Trilly! Talks Coming up in Atlanta, Crafting a Unique Sound & More in Exclusive Interview

modrNation: Where are you originally from?

Trilly!: I’m originally from Westside Atlanta.

modrNation: Take me through the origin story, how did you get started making music and what was it like growing up there?

Trilly!: Coming up, my mom and dad were both music heads and avid church-goers, so I got my start in music in the church choir. My parents have also been separated since I was young, at my mom’s house she’d play a lot of gospel, and occasionally Lalah Hathaway and Jill Scott. At my dad’s house it was nothing but old New York hip-hop type stuff. 

modrNation: Do you think your time singing gospel in the choir has had any influence on your music today?

Trilly!: It taught me how to structure a song for sure. My parents also went to two different types of churches, my mom went to a baptist church where they’d use instruments and my dad went to a church of Christ where they don’t believe in using instruments in ways of worship. They were really big on acapella and harmonies, so I learned a lot about vocals from that. 

modrNation: Where does your inspiration typically stem from?

Trilly!: When I started growing up and getting a sense of my own music, I started out really liking the stuff I would hear on the radio. Not strictly rap, but radio’s in Atlanta used to play a lot of pop too, and I used to love that type of sound. Kesha, Lady Gaga, all of them. Then I started using Pandora and the old hip hop channels they had on there, that’s when I really started liking old school hip hop, I wouldn’t listen to anything but 80’s or 90’s rap. Even around 2011 and 2012, I wasn’t listening to any contemporary artists.

modrNation: That’s interesting because hip-hop in Atlanta at that time was so prevalent, when do you think you started tapping into the music surrounding you?

Trilly!: I would say once I started listening to A$AP Rocky when I was like twelve, I started fucking with A$AP Rocky, Mac Miller, Isaiah Rashad, Schoolboy Q, and that’s when I was more open to listening to newer artists but it still wasn’t Atlanta artists. I’d say I started paying attention to Atlanta artists when my cousins from the East side moved in with us and they were really tapped into that whole Atlanta scene so they put me on to Migos, Jose Guapo, and all them. Thug too, when he was really coming out, he had Atlanta on lock. I remember the era when Stoner was blowing up, you couldn’t walk around without hearing that song. That’s when I really started tapping into Atlanta.

modrNation: You also shoot visual content on top of making music, what’s inspired your multi-faceted approach to your creativity?

Trilly!: A$AP Rocky, when I saw the Peso video for the first time I just went on a spree of watching all his visuals. I liked his energy too, so I would watch a lot of his interviews and he would talk about his vision and how involved he was with his visuals. That’s what influenced me to be hands on,  I just wanted to approach it the same way. Tyler The Creator too, I can’t forget about him. With Tyler, he made the DIY cool, even if it wasn't the most professional, he made that shit look cool.

modrNation: You’ve put out two singles this year, what’s the creative process been like behind those?

Trilly!: When I put out the first single, Dream, I just felt like I had to put it out. I made that song last year, when I was thinking I was done putting out music, but then my boy Ahmad Anonimis was one of the people who told me I was tripping, him telling me that hit me hard for sure. I paid attention to his trajectory, and I knew I had to listen to him, Dream was really going to be a song I put out and then just retired from rap. With Altar, I had started working on that sound late last year with this producer named Young Alex. He came up to me at Ahmad’s release party saying he wanted to lock in, so we tapped in and made like six or seven songs, Altar was the first one to get rolled out.

modrNation: What would you say is the importance of finding your own identity and individuality as an artist in a time where new artists are popping up every day?

Trilly!: When I first started coming onto the scene, I instantly realized that there had to be something about me that stood out and cut through, but at the same time I wasn’t going to put out a fabricated version of me. I always wanted to stand out, and I was always looking for the shit that hadn’t already been done. My style derived from a time period in 2019 when I was locked in with Mario Judah, and he was making me some beats with an energy no one had really heard, so I just channeled that energy and ran with it.

modrNation: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

Trilly!: I try not to set expectations for myself, because I don’t want to let myself down. One thing I can say, I’ll be dropping music more consistently. I’ve got a tape I’m working on right now that is going to be the Altar type of sound, but in five years I see myself putting out different types of music. I want to do a lot of collabs then too, so I’ll build up my brand until then and get some features in by then.