AUGUSTA, Ga. () – Hip hop artist North Side Will plans on making a name for himself in the music industry and in the world.

North Side Will sits down to discuss the 12 years he spent serving in the U.S. Army and how his experiences have been a source of motivation and inspiration in his musical career.

Welcome to Celebrating Black Excellence. What inspired you to want to get into music?

Honestly, a lot stems from my upbringing. Growing up in North Augusta, South Carolina, our house was filled with music, especially on weekends when we were cleaning. Music was essential to everything I did and every experience I’ve had. Through both high and low points, music was a constant for me. I was naturally drawn to it, wanting to recreate that feeling I experienced in my own home for others, which motivated me to pursue music.

What types of music did you grow up listening to?

A lot of gospel and R&B shaped my early years. As I got older, hip hop made its way into my life, though it was initially restricted by my parents. My older sister would sneak it to me, and I was naturally drawn to it. From that point on, it was something that stayed on my mind and in my ears.

So, you mentioned that you’re originally from North Augusta, South Carolina. How did your upbringing have an impact on who you are today?

I mean, growing up in the 80s, man, it was a lot of the stuff that our parents dealt with. I feel like we were kind of at that middle generation of people that experienced a little bit of the heartaches of being African-American in America and in the South. Then, we kind of saw the tide shift in a little bit more lighthearted direction with kind of more luxuries and freedoms associated with just growing older in life. So, I just never forgot, and I appreciated where I came from, my roots, and it took me a long way in life, and here I am today.

Now, you also served in the military. Which branch?

Army.

Thank you so much for your service. How many years did you serve in the Army?

12 years.

Now, how did serving in the military shape the direction of your life?

I went through a lot of experiences in the military: four combat deployments – 3 times to Afghanistan and once to Iraq. So, I’ve seen a lot of things and been through a lot of things, but I always kept true to my morals. You know, my parents would always make sure that I kept true to my religion. I grew up in the church and so just stuck to who I was and went through what I had to go through to become who I am today. All of it just led to an appreciation for life itself, and so that’s kind of how I operate today.

Now, you mentioned that you listened to different varieties of music growing up. Who are some of your musical influences?

Some of them from gospel, you know, growing up Kirk Franklin, Bebe Winans; going into R&B, of course, like Al Green, Marvin Gaye, The Delfonics, Aretha Franklin; getting into hip hop: 8ball & MJG, Outkast, Pastor Troy, Jay-Z, Nas, Biggie, 2Pac, Scarface, just a lot of different artists. I kind of pull from all of them just to influence me and kind of what I do today.

As a hip hop artist, what is your opinion on the state of hip hop today?

I mean, I think it’s in a good place. I think it’s a resurgence with a lot of people taking lyricism and just substance and content in the music a lot more serious and finding the value and the worth in it and seeing that it’s a different kind of response that you get organically from people when you have that in the music versus when you don’t. The mindset of people changes and just the nature of life changes which is based on kind of having that hip hop presence in music.

You had an opportunity to be a guest on Sway In The Morning. How was that experience for you?

It was mind blowing being able to talk to one of the legends and one of the GOATs not just in radio, but in the culture period. You know, he formed and shaped a lot of kind of what is today from a radio perspective. Culturally, he’s just been a guardian of protecting that and the essence of it. So just being able to communicate with him, Heather B, Tracy G, and all the citizens out there that called in, it was definitely a warming feeling. So, it helped me feel like I’m moving in the right direction. I’m doing a lot of the things that I need to be doing to get to where I’m ultimately trying to go.

When it comes to your music, what are some of your goals or what is the ultimate goal?

Just to make sure that I give back to the listener – kind of like I said earlier with touching back on the music that I grew up with – that feeling. I want to make sure that I put the substance in there that people can walk away from my music or hopefully not walk away from the music, but if it leaves them with something when they walk away from it or when they put it down or if the song changes. So just making sure that I contribute to people kind of how they contributed to me in a musical fashion. That’s ultimately the goal.

Is there anything that we can expect from you in the near future?

Yeah, I’ve got a new single that is going to be released on August 1st with a friend of mine from Long Beach, California. Aside from that, I’m working on a couple of EPs, and hopefully I get one dropped by the end of the summertime. It’s going to be called Free Game. Other than that, just constantly working on stuff. So, it is a never ending cycle.

If people want to learn more about you, or if they want to hear your music, how can they do so?

So if you’re looking to engage with North Side Will, I’m on all social media platforms. Catch me @north_side_will. Also, I’m on Youtube: North Side Will and that’s the same anywhere else. Tap in.