Seeing RZ Shahid live for the first time was an experience. Decked out in sunglasses and diamond hoops, the local rapper strode out with little preamble to a packed Cherry Pit show in January. At the time unfamiliar with his work, I watched with fascination as groovy, bass-laden cuts “Warrior” and “Settle Up” brought down the house, Shahid himself navigating the stage with singular cool. Unbeknownst to us all, this was Shahid’s first time performing with a live band, and he’s been on a roll since, dropping his new single “Unplug,” as well as playing stints all over, including at Radio K’s Vanguard, Palmer’s, and the Republic Stage. 

Despite this recent rise, Shahid (pronounced “shy-heed”) kept things humble during our phone interview, preferring to dissect his influences: “Music was literally the only way to calm me down [as a kid]. To put me to sleep, my dad would take me out on car rides. Out on the whip, listening to Scarface, Ice Cube, Jay-Z. My mom would sing me to sleep… songs from Donell Jones. Boyz II Men.” 

Having grown up around music, Shahid initially turned to songwriting and poetry as more of a cathartic exercise. After high school graduation, a friend asked Shahid to feature on a track, and Shahid realized he “was investing a lot in studio time. This was my first time creating, and it was all new, being able to both express myself and release it all on the mic. It was amazing. I fell in love with it all. Producing, editing, doing it myself.” From then on, the rest was history.

A self-professed alternative hip-hop artist, Shahid’s work dabbles with a vast array of sounds, be it jazz, psychedelia, or R&B. Though Shahid cites the greats Kendrick Lamar and Outkast as inspiration, much of his work recalls the best of Joey Bada$$’s hooks or the frank delivery of Vince Staples’ early output. Tracks “Knock Knock” and “Immune” play around with distorted, vaporwave-esque synths. Deep cut “Broken Dreams” interpolates jazz chords and faint woodwinds, lyrics cutting: “Community the ones that hold it down for their people / Fuck a tax bracket, after death we all legal.” 

Throughout our interview, Shahid was remarkably transparent about the recording process, going in depth about vocal effects and demo-making. There’s unseen, painstaking work in sifting through beats, arranging studio sessions, and setting up mixing and mastering. “I put a lot of pressure on myself. I get tunnel vision, sometimes I’ll be up until 4 AM recording, just doing all these takes, trying to get things right.” 

“He’s a self-starter for sure,” frequent collaborator and friend Connor Anderson shared over the phone. “The vision is always clear in his head. He’s always refining, he’s always strategic.” 

Performing, on the other hand, is less methodical. Shahid has a host of unorthodox shows under his belt, including performing on top of a frozen lake as part of the Art Shanty Projects. 

“It was sub-zero out, but it’s okay, they had heated areas!” he reassured me. “It’s weird for me because I’m not super outgoing, I’m not an extrovert… I started out with lots of garage shows, open mics. Now I feel super comfortable, like I’m at a place where I kind of blackout onstage, then snap back to reality when I’m off.” He laughed.

Outside of music, Shahid juggles a host of ongoing projects, including clothing line Art of Xanadu, which includes minimal, athleisure-type fits. An unintentional creation, Shahid revealed he started the line only after people began asking him where he got his merch samples. “It’s just another creative side to me. I want to create comfortable, high quality designs. Nothing too flashy, but it makes you feel nice.”

In the future, Shahid plans to get behind the camera. Having co-directed past music videos with friend Connor Anderson, including “Knock Knock” and “Come Home,” Shahid plans to delve into short film making. What else is next? “More shows! I’m planning on releasing an album sometime late this year or early next year. I will for sure release ‘Warrior’ as a single. And for sure continuing to join in on jam sessions.”

“If somebody doesn’t know RZ, they will definitely be hearing of him soon,” Anderson shared before ending our call. “He is definitely deserving of his flowers. He’s putting in the work. It’s time for him to take off.”