Meet The Real Li | Rapper & Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with The Real Li and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi The Real LI, what do you want people to remember about you?
I want my legacy to be my music: the songs, the albums, the creativity I’ve contributed to the world. I think I was put here to share my experiences with others who may relate to things I’ve been through in my life. I want to be remembered as someone who gave every part of themselves to the craft. I use music to navigate through my life and I’d love to create soundtrack for others to do the same.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I would say the goal of my music is to make people feel. Whether it be positive or negative, I want the listener to leave with some type of takeaway or emotion. I think what sets me apart from others in music and rap specifically, is that I can bring perspective on stories surrounding my real life that only I can tell. In addition, some of my songs cover unique point of views and stories that may not be from my perspective. To me, my songs are either what I consider to be “moments in time” of life events or my view of the world from the perspective of someone else.

I got to where I am professionally through trial and error, failing countless times, and truly loving expressing myself through music. I started off as a fan of rap music when I was in the 4th grade, and that became the lens I viewed the world with. Eventually, I couldn’t process the world and my life any other way and was drawn to creating my own music. I really identify with the outcast culture within Hip-Hop and saying whatever you feel even if it pushes boundaries.

I want the world to know that I’m just a person who really wants to impact the world and the people in it. If I can make a song that helps get someone through something in their life, that is really fulfilling to me. It’s about impacting people’s lives in a positive way and building a legacy to me above all else. And of course enjoying it while I’m doing it.

My brand as an artist is being authentic to the human version of myself. I’m pretty introverted but still love building connections with people. I’m from Ventura County, CA which is part of the LA Metro area. I really hold that place close to me. Outside of music, my friends and family know me as the person that’s lowkey funny as hell (I know that’s lame to say about yourself but the people who know me know it’s true). Strangers or people who don’t know me would probably see me as “chill” but also not afraid to keep it brutally honest. Also as someone who likes to exaggerate, especially when making a joke.

I’d describe my music as melodic rap/alternative rap. Many of my songs have ambient lead synth melodies and trap drums. A few of the artists my sound is inspired by are Yung Lean, Playboi Carti, Drake, Travis Scott, Billie Eilish, XXXTentacion, and Denzel Curry.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my best friend was visiting Ventura County/LA, I would take them on a hiking trail in the Santa Monica Mountains. I’d take them to Zuma Beach in Malibu, I practically grew up there in the summers when I was a kid. We would do a trip to Fairfax and Melrose in LA to walk around and check out all the shops. Grand Central Market is a must for food in Downtown LA. My favorite food is Mexican food so we could also hit up 3 Amigos for burritos in Thousand Oaks or The Alamo Bar and Grill in Newbury Park. If there was an artist/musician they wanted to see I’d take them to a show at The Forum in Inglewood or to SoFi Stadium. I’m a big fan of sports too, so I couldn’t go wrong with a game at Staples Center or Dodger Stadium either.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to dedicate my shoutout to my friend Dominic Castro aka 24Sevn. He really made it possible for me to ever have a shot at making music. I’ve known him since I was about 3 years old when we became family friends. From a young age, he was highly proficient in music production and audio engineering. He used to beg me to rap in his studio and I would always tell him that I didn’t want to. Fast forward several years, I started making my own rap music on SoundCloud when I was 15. It was pretty low budget, just using a built-in laptop microphone that I would record on in my garage. Dominic had heard I started doing music and brought his entire studio recording setup to my house to get to work with me. He brought beats he had produced and asked me to freestyle to them to see what he was working with. The first song we recorded together and released was called “No L’s” in August of 2016. I was a junior in high school at the time, and to my surprise the song was a local hit. The rest is history.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereal_li/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/TheRealLI_

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thereal-li805

Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereal_li

Image Credits
Keenan Indra