Sometimes good music finds you. That’s what happened when Rome Fortune showed up on my doorstep (uh, email inbox) and I was soon turned on to yet another great rap artist from the south.
Rome Fortune is all about the senses; his fashion speaks to the eyes, his rhymes to the ears. And in his new video, “Jesus Ghouda II,” it all comes together to highlight Rome’s creative vision. Enjoy the video, read the interview:
Rome, just a quick glance at your site and it’s easy to see that you’re a creative guy. Music, photography, fashion – it seems like you’re into it all. When did music take the driver’s seat?
Well, it’s always been in the driver’s seat, but I’ve been in many different environments where you can’t help but take notice in the changes aesthetically. I just like to embrace it more for display and make it infuse the music. Especially seeing young artists conform to what’s cool to cut corners and propel their careers just makes it seem like that’s something I always need to do.
Atlanta’s musical roots go deep. How does living in the south play into your creative process?
It’s just something that’s damn near genetic. Every southern artist has to throw their twist on whatever type of music it is they do. No matter how eclectic you think Andre 3000 is, you never forget that he’s from Atlanta.
Your music isn’t necessarily something someone might hear on a Top 40 station – it’s more mature and deals with some different subjects than a lot of “mainstream hiphop.” How much of yourself do you put into your songs?
Every song is authentic. Meaning I experienced it in some form or fashion. That’s more natural to me. That’s my way of not being the cornball artist saying, “I put my all in my music.”
So, the video for Jesus Gouda II: Why don’t you walk us through the concept?
It’s a metaphor for people’s relationships with their goals. Before you accomplish something, you only know how it is through someone else’s perception of it. So it was just like a “what if?’ What if what I’m working toward doesn’t give the joy that the actual pursuit of it has?
How important are music videos for artists now that the Internet is to go-to source for new music?
I just believe that we are a very visual generation. Subconsciously, it’s like if something isn’t visually appealing to us we aren’t as welcoming as we would be. Tumblr is evidence.
Where do you see yourself artistically in five years?
I see myself behind the scenes of a lot of projects. More visual projects with substance. Film projects are my ideal thing, but I need to educate myself further on that. That’s definitely not a field you bullshit in if you want to be taken seriously. Other than that, I just want to continue to progress and make sure I’m ahead of the curve to substantiate the 5 years after that.
What else should we know about Rome Fortune?
I’m working on my second project with producer Childish Major entitled “Heptagon, Lovely.” That should be pretty ill. My music is very personal so there is no point where I just grab random stories to sound cool or rhyme. When people listen, they will know everything they need to know about me.
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