We had the good fortune of connecting with TYLER2WAVVY and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi TYLER2WAVVY, how do you think about risk?
Throughout most of my life I haven’t thought about risk in the sense of how it could affect me in the long run much. I’m an impulsive person by nature, and based on how I was raised I’m not really cut from the cloth. I feel like it’s an important conversation. But, most of the time people can talk themselves out of taking a risk out of fear. I wasn’t taught to fear much. As I’m getting older, gaining life experience, and maturing on different levels I can look back in hindsight, and see that I’ve always contemplated risk versus reward before doing anything. I just normally follow my gut instinct. It’s a basic human survival technique to weigh the pros, and cons. That process just feels different to me now. My mom always says that during labor with me, 36 hours later she knew that my personality was going to be more laid-back and that I would take my time with things. I often joke around and say how “I’m on my third lifetime,” I just don’t feel rushed. Societal pressures, and norms definitely cross my mind, but I’m never one to be pressured by anything anybody else is doing. I’m always gonna follow what comes natural to me. If it doesn’t feel right, I don’t pursue it. Same would apply to taking risk, choosing a career path, befriending somebody new, or creating art. As the cliché goes, “no risk, no reward.” You’ve got to take risks, everyday we take risks. Crossing the street is taking a risk, so why wouldn’t I follow my dreams? The hardest part is being patient, and tactful enough to continue working. Constantly improving, and preparing enough for your moment. My biggest enemy is that anxiety that constantly try’s to talk me out of pursing my moment. I don’t think I’ve had it yet, but when the time comes I’ll be ready to take that leap of faith. I don’t feel like it’s talked about enough how humans are constantly evolving, and reevaluating our lives. Questioning our current situations, reassessing how they affect us and the ones we love. Change is good. I’m still figuring out my career, I’m still pursuing my dreams. I don’t expect to want the same things five years from now, that I want today. That also means what I’m willing to risk is going to change. I find myself searching for more stability at this point in my life, so I definitely put more thought into risk than I ever have. But, I’ll be damned to let a hard decision hold me back from getting where I wanna go.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I just recently released a four track EP entitled Easily Offended. I wrote it in the early stages of quarantine, and it plays on how our senses have been affected by all this over stimulation. It’s a submission to the feeling of being overwhelmed. Knowing when to tap out, and using it as fuel to make you a better fighter. Not giving power to things that are out of our control. Not allowing societal constructs to kill our inner confidence. Avoiding misguided truths, keeping our mental free and clear for new growth. Taking information in, and deciding whether or not it serves you. Looking at old relationships, taking them for what they’re worth, and sometimes moving on from them. I’m always interested by art that is thought provoking, and conversation starting. That’s really all I’m after, just to start a conversation. Because, you never know where it could lead you. How many monumental changes in our society started with a conversation? I always like to think of my art as a little brash as well, and offensive in the way it challenges norms. For example, I make genre blending music but it is mostly Hip-Hop at its core, and the topics I choose to cover are still very taboo for the genre. I cover things such as mental health, sexuality, and dating in today’s very mobile world. I speak on how I’m affected by the fast paced society that we know today. I hope that people can relate to the anxieties I cover, as I know I’m not alone in these feelings of being overwhelmed.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Hypothetically speaking (since were still quarantined), although Florida is wild anyway. I’d imagine a few days here, and there. Start in West Palm Beach where I’m from, and head down south through Broward into Miami. We’d most definitely start with a soul cleansing trek through nature, and then hit a local spot for tacos like Papi Chulo’s. Then we’d spend the whole next day thrifting. Hitting spots like Thrift World, and Community Thirft. And the next day would consist of some culture, so The Norton would be on the list, as well as stops such as The Morikami, and Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami. By this time we’re in Wynwood, and the weekend is approaching so we need food, and activities. The Wynwood Walls would keep our attention while we stopped at local eats like Coyo Taco, and 1-800-Lucky where the restaurant turns into a dance floor. By this time the whiskey gingers will have been running rampantly through our blood, and we will have danced until our shirts are soaked with sweat. At this point I don’t know where I am, but our Uber is about to pull up and take us back to our AirBnb. We will have a pretty decent nights nap before catching the 7am Brightline back north from a trip that we will continue to recall for years to come. And continue using the same inside joke that never gets old until we come up with a cornier one to replace it with.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to shoutout my partner Jeremy, since we’ve been together I’ve never been pushed so hard to be the best version of myself. I appreciate being held accountable by someone who loves me. I appreciate clear boundaries being set, as I am hard headed as they come. I had already set forward on this path to self discovery before we met, but the internal conversation became much realer when my actions directly affected somebody else. Our dynamic also helped the transition from internal to outward conversations about who I am. It’s allowed me to start facing the inner struggles I was dealing with. I’d also shoutout the year 2020. Even though quarantine isn’t over yet, last year really made me look inward, and also put a lot of relationships into perspective. It’s made me a lot more protective of my energy. But, most importantly its opened my eyes to how resilient some human beings can be, and highlighted who/what was worth keeping in my life.

Website: www.tyler2wavvy.com

Instagram: tyler2wavvy

Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCpdiNIQYUCRHJk5952lH_yA

Other: https://linktr.ee/tyler2wavvy https://open.spotify.com/album/24IuFB9PQwkXUqyOG3Wof2?si=B49zrqJ6SwmD2eznMZs7Rg

Image Credits
All images by me.

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