Curated by Creatives: Meet Phil
We’re excited to announce our new ‘Curated by Creatives’ segment where we highlight different creatives from across the world who are doing dope things. The interviews with be accompanied by a playlist full of their favorite sounds. To kick things off, we were blessed with a playlist from Phil (Ohgunlay) hailing from New Jersey.
By day, Phil is a tech specialist in the real estate industry. By night, he is tapping into his love for music by managing his artist Obeahthemuse. We recently had the chance to chat with him about his experiences while being a black man in tech, misconceptions of Afrobeats culture, and more. Check it out below:
What makes you rare?
I feel what makes me rare is my personality, my faith in Jesus, my vibe, and my genuineness. To know me is to love me. Also, I feel my ear for songs is pretty good.
What do you love the most about music?
I love the feeling music brings, the connection between people, and the community when you find your tribe. Lastly! I just love the art and the creativity behind songs.
What’s your experience like being black in tech?
My experience in tech has been pretty good, my company is super progressive and they value the employee and voices so 10/10 would recommend. I know that’s not the rest of the industry, but it’s trending upwards in my experience. I’m aware not all black techies have this experience, but more of us are getting higher positions and the walls are falling.
Although you’re on the real estate side, how do you think the user experience will enhance when it comes to music & technology?
I feel music DSP’s will use more cookies and data to update the UI to make it more user-friendly and keep taking from each other. I really want a DSP that has the branding of Apple Music but the playlist and curation of new songs like Spotify. If someone figures that out I’d work with that platform.
What’s your go-to song when you’re working?
Lol, that’s hard because I listen to what I’m feeling. I love soulful beats, great production, so it’s a mix one day it could be Future & The Isley brothers next day could be Soulection & Anita Baker or AfroBeats!
What are your thoughts on the current state of the Afro-beats culture & how it’s becoming “mainstream”? What’s the biggest misconception?
I’m so happy Afrobeats is going “global”. I am of Nigerian descent and afrobeat has been a hit with my people for years; so it’s great the world is finally catching up. The biggest misconception is that Africa has one sound. Africa is such a beautiful continent and has many diverse sounds and instruments. What's mainstream’ stems from Western Africa but if you research you’ll find more gems.
Check out the playlist below: