Our latest performer Olawole "OLA" Zaccheaus took to the God Is Dope stage with a powerful performance. Check out this weeks highlighted performance.
The 26 year old first generation Nigeria American R&B singer graced our stage with an enthused and vibrant sound. OLA was born in Plainfield, New Jersey and now calls Atlanta his creative home. Check out his performance of "Session 32" x "Chicago Freestyle" Mashup by Summer Walker and Drake featuring Giveon, as well as his original track "IM A STAR". He is accompanied by talented local guitarist Tyler Victoria.
Would you interpret your skills as a gift from God or a learned talent?
I would describe my skills as a continuous gift from God. I was blessed with a great raw talent but I always tell the people around me that I brag about God really blessed me with a work ethic and deep passions to pursue. Growing up, and even sometimes now, I have felt like I’m not the best singer in the world but I have worked to be the best because I believe I can and we all know ‘faith without action is dead’
What genre would you classify your music as?
I usually wouldn't classify my music because I change a lot but for the sake of others, I say that I make R&B music. I have experimented with a lot of different genres, especially being a writer and I knew I never wanted to be tied to any one thing, so I quickly created vibes that would challenge peoples idea of R&B whether that be in production or lyrically. I’m a creative and creatives need to be creative, not labeled.
How were you introduced into your love of music?
I was introduced to music from a very young age. I recall my mother buying me Michael Jackson’s Invincible album when I was a child and there was something about that musicality that stuck with me, especially the song Butterflies. From then I would fall in love with music from Usher, *NSYNC, Chris Brown and many more really trying to imitate their moves and singing notes. As I grew older, I started acting in school productions and it wasn’t until one of these productions did a re-enactment of High School Musical that I was challenged to actually use knowledge I gained while practicing in front of teddy bear audiences. I was casted as ‘Troy’, killed the performance and from then knew I wanted to pursue music.
What emotions do you hope to invoke with your music?
Music is really just a piece of me and my life but it has been so instrumental in exposing my weaknesses, insecurities and desires. It has also helped build great confidence and audacity within to be fearless & also to believe in myself and the talents God has given me. So I really hope that my music is an extension of that for people; to be fearless and audacious. The topics that I speak about evoke a lot of different emotions because I make a lot of music, but above all I hope people see and understand my story. There are plenty sacrifices I had to make and the challeneges I had to overcome in order for people to listen whatever song of mine they’re in love with. And when they think of that, I hope that it is immediately met with feelings of hope and inspiration in their own life pursuits because I’m having a ball turning my dreams to reality.
What is your creative process like?
With the insecurities I had being an untrained musician, I use to love to hide in the house to create because I didn’t want anyone seeing me figuring things out. Now, especially working in the industry and being exposed to more writing camps/rooms, I enjoy running face first at those challenges. I use my home studio as a sanctuary to practice writing fast & tapping into various emotions, but I often enter public forums to workout the things practiced at home to see how good I really am.
What project(s) are you currently working on?
For a while I think I became bored with music so I recently challenged myself to release a new song every week for a year. At the time of this interview I released week 49, but by the time it’s live, I would be achieved my goal. After this I plan to promote all the songs as an album and stay in peoples face with amazing visuals & brand partnerships. I wanted to prove to myself that I wasn’t a fluke in music so I set out to do this for myself despite whatever anyone else might ever say about me. I know I’m suppose to be here doing music, being creative and I’m excited to show the world what I have to offer.
Check out OLA's discography down below for more R&B hits. Be sure to follow his for more updates and his latest releases and song drops. Also be on the look out for our next performer. Be the first to know when we release our next session by subscribing to our YouTube channel. Comment down below if you enjoyed his performance and if you are excited for the next God Is Dope performance.
