Q&A: Vulnerability, Love and Youthful Celebration With Boslen
SACRIFICE COUPLED WITH SUCCESS — is the latest reflection Boslen tackles in his new single, “Tell Me Why.” Released in November, the track adds another introspective song to Vancouver-based artist’s truthful approach to hip-hop.
A romantic framework relays the theme of sacrifice in “Tell Me Why.” Boslen sings, “I know money and fame will never bring back the days of me being by your side.” He’s not the surface-level type, proven by previous songs such as “MANIC” and “MY WAYS,” in addition to the way he carries himself.
And yet Boslen has a talent for wrapping up complexities in digestible ways. The main theme of “Tell Me Why” may be sacrifice and its ripple effects, but sonically the track is bright.
The more you listen to Boslen’s signature low voice — which he challenges in “Tell Me Why” with higher notes — the more you begin to recognize the story behind the tune. Past the name brands (“Shawty got them Prada leather boots”) and typical hip-hop trap sounds, there are confessions: “The harder that I try, the less I get it right.” The greatest strength of the song are the moments in which truth shines through.
However, Boslen also adds in, “I don’t even mind.” Each aspect of “Tell My Why” is a balance of pain and pleasure, as success tends to be. Originally from Chilliwack, British Columbia, Boslen moved to Vancouver to pursue music. Since then, the JUNO-nominated dreamer has himself become a prime example of when sacrifice pays off.
Read below as Boslen talks about how The Place Beyond the Pines inspired “Tell Me Why,” his thoughts on hip-hop in 2023, his refined approaches to creativity, and goals for his upcoming album in 2024.
LUNA: Could you talk about the theme of sacrifice in “Tell Me Why”?
BOSLEN: The theme of sacrifice [came from my] mindset [while working] in Toronto. I was sacrificing time with my mother, sacrificing time with all of my nieces, my family, my girlfriend, and time with friends. We forget how much time we are serving to people. As a young man, time is one of the most important things that you can give to people. [Thinking of] when you’re spending so much time on your career, that’s where I brought up the theme of sacrifice. I felt that I was sacrificing a lot of moments that I could have with the people I love for things that only I love. It’s not like my five-year-old niece loves my career — she just wants her uncle Corben. So that’s where I was bringing up those feelings of sacrifice.
LUNA: There’s a lot of introspection involved in the making of the song, but sonically it’s very upbeat and feel-good. How do you find that balance?
BOSLEN: I think it’s a personal taste. I don’t listen to a lot of sad music. I know that for some people, when they listen to sad songs it actually makes them feel better. But for me, songs that talk on darker themes but bring light to it are what I am always more inclined to listen to and gravitate towards. When it came to “Tell Me Why,” I [was] finding the feeling of hopefulness or living in the moment and just being free. I was in the midst of performing festivals and traveling, and there was a feeling in the air that I wanted to capture.
LUNA: The song was inspired by The Place Beyond the Pines. It’s a heartbreaking movie that really makes you think. What about it specifically did you connect with to the point that it inspired a song?
BOSLEN: Building off the term sacrifice, when I was watching that movie, I noticed that the main character was sacrificing a lot of things for his family and his loved ones. I resonated with that. Near the end, the movie shows that one of the characters was able to ride a motorcycle and buy it [like his father]. That was a perfect moment because it showed how [the character] never met his dad but he was still able to build off of his traits and his morals. Personally, I’ve never been that close with my birth father but I hear that he was an actor and a singer. So I thought that was a cool moment as well.
LUNA: Thanks for sharing that. The theme of generational impact definitely makes it a powerful movie. I also want to talk about your new sound that we’ve heard in 2023. On GONZO in “MANIC,” you said, “Way too many people try to bleed for the fame / I’d rather let my mind grow.” I mention that because the new sound we’ve heard in 2023 is definitely indicative of both an artist and a man growing in confidence. I think there’s a new playfulness, sonically. “Crazy”really surprised me. Your new releases are an evolved sound that present some fun at the same time—that’s confidence.
BOSLEN: It’s my job to constantly evolve and it’s my job to constantly reflect on myself and look internally to be the most authentic person I can. With GONZO, I was in a completely different headspace. It’s [always] a reflection of the environment I’m in and the mood I’m in. I used to believe that making so many different genres of music is confusing. I get that consumers hear something and say, “Oh, he sounds like Travis Scott.” I am self-aware enough to know that the eight billion people on Earth don’t know me, so in a way I have to kind of conform but also innovate to be original. That’s something I’m currently going through. I could make [more songs like] “MANIC” and “LEVELS” but I feel like I’m in a state of my career right now where, although a lot of people want me to rap, rap is also dying.
And I love making songs like “Tell Me Why.” I love making songs on the guitar and funky songs that make people dance and feel good while they’re working their nine-to-five jobs. The majority of people on Earth are not in the music industry. I feel like it’s so easy to think that they are because I live in this small bubble of my life. So I’m trying to be self aware, but at the same time make real music so that I don’t just talk about the things I’m going through because that’s selfish. I’m trying to break the third wall and make sure that it is relatable and there’s real emotion to it. We’re all sacrificing stuff—it’s not just me. We’re all on social media, we’re all dealing with mental health issues, and we’re all second guessing our decisions.
LUNA: You said it’s your job to constantly innovate. I think that not every artist would feel that way as they find their niche styles. That’s an intelligent approach to artistry.
BOSLEN: I love innovation and I love pushing sound. I think it’s because someone has to do it. Like, Tyler, the Creator winning rap album of the year two years in a row—someone has to be the next. That’s the point of all of this, isn’t it? To inspire the youth, to push forward, and to pass the torch. Maybe it’s just me because I came from an extremely competitive childhood. I was competing for my parents’ attention with all my siblings, I was competing in sports, I was competing to be myself in an atmosphere [where I was] the only Black and brown [person]. It’s always kind of been like that.
I definitely use it in my career. Rap and music—it’s in a really weird place. With AI and with everybody thinking that they can make music and just blow up on Tik Tok, we’re losing the true art of music. Taste levels are just lowering because of consumerism and how fast we consume shit. I was thinking about it the other night. If I have to stay at a certain level but I get to make whatever the hell I want and I know that it’s tasteful and it can last the span of ten years, then I’ll do that.
LUNA: A lot of what we hear on the radio these days, I like to call it “hip-pop.” I agree, there is something that’s being lost. You said rap is dying, but do you think it’s changing into something new or are you noticing a downfall?
BOSLEN: I think there’s a lot of copying people or recycling things. From lyrics to the tempos to the keys—everything around rap is just very copied. I feel like now more than ever, there are no pillars to it. People aren’t really saying anything. Maybe I’m just [being] critical because I make music, but it [seems like] zombie music, if that makes any sense. I’m not trying to shit on rap. I love rap. I respect people and rap. I’m really just saying that we’re losing a lot of art in it.
I think another thing in rap is [thinking about] kids. It’s like either listen to someone promoting satan in your face or someone promoting that girls are just sex beings. That’s all we hear. And I’m just talking about mainstream rap. I feel like we’re so used to it now as consumers that we’re just like, “Oh, that’s always been there.” But it’s not necessarily always been there. There was an era where Kid Cudi was dropping songs like “Soundtrack 2 My Life.” There was an era where Kendrick was talking about how the Black man is fighting America, and that was in the mainstream. People were raging to those types of things at festivals. Now kids don’t really have a decision other than to look backwards or stay in the present with their peers. I feel like that’s where I see it as my job to innovate and make [new] options [for] these kids because that’s what I had when I was a kid.
LUNA: I actually noticed that a lot of Canadian hip-hop artists have been breaking through that, yourself included. There’s a rapper named Ollie out in Toronto. His music is from the soul and every word is his truth. But like you said, he’s not in the mainstream. I also want to say that you, as an artist, are the picture of what it means to be a dreamer. For listeners around the world, especially young boys, you’re providing a hopeful voice that advocates constant growth. That pushes back and it makes a significant impact.
BOSLEN: Thank you, I appreciate that. It’s also just fun doing this [laughs].
LUNA: You gotta have fun in order to do all the other stuff.
BOSLEN: Exactly.
LUNA: Getting back to the newer sound we were talking about, I feel like GONZO was a necessary vulnerability needed to move forward. Almost like you needed to lay it all out to get to the playfulness you’ve reached now. Is that accurate to say?
BOSLEN: A thousand percent. I was looking at all my albums and [what] I want to continue to always find, no matter what, is vulnerability. I think vulnerability, love, and youthful celebration are the three themes you’re forever going to find in Boslen’s sound. That can be in a tonality of “LEVELS” where I’m screaming at you, or it can be in the sound of “GONE” where it’s just my voice singing on a broken sound that’s very vulnerable. I think vulnerability allows me to be human and take off the mask. I can say things that I probably couldn’t say to somebody face to face.
LUNA: Your next album is coming next year. Firstly, congratulations. If you had to narrow it down, what are one or two new things you’ve learned since DUSK to DAWN that you’re applying to the new one?
BOSLEN: This year, in a nutshell, was my learning curve with me only dropping two songs and saying that I was going to drop an album, then taking some time to think. A lot of people have their own opinions about that. When I’m coming off a Juno-nominated project, instead of keeping my foot on the gas, I release two new ideas just to see and they’re both definitely in pop. Everyone gets kind of confused. Why is he wearing a suit? Why is he dropping “Crazy?” So I think one thing I’ve learned the most is to trust my opinion. I know I need to listen to the ones around me and trust everybody, of course. But at one point, I was listening to so many opinions because I love everybody so much and I want to hear them but by the time it got to me, what I wanted to do, I had forgotten. Then it got very messy.
[So what I learned is remembering] my opinion at the end of the day before I go into the decision of asking somebody—and I know that sounds so simple, but when you’re rolling out a massive album with budgets behind it and deadlines, you’re going to ask a lot of people. Another thing that I learned going into this new project was that you don’t need to dress up or throw hundreds of thousands of dollars at something to get the same idea across. I learned that the hard way. I’m sure I could go off on a thousand things, personal things, I’ve learned and how I’ve grown as a man. There are so many things, but I think those two points definitely helped me in my career.
LUNA: You said it sounds simple to find your authenticity again, but I think that’s sometimes one of the hardest things you can do. It’s definitely one of the bravest things you can do.
BOSLEN: It’s fun, though. I think that’s what I keep convincing myself [laughs]. This isn’t just a job, it’s a way of life. And this new project, I’m very excited about it. I don’t want expectations. I don’t want anything. I just want you to love it or hate it. That’s it.
LUNA: So I won’t ask you, “What can we expect from the album?” I’ll ask you this instead: After the album releases, what are you expecting for yourself? What are you hoping for?
BOSLEN: That’s a very good question—thank you. I’m just hoping for me to be happy and be proud of myself. In the past, I used to care a lot about analytics. This time, I’m not even going to look at it. I’m just going to release the music and hopefully be happy with it because I used to think that I was accomplished and the job was finished once the song hits like ten million streams or something. I’m not saying that specific number, I’m just saying a big number. Then I started teaching myself that the job for me, as an artist, is finished once the song is delivered.
Being proud that you even delivered a piece of yourself to Earth—that should be a pat on the back. I am extremely and will forever be grateful for the people spending countless hours pushing my music and putting it on playlists and billboards. I wouldn’t be anywhere near where I am today without that. I’m just saying for Corben, the kid still inside, I need to just be proud of myself. Once the album is released, I hope that I can just be satisfied.
