Durand James Somerville, better known by his stage name, “The Virghost Poet,” is a Spoken Word Artist/ Rapper/Singer/Songwriter/Producer/Promoter based in Memphis, Tennessee. He is best known for his powerful stage presence and how he demands and grabs the attention of the crowd during his breathtaking performances. He is also known for his brilliant studio mind using his creativeness to produce many classic underground hits. Brand Your Music caught up with the MC to talk about his latest EP “The Invisible Man,” the Virghost brand, and how poetry and Hip-Hop influence his overall sound.
How would you describe the Virghost brand?
The Virghost brand will always and forever be R.A.P. (Rhythm and Poetry). I’ve been representing that since day one. If you listen to any of my raps or Spoken Word pieces you will find that my words and ideas are heavily driven by rhythm, whether it be the beat or instrumental I’m writing to or the complex web of rhyme schemes that run through my head when I’m composing. The Rhythm is like the engine that produces all of the ideas, the metaphors, and the similies, thus giving birth to The Poetry.
Explain the name Virghost.
I came up with Virghost a long time ago before I even started performing. I used to post my earlier poetry on these little poetry websites onilne but I didn’t want to use my real name because I was scared one of my family members might stumble across one of my poems and tell my father (whom is a preacher by the way) about the vulgar, yet enlightening things that I had written about. I wanted it to be something that stood out so I just took my zodiac sign (Virgo) mixed it with the word “Ghost.” I chose the word “Ghost” because I felt that my words were my true spirit, the essence of my soul and that part of me will NEVER die. Even when I am dead and gone my words will still be here forever. Plus, Virghost just sound cool. Ha, ha!!!
You’re very talented in the sense that while you do poetry you’re also very musical and have released two mixtapes and an EP. Do you have different influences for when you write poetry versus when you’re writing a song, or is it that the influences are the same but the way they’re portrayed is different?
It’s funny because the one person that inspired me to write poetry was actually a rapper, and that rapper’s name is Nas. Growing up in Memphis I was so acustomed to hearing rappers like Yo Gotti and Three Six Mafia, more club/party oriented music, but when I was first introduced to Nas I was like “Wow!” I had never heard anybody rap about the things that he was rapping about. It was so creative, so analytical, so metaphorical, SO POETIC! It wasn’t even rap to me. It was POETRY!!! Poetry in Rhythm with a beat. I used to think that spoken word and rap were different, but I found out there’re really not. They are the EXACT same thing. As a matter of fact Rap was birthed from Spoken Word! Just go listen to the late Gil Scott-Heron and The Last Poets and you will see. The only difference in my opinion is that the Spoken Word bar can be stretched longer than the Rap bar because it is not confined to a beat. But they both are still the same for me. Once I get in that “mode” they both flow the same.
Talk a little bit about your latest project? What was your inspiration? Who did you work with?
Well, my last project was “The Invisible Man EP.” It dropped April this year under Point Blank Entertainment. The entire album was produced by local Memphis producer Kenny Wayne. It featured some of my label mates from my Point Blank Entertainment family (Megan J, Young Yayo, Ricache’, Major tha Lyricist, and JD Smoove). It also included local vets Jason tha Hater and T-Y. It was basically an introduction of me as an emcee to people who didn’t know or think that I could rap. Most of the people in Memphis that knew about me only knew about me as a spoken word artist because that’s what got me out there. What most people didn’t know, I started rapping the same time I started performing Spoken Word. When I came out back in 2009, the Spoken Word scene was really popping in Memphis so that’s what I focused on. There wasn’t really a big boost in the Hip-Hop scene until Late 2010/Early 2011. By that time I had already established myself in the city as a Spoken Word artist so that’s what people saw me as. No one really took me serious as an Emcee, even though I felt like I could rap just as good as the young emcees that they dubbed “elite” on the Hip-Hop scene. I felt that I was being overlooked when it came to my rap skills. It was like I was Invisible. So I wanted to use this project to make myself visible to the people as an emcee also, so that when I drop my album this Fall, people will be familiar with me as an Emcee. It seems to be working.
Where can people go and get more information about VIrghost?
You can contact me at facebook.com/VirghostPoet.com. You can check out my music on my bandcamp page at virghostmemphiasco.bandcamp.com. For all other inquires visit pbenation.blogspot.com .
http://www.musicthread.net/2011/08/04/brand-your-music-interview-series-with-virghost/
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