After his standout performance at Bacchanal’s 2022 Battle of the Bands, Playback editors Emily and Sophie caught Maad Da Visionary (Saamad Harrell, CC ‘23) backstage for a brief interview about his journey and his musical dreams. Maad went on to perform on campus during Bacchanal, harnessing the energy of the lawns into visionary bars reminiscent of his classic rap idols.
SOPHIE: So when did you start making music?
MAAD: Well, actually it probably goes back to when I was a little kid—I used to steal my mom’s phone and go make audio recordings, and then when she took her phone back she found out. I was so upset ‘cause she was trying to show everybody. I was so embarrassed. Then, like, I kinda fell off and then it started in middle school again, people just making beats on the lunch table, then just rapping.
SOPHIE: So it was like a freestyle thing.
MAAD: Yeah, I started freestyling at the lunch table, all of that, then we started kinda trying to put together a song… it never happened, but then years later I just kept rapping, putting stuff on Instagram, and now I started making songs and now performing here, so.
EMILY: Yesss, that’s awesome.
SOPHIE: What’s your most recent release or song that you’ve made?
MAAD: It was my EP, titled MAAD WUZ HERE. I titled it that ‘cause it’s my first project ever, so it’s like a statement, I’m here. Like, what’s up.
SOPHIE: Well, I think everyone knows you’re here now. What do you hope to, I guess, achieve with your music career?
MAAD: My music career? I’m trying to be one of the greatest to ever do it. Honestly, money is nice, of course money is nice. But, I really would love to be one of the greatest rappers of all time, next to Jay-Z, Biggie, Tupac, every Black legend… Kendrick, J. Cole, all of that. I want that. I want people to say my name, and like, okay, he’s in the conversation with these GOATs.
SOPHIE: The Visionary!
MAAD: Yep, yep.
SOPHIE: Are those your main inspirations, would you say?
MAAD: Definitely, yeah. The Coles, Kendricks, Drakes. But I listen to everything—like, I don’t rap like Lil Durk, but I listen to Lil Durk, I listen to Lil Baby, I try to listen to everything, just ‘cause everybody is an artist, everybody can bring something to the table and that can influence me and bring it in. But if I have to say my rap style, definitely Jay-Z’s, Cole’s, Nas’s, them type of artists for sure.
SOPHIE: How do you feel being in the Columbia community has affected your career?
MAAD: It’s a lot of talented people at Columbia, so just kind of working with them… freshman year when I came, somebody on my floor, Gloria—she’s actually performing here, Kaiyi—she was on my floor, and we started making music together in my first year. And so, just also getting opportunities like this on campus to perform… another performance was here, not in this space but at African Thanksgiving with ASA. So this is like my third or fourth performance I ever did.
SOPHIE: Do you get nervous?
MAAD: It’s funny. I always get nervous, I always have the shakes, but this time, I didn’t. I didn’t have it—for some reason, I don’t know, I was just a little hungrier. I mean, shit, Rick Ross, we could open up for Rick Ross if I win, so I had to turn it up just another notch, another level. So you know, I was a little more confident.
SOPHIE: You definitely had the presence tonight. Okay, last one. What’s your major?
MAAD: I’m actually a Film major. That also filters into all of my dreams. One day I want to own a production company that does film, music, all of this stuff. Once I get hot off of my stuff, then I can put other people on and give other people opportunities for everything that I love to do and help others.
SOPHIE: That’s so cool. Anything else, Emily?
EMILY: No, thank you so much! Good luck with everything.
MAAD: No problem, no problem. Thank you.