Today we’d like to introduce you to Prince Byaza.
Prince, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’m a 25-year-old Hip-Hop Artist, Poet, and Overall Creative. My story begins in the Eastern rural parts of The Democratic Republic of The Congo. My siblings and I moved to Irving when I was ten and I’m currently residing in Dallas. I came here, speaking no English and quickly turned to music and writing poetry to incorporate myself and learn about the new world that I was entering. I began making music my senior year in High School with my cousin Andy Benwa. We released two projects together, ‘Poetic Rhymes’ and ‘Panspermia,’ to introduce our stories to the world. I released my first EP titled “The Calm Before The Storm” in 2016 and I’m finishing up the sequel Album, In The Midst Of The Storm’, which I’m releasing the full album with Videos this fall.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Not at all. It’s been the total opposite. Early 2015 while my cousin and I were working on ‘Panspermia,’ I got charged with a felony charge in January 2015. Which I fought for almost a year and had to serve three months for the alleged crime in February of 2016. 2017 My music partner ‘One Plug,’ who’s featured on “What’s Next,” the first single from the Album, lost the felony case he was fighting and got sentenced to 20 years. So that made me have to completely change the initial plan and how I would continue moving forward.
So I started working on the album in 2018. Then in the first week of the summer. My nephew and Godson Drew Byaza passes away from a drowning accident at a pool, which left devastated and looking for answers. But I find myself homeless living out of my truck and sleeping on my Friend’s Antone’s couch for a couple of weeks. But I end up finding a place to live in the Pleasant Grove area. Then my manager Beni Christian and I decided it would be a better marketing move to just drop the songs from the album one by one as singles to see who’s listening to my music and from where, while I also deal with the tragic loss and try to pick myself up off the ground.
A year goes by and I’m getting great reviews and results from the songs and videos I’ve released so far, then on July 6th, 2019 My manager suddenly passes away on his birthday from complications with his Sickle Cell Anemia he battled with his whole life. Now I’m finishing up the project with the strength of those three young men with me. And This Project is dedicated to them.
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
My work is a reflection of life and a representation of my thoughts and dreams. My specialty is my lyricism and ability to capture a listener’s ear with the witty and clever lines in my Art.
My medium is the minds of those who dream without boundaries. The minds of those who alter the status quo. Those who dare to revolutionize the current standards of modern thinking, music, and culture. Me being born in Africa but raised in America, I feel plays a big role in my Art. I want to create a bridge between my people back home, Not only in Congo, but all of Africa, and my people out here in America. Cause we’re all fighting the same war of just trying to make it in this world, but fighting it on different fronts and we often feel we’re alone. The proudest moment is when I saw that I have listeners in all of the continents and it continues to grow. All the way from Australia, Spain, China, Brazil, Italy, and South Africa. It shows me just how powerful this music can be and how far it can take me. Another proud moment is when we teamed up with the music Streaming company co-founded by my Manager Beni, SoleMusic and Big Face Music Group and we threw the first annual Turkey Giveaway last year and we gave away 100+ free turkeys to the community. That’s something that he would always stress and I know he was very proud of us for doing that in his honor.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
None at all. They say luck is when preparation meets timing and I’ve taken the time out to not only study the ones who came before me but also the industry and how these labels operate. Everything that I’ve received has been through work, reading, learning, my Mother’s sacrifice and God’s Glory.
Contact Info:
- Website: PrinceByaza.com
- Phone: 9729222633
- Email: Princebyaza@gmail.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/PrinceByaza
- Facebook: Facebook.com/PrinceByaza
- Twitter: Twitter.com/PrinceByaza
Image Credit:
Klaszic Vizuals
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