Testing 1, 2, 1, 2. Yeah, Ric Flo, in my own house. 

A’ite, I think this intro still works: 

Country bumpkin outside a street fighter, tell tales Pied Piper, like right a graphic designer

Artistic, dyslexic like Einstein. So on fire and bright mind, imaginative and feeling fantastic 

I rectified the bad habits realising the math and the mechanics

Uh, my body’s my temple, the world is my palace

I cup the mic like a chalice and wander land like Alice 

The reflection of intention, creation is magic 

Eclectic mix of influences in my palette, vivid living, harsh realities turn into light and wisdom 

Carpe Diem tattooed to my being, the feeling of freedom, blessed happiness, yes, splendid! 

Transcendent, never ending. Infinitely definitely engulfed in the melody eloquently 

My spirit feeling heavenly, the enemy, open sesame unto energy, sick with no need for therapy 

Ric

I’m a rapper. A care leaver. If you don’t know what that means, that’s someone who’s left foster care. And the mic I’m speaking into now is my chosen object. Like, I’ve always… I guess I found power in using my voice to show a positive narrative. 

Yeah yeah yeah yeah. You don’t need to try so hard, yeah

Especially in regards to my experience in foster care.

Hope all the scars build character. Added contours to the marathon. 

But. I haven’t done a project for myself in five, six years. So lockdown has, ironically, been an amazing time creatively. 

Yes what’s good family?

I was just inspired. I think I even did a Instagram video just like oh, 

– ‘Oi, I’m gassed on the demo I just made.’ 

The time is now: make sure you like be creative and make the most of this moment. 

Like, I don’t want to be working tomorrow. Why not use this opportunity to make the best music or the best creative thing that you’ve done?

I haven’t had distractions, haven’t been doing 101 things, and just being able to write and to let it out… Yeah, my emotions on this mic has been amazing.

Just illustrating how that day’s been spent

Rather than putting pressure on myself to be productive. 

It’s okay to slow down a month just reflect on good memories and just be honest, uh

But also, I know that I’m the sort of person that puts pressure on myself to achieve things that might not be achievable. So my process was, I was like let me just write a verse every day and see how it goes. Just write whatever comes to mind and fill up a page. Just a verse a day, a verse a day, a verse a day, whatever be.

It was… it was freeing. Until I had to just look at my bank account and channel myself into reality. 

How’s your day been? 

Same old regime, self isolated, but I’m still maintaining

Writing on occasions

Struggling with patience

Yeah, so that was definitely a bit more into Covid because – even my tone – I was listening to it last night and I was like, I could have projected this a bit more with enthusiasm.

So how’s your day been? 

But to be honest, that’s probably first or second take and it’s how I felt. 

Hey, how’s your day been?

Same old regime, self-isolated, but I’m still maintaining

writing on occasions

struggling with patience

Like, I was bored. 

I’d rather be locked down on a beach somewhere in Asia

I just wanted to be on holiday.

Instead I’m in bed not knowing what day it is 

On the Gram being unproductive

But it is what it is

Jot it in the pad 

Unproductive becomes timeless 

Rhymes reflect in terms of the crisis

Let’s say the first two weeks, I was just inspired. But then I was the complete opposite of that moment. I was just like, oh God. I’m just… I can’t be bothered.

Hey, how’s your day been? 

Same old regime

Self-isolated but I’m still maintaining

It was nice to just kind of force myself as an exercise to write every day, because just the fact that I documented that moment in time represents a moment that I feel helps others. That track’s a reminder to just, like, look: take each day as it comes. 

Take each day on your ones 

You don’t need to try so hard

We all go through ups and downs 

You don’t need to try so hard

Just look up with the stars

You don’t need to try so hard

–

TV: The National Guard has been deployed to the US city of Minneapolis during a third straight night of unrest that comes in response to the death of an unarmed black man in police custody earlier this week.

So, um, when the George Floyd murder happened, I was recording. It meant that when I used to go on social media, I used to keep my time very short. I remember seeing his name pop up, and then I saw the video. 

That policeman on his neck. 

And it was haunting. But I really tried to like – don’t, don’t internalise this. Let’s just keep it moving with the music, don’t come on social media too much. But then obviously, I just, I kept on seeing it. And honestly, I didn’t even want to talk about my past experiences with racism at first. Because, you know, because I was in a creative space where I was actually trying to be present and just, just wanting to show the abundance of my life now, I didn’t really want to channel myself into traumas and past experiences. So it took a while. 

But the fact that I spoke up about having a bit – well, a lot – of racism in early life of private foster care, where it was like ‘Oh rah, you, your first foster carers were racist behind closed doors, like how can that even happen, and why would social services even let that happen?’ So people reached out to me and said ‘Hey, you sharing your story has made me want to speak up’. It helped others and it was kind of a relief. So that’s why I feel the mic is a quite powerful metaphor – because however you project your voice, it’s needed. Because people are not aware that these things happen. 

And essentially, the mic is a metaphor for… it’s black people projecting their voices. 

Protestors’ voices: 

‘No peace

George Floyd 

No peace

George Floyd

Ahmaud Arbery

Tamir Rice

Alton Sterling

Freddie Gray

Michael Brown

Philando Castile

Sandra Bland

Breonna Taylor

Doug Lewis

Sean Reed

And so many more’