By Emb Hashmi
‘Elai Immortal’ is from not one but two multicultural UK cities Birmingham and London. His hip-hop group is called ‘HLI’ who have recently released their debut project called ‘Omniglyph.’
Elai is a creative artistic rapper whose passion it is to share his thought provoking work with his audience and evoke awareness of the world around us.
Asian World exclusively caught up with the talent that is Elai Immortal and learned more about his philosophy of life and how he interprets it through his performances. As well as performing with the Wu-Tang Clan.
Please tell the Asian World who Wasif Elai Immortal Sayyed is?
I am Planet Asia! That’s the idea that the African and Asian continent are one landmass and therefore we are one original group of people.
Elai Immortal is a Hip-Hop artist and child educator.
What genre of music do you specialise in and why?
Foremost I am a Hip-Hop artist. But Hip-Hop itself draws from so many influences so everything that defines my culture and being makes it into the music I make. So growing up around Bollywood music, Qu’walli, Michael Jackson… to the Hip-Hop I listened to as a child, the bands I like, the flicks I watch, the comics and books I read… It isn’t for everyone but can be enjoyed by every type of person.
“It’s cerebral but still got the
vibe to make hips sway”.
Do you write your own lyrics and produce your own music and can you play instruments?
Yeah each emcee writes their own verses. Each is responsible for their own weaponry. For hooks and choruses we can shout ideas back and forth in the dojo. The HLI record OMNIGLYPH was produced by me and Greybeard. We also work with several amazing producers such as Ebu Blackitude, Mike Ladd, Nerotic Nate, Benjamin One.
Who have you performed with?
Nikola Tesla, Clarence Allah, Al Ghazali, Father Divine, Juice Aleem, Robert Anton Wilson, The Dark Knight, En Nur Sabah, Azrael, Baron Samedi (the real one). Rocking shows with Wu-Tang Clan and collaborating with Anti-Pop Consortium is already an honour.
Are you a natural on stage?
Awe Natural baby. It’s electric fire on stage. That’s where the energy is really dispersed to the people who come through – a great live show is super important and we take pride in ours. HLI has been doing live shows for around 8 years and been honing the craft, mastering the ceremonies.
What are your ambitions/goals in life?
To artistically push the boundaries of what Hip-Hop can do with forward thinking, innovative music whilst honouring time-held values and spirit. I want to help bringing forward the true contribution of African and Asiatic contributions to the modern world and find a way to use this knowledge to guide youth in the UK.
Why the music world?
Music is everything! Every piece of matter in the universe vibrates at a frequency that has a note and a key. This key unlocks the fact that music is inherent to all creation in nature.
Have you received any negative criticism regarding your music?
Of course. Some people don’t ‘get it’ and that’s fine. But the reviews for the Omniglyph have been super positive and we’ve really had it championed. The general consensus is that it doesn’t sound like anything else out there.
What advice would you give to young budding musicians? Is it a difficult long road to superstardom you think?
That’s an interesting question. I don’t think Superstardom initially comes into the equation of making art. There’s so many people out there attempting to do their thing, the question for a young artist is: ‘why do I do what I do?’ You really have to have something of worth to add to an already full bowl. Is your offering unique?
Does anything else there sound like it? ‘Get a day job. Look after your family because that comes first. Believe me, having a steady income will make the pursuit of your art much easier and if gets to a point where you can jump that ship, and dedicate yourself to your passion.
‘Elai Immortal’ last words for Asian World readers…
Check out Supreme Design Publishing because they are changing the world. Spinning Compass Records www.spinningcompass.co.uk Please find me on Facebook or Twitter so we can chop it up @Elai_Immortal
