MOOD: WORK 2 HARD 🧱

“I work too hard for my name to let you come put dirt on it…”
- Zoey Dollaz, Work 2 Hard

Peace, First name / movemaker and happy MAJORMOOD Monday! I’m gonna keep it 100 on this one (especially since it would be inauthentic of me to research an artist in 7-days time)… but, I’ve only heard two Zoey Dollaz tracks in my lifetime. I will say, the ones I have listened to – I have FULLY RINSED, day-in & day-out, on repeat, drilling the deep messages & emotions into my soul. Mainly the messages from Work 2 Hard as the other tune is a bit more bleak… Regardless, it's an honest bop called ‘Devil In My Bed’... and we love honesty. 

With that said, today's newsletter is going to take an unconventional approach. Mercifully, right as I was about to give-up and accept that this weeks email would be weaker than the previous, I turned the page while reading Rick Rubins, “The Creative Act: A Way of Being” and BOOM…I found meaning. I found purpose – and most importantly, I found truth worth writing about. Still with me? (keep scrolling for storytime with Gi)

 

Storytime: In 2020, I had built up the courage to move to London for the release of my grime album. At the time, I was managing a collective of artists that I had worked with since 2015, a few of whom I had been friends with for years prior to that. Without giving too many details, it was quite literally a MAJORMOVE for me to up and leave NYC without 'my team', and at the time who I thought was my family. 

 

As an avid runner, I made sure to keep that same energy when I arrived to London – but for some reason (or now, for obvious reasons) I would listen to “Work 2 Hard” on repeat, non-stop, for the entirety of my 3-mile run. The lyrics resonated so deeply: ‘I work too hard for my name to let you come throw dirt on it…’ Of course I was proud of the hard work it took for me to get to where I was, but there was also something more profound to consider…

The Deeper Meaning:  Although I was very boldly writing about the relationships that I had outgrown in my music (i.e. Ghost & Bruh), and simultaneously listening to songs that directly correlate to that reality (i.e Work 2 Hard), my soul was simply not ready to fully embrace the truth just yet. Thanks to Rick Rubin's sentiment on "emotions hiding in deeper layers of the psyche"…I feel much less insane realizing that I actually wrote this music while still working with the people it was written about!

It was a difficult process, realizing that these people weren't my people, and perhaps more importantly – that I wasn't theirs either. I do give myself grace as I had dedicated years to this collective – and to complicate things even further, I also lived with them. I guess at the time, I just didn't realize that length of time doesn't necessarily equate to quality of friendship.

 

What I've learned from Rick? The written word seems to be an important window into subconscious truths. There's is a certain validity given to an emotion once it hits paper. At the same time, I find it important to note that these emotions may not always be the 'end all be all,' but rather, a part of a larger and evolving narrative. (we're almost there…stay with me).