Buddhakai

"To all my 'day ones' from my peoples down to my enemies...I needed both support and the hate to bring out the best in me."

photo by: Brett Littleton

photo by: Brian Godeaux

Q. Thanks for interviewing with us today. Tell everyone who you are and what you do.

A. I am a successful car salesman / life-insurance agent by day, and a super motivational hip hop lyricist by night.

Q. What made you want to pursue a career as a rapper?

A. Growing up, poetry on paper was an escape for me that allowed me to express myself, even if most of it was just for myself or a select few (maybe even for the one it was written for). Rapping opened up the doors for me to take the expression to a next level... Turning it into a profitable career would simply mean that I would be earning great wages for doing something I absolutely love doing now.

Q. Let’s talk about your album “Take Off” and the motivation behind it?

A. “Take Off” is about taking it to the next level. I used to be a cocaine and crystal meth addict. After quitting that, I gained a substantial amount of weight and reached 315 lbs. where I could barely make it up the stairs without struggling to breathe. I was also completely broke and in a ton of credit card and medical debts with a super low credit score... On top of that, I suffered from heavy depression and insecurity. I’ve spent the last 13 years discovering myself and overcoming every one of those struggles. I’m celebrating over 15 years of sobriety, sitting at a healthy 205 lbs. solid, nowhere near broke with a couple of investment properties, a successful career in the automotive industry, and most importantly, I get to live in extreme joy with a beautiful family... my beautiful wife, Jamie... my 3-year- old daughter Araya Lynn and my 8-month-old son, Ziah Reign. Now I want to take off to the next level for 2022.

Q. If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?

A. There are too many to name! Here are a few that I would probably die if I had a song with... Eminem, Nas, Lauren Hill, Method Man. And for the more current artists, I would love to do a song with NF, Lecrae, Andy Mineo and Post Malone.

Q. Who are your top 5 favorite rappers of all time?

A. Nas, Eminem, Lauren Hill, Method Man, NF.

Q. What is one fun fact about yourself?

A. I prefer listening to Broadway Musicals way more than I like listening to rap music.

Q. What do you think is missing in the music waves right now?

A. Me. And I don’t mean that in a cocky sense at all. I simply mean an artist That’s actually overcome a ton of struggles and focuses on writing songs that inspire people based on those struggles. There are tons of artists that write inspirational songs... and they’re great... but their next song is completely the opposite. One second, they sing about something amazing, the next they’re degrading women... it’s almost ridiculous.

Q. Tell us your most memorable accomplishment or achievement you’ve received in your career?

A. Being asked to perform a halftime show at the Pepsi Center for Sparta Combat AVM9 event. That was insane.

Q. Are you working on any new projects or events?

A. A few... I’m always cooking something up... Life continues to happen and evolve, and I continue to rap about it.

Q. Where can the readers follow you?

A. https://www.youtube.com/user/ BUDDHAKAI13 https://www.facebook.com/ Buddhakai13/ https://www.instagram.com/ buddhakai13/ https://soundcloud.com/ buddhakai13 https://bit.ly/BuddhakaiSpotify https://www.iambuddhakai.com/