as an artist to get play to your heartland particularly given you haven't had the opportunity to tour your 'South West' album?
Most definitely. Especially because the whole 'South West' album rollout was supposed to be focused on local, South West and Western Sydney.
We had a lot of things planned to do in real space in the area and COVID robbed us of the opportunity to do that, for sure. A lot of the album was written with live shows in mind, so to be back on stage this past month has been great.
It's just reminded me and my team just how special the live show we have is – centred around songs from the 'South West' album. So to finally get the chance to play those songs in Western Sydney is very exciting. It's been a long wait.
You posted on your socials that you plan to go deep with the songs at this show, sharing stories about your own life, living in Western Sydney... what can attendees expect from the show?
It's a moving experience. The show, from top to bottom, is passionate, fiery, energetic while at the same time intensely personal and intimate.
I haven't built a show like this before. I've maybe had flashes of it in the past, but this show feels different. It's like the feeling you get in a moment of realisation, when everything clicks and then feels right in a way that it hasn't quite before that moment.
People will see and experience something they haven't experienced at a show, let alone a hip hop show, before.
What does it mean to be able to share the stage with another strong, fierce Western Sydney artist in Barkaa?
Barkaa is for real. She's something else. Whenever she touches the stage, it's like she's not there alone. Her voice and her lyrics hit deep. It's an honour to share the stage with her.
You describe 'South West' as a letter to your 13-year-old self with a bunch of lesson... what do you hope young people who hear it take away from it?
A confidence and reassurance in who they are and where they come from. I hope they feel that they are valued and important, and that they realise what I did later on in life: that they don't need any outside/ external validation in order to feel like they belong.
Our belonging isn't dependent on anybody else 'accepting' us. We can build, create, shape our own worlds in ways that are unique to us and they don't need to be compared to a colonised set of expectations in order to be valued in any way. We are who we are.
To be able to release a song, 'Mother Tongue', in your native Punjabi language; how much did that nourish your soul as an artist to showcase that side of your artistry?
That song was the hardest to put out in to the world because of how vulnerable it is.
The song touches on my biggest regret in life, which is letting go of and losing touch with my mother tongue language of Punjabi. Whenever I hear it or perform it, it stirs up a lot of emotions of loss, guilt, remorse and shame.
It's a tough one, but it's very necessary, and it's not an uncommon experience here. It's part of our collective migration story, the cost that comes with settling here and feeling the pressure of what has been a toxic assimilation culture on top of colonial campaigns to wipe out Indigenous languages and cultures.
The byproduct of all of that is this tough, shameful reality of dealing with losing language. It's deep.
Where are you at with the next L-FRESH record?
I'm working on it right now. I don't know if it'll be an album or EP or a collection of singles. For the first time, I'm going in to the studio with no expectations or plans and just pouring out whatever's inside.
I've been through a lot since 'South West' dropped and even before then given that the album was finished 1.5 years before we released it. Obviously there's the pandemic and the uncertainty it's created, but outside of that, my life has changed a lot, so I'm taking all of those experiences with me in to the studio and using that as the foundation for new music.
I'm loving the process and the songs that have been coming out of these sessions.
Penning the Sydney Kings team song 'We The Kings'; how did you approach that project especially given you were creating an anthem for Kings fans to rally around?
The approach was simple. To create something that would excite me as a Kings fan and as a hoops fan.
Basketball has been a huge inspiration for me in life. I've always imagined writing something for the sports that have influenced me like basketball, cricket, AFL. Hoops is #1 on that list and so when this opportunity came about, I was stoked.
I put together a small team of producers to work with on it, and we went in and smashed it out in a day. It was easy to write because I'd been dreaming about doing something like this for a long time.
Can the Kings maintain their current momentum? Is the championship this season a possibility?
Yes and yes. Never count out the Kings, doesn't matter where they sit on the ladder. We ain't a city of quitters.
Every time we step on the court or on stage or wherever, we're giving it our best because people expect nothing but the best from a city like Sydney. They're on fire right now. Hopefully it carries over in to the postseason, all the way to championship. They have the team for it. And the organisation and the culture there is great.
I'd love to hear 'We The Kings' playing while they're lifting up the trophy. That's goals right there.
Since you addressed the UN Headquarters in New York, has that opened any doors – culturally and socially – that you weren't expecting?
Getting in the door there was an achievement, that's for sure. I count my blessings every time I remember that moment. Who would have thought that a kid from South West Sydney would be rapping inside the UN HQ? That was crazy.
It's always a talking point whenever I'm speaking or doing an interview because it's not an every day thing for an artist, musician or a rapper to do.
Your music featured in the indie film 'Here Out West'; that must've been an extremely proud association given the local, grassroots team that brought that story to life?
Oh for sure. It's a special film. I remember watching the rough cut and being blown away by it. It feels like a groundbreaking moment for Western Sydney in film and cinema. I'm grateful to be a part of it.
I feel like my music and my journey represents a breakthrough of barriers in a similar way. So there's a synergy there on that level too. I'm excited for more and more people to see the film and for those actors, writers, producers, directors etc. to get more opportunities to showcase their talents and their stories.
L-FRESH The Lion and Barkaa play Riverside Theatres (Parramatta) 8 April.
