Local artist Darya Faiazi is hoping his desire to grow and promote artists in the Oklahoma City area can incite throngs of musicians to join his cause. A producer and rapper born in OKC, Faiazi has no plans of moving to a city on either coast to pursue fame; his strongest desire is to stay close to his family and build a culture in the city he calls home.
Fresh off the release of his debut EP The Construct, which he dropped on his label Question Records, Faiazi, who produces under the name Bandit Beats, is hoping to parlay the momentum he created at the end of 2014 into an even bigger 2015. The Construct has been in the pipeline since 2013.
“The truth is that it’s been my entire life,” said Faiazi.
He originally got into the OKC music scene when fellow Oklahoma artist Teflon Jon gave him an opportunity to DJ, which, in turn, introduced him to several people in the local hip-hop scene, such as MilitantxMindz and Chris McCain. His entrance into the OKC music scene wasn’t surprising — at least to him.
“I’ve always loved music. It wasn’t until I got a little older that I realized that some of the music I grew up listening to was actually bad,” he said. “Once I realized there was a broader spectrum of music than I had previously been enjoying, that was when I decided to surround myself with more sophisticated and cultured musicians.”
He has made a concerted effort to integrate talented people into Question Records. He is, however, doing so at his own pace. He recently signed Plstknova — the label’s first artist — who released his sophomore album Lights on the label.
“I wanted to be patient and find people who were cool to work with, talented and shared the same passion and ideologies about music that I do,” he said. “The reason I gravitated towards Plstknova is because I enjoy working outside of my comfort zone and I enjoy tackling other genres of music.”
The heavily electronic Lights feature catchy grooves and rhythms and stellar production value.
The Construct, which is currently available on Bandcamp, is both an amalgam of instantly accessible beats and deft lyricism.
“[My influences are] anyone from Flying Lotus to Fleet Foxes, and I think both of them contributed some paint to my musical palette, but the largest blobs of paint belong to Kanye and MF Doom,” Faiazi said.
The Construct shows enough panache and promise to leave listeners anxiously yearning for the next thing from Question Records. Faiazi wants to quickly release something else.
“I have quite a few projects I’m working on; I am allowed to divulge that I’m working on a collaborative EP with a fellow Oklahoma artist,” he said.
Print headline: Catalytic Construct, A rapper and label owner wants musicians to join him to promote local artists.
