original artwork by Iliana Garcia
by Iliana Garcia
Seth sits at his spot in the corner of the snack bar during 4th lunch, tired and stressed. He puts his airpods in and goes into the soundcloud app to play some new music. Thumbing through artists on soundcloud he settles on a new artist named “Zmoney.” As the track “hurt” plays, the song speaks to Seth. He sings along with the lyrics, “this journey long, I made a way, see we can get a Lyft, we in this **** for life. It’s that forever ****.” Seth felt the things that Zmoney sang about, and immediately became a fan.
175 million people use Soundcloud and only about a handful of artists make it big in their hometown or in general. Zmoney is one of those artists. In 2017, he released his first song when he was just in 8th grade. He got over 29.5k plays and views on the song, and has racked up 1,977 followers on Instagram to date. Zmoney started as a small artist and has built a sizeable following that’s still growing. His journey can be the journey for many aspiring students who wish to make it big in music, and many can follow in his footsteps once they know his story.
Zmoney, also known as Zion Smith, is from Arizona but he grew up in New Mexico. He first received recognition when he was featured on a song with his older brother, which led him to make his own music.
Some people remain skeptical about SoundCloud rappers and their music, labeling it as “cringe” because many SoundCloud rappers are around their age and they get second hand embarrassment from it.
“Some SoundCloud rappers think they are so good when some aren’t,” sophomore Julianna Rodriguez said. “Some are really good though.”
All of these SoundCloud artists have to start out somewhere and need time to develop their songwriting and their producing skills.
”You can’t have a Tupac, a B.I.G, or an Eminem without starting out somewhere,” Algebra II teacher and hip hop fan Rodolfo Lopez said. “All these new SoundCloud rappers need to start out somewhere. ‘Started from the bottom, now we’re here,’ Drake once said.”
Most people that do make music on SoundCloud keep it low key and even secret from their friends and family. They don’t let them know about it because they don’t want to be made fun of for it. One step on Zmoney’s journey was having the courage to share his work with friends and family.
“Zion’s music is really good,” his older sister, Mariah Davis said. “It sounds professional even though he’s an amateur, and of course I have to support him because he’s my brother and it’s a type of music that I listen to.”
Even parents, who may not approve of every lyric or topic, are usually supportive when students are passionate about something and try something new like this.
“If he likes it, i love it,” Zion’s dad, Jason Smith said. “I didn’t believe it at first, until I heard his first song and knew he could do it. I’m not gonna stop him from doing something he loves.”
Q & A with Zmoney
Q: Why did you start making music?
A: I wanted to make money–who doesn’t want to make money–but I also want to do something I know I will love doing..
Q: What is your favorite part of making music?
A: Mixing the beats and everything. It’s like you can make up so many beats for several songs all at once sometimes.
Q: Who is your main inspiration when it comes to music?
A: Myself and my older brothers because they also make music and I always looked up to them. I mean a lot of people look up to their siblings and I’m one of those people.
Q: What was your music based on?
A: I experienced a lot of stuff when I was growing up, so I turned it into music instead of keeping it to myself. I felt like putting it into music helped me get it off my chest.
Q: What do you see yourself doing in the future? Do you see yourself still doing music or something different?
A: I see myself with money, because I’ll be making music and doing something I love for a long time.
Check out Zmoney’s music at http://soundcloud.com/dsavage2x
Ahhh! I love it so much! You did a great job!