Upcoming 100: Who are your biggest musical influences?
Akasha Rah: Beyoncé, J Cole, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna
Upcoming 100: When/How did you become interested in music?
Akasha Rah: Ever since I was a child I would rhyme and write lyrics and my own music. I went to a typical classical Russian music school growing up but skipped classes because it wasn’t my style of learning. My teacher cried when I graduated because she felt like I had such great potential and an ear for sound. It wasn’t until I really found my voice years later when I decided to pursue it seriously. Growing up in Russia in poverty I didn’t feel like I had a voice of my own . Later on, when I moved to the states I was in a very abusive relationship where I nearly lost my life. I wasn’t “allowed” to express my feelings and my voice was being suppressed and dismissed. After I got out and became a hypnotherapist I started helping others overcome trauma with my hypnotic voice, and my soul was yearning to share my voice and my music with others through my songs to facilitate more healing and expression for myself and others. Once I found a voice of my own I decided to use my voice to speak up for those that still haven’t found theirs through my music and everything else that I do such as films, fashion, my healing practice, public speaking, etc.
Upcoming 100: How does this song "RIP Stalker" differ from your previous songs?
Akasha Rah: Most of my songs written previously were messages of divine empowerment. “RIP STALKER” is a straight-up come-back diss track to a real stalker situation that I had. experienced recently. I was raging and pissed and I wasn’t even planning on releasing it at first. It was just a freestyle rap on my Instagram page because this stalker was looking at everything that I do. While she was harassing me, my business, and my employees I didn’t want to engage fully because I knew I had to show proof in court that it was one-sided harassment, but once I got a restraining order against her I wanted to let her know how I truly felt and also let others know too that just because I am spiritual doesn’t mean I’m going to let others disrespect me or my work and turn the other cheek. There is this common belief in society that it’s okay to harass people on social media, especially those that are in the spotlight and it’s NOT OKAY! Celebrities, musicians, and artists are all real people with real emotions and feelings and we gotta protect our artists and stop projecting insecurities onto other people. Most of the negative energy that people put out on the internet towards others is just a reflection of their own inner world and me being who I am today I just had to shine light onto this issue. Basically, if you try to “expose” me you only expose your own inner demons. I know who I am and I know what I stand for. My spiritual work, my music, and everything that I do for divine empowerment and evolution of consciousness is sacred to me and I will not allow anyone to disrespect that or threaten me, my work or my loved ones especially when it comes from another woman. Women empowerment is a huge part of my mission in life and attacks coming from another woman is extremely painful and sad for me to watch but I have to do what I have to do and I do it no matter what people say or think about it.
Upcoming 100: What skills/personal attributes are most important to being successful?
Akasha Rah: It depends on how you define success in life. We all have different definitions of what success means to us at different stages in life.
I believe knowing who you are, what your core values and beliefs are is essential, and having dedication, bravery, and commitment to your own evolution are the keys to success. No amount of fame or money will fix what’s broken on the inside but if you are coming from a wholesome place it can be a powerful tool and a great outlet for the work that you put in as a result, however, it’s important to do it for the right reasons because what you saw is what you reap and at the end of the day when you look back is it something that you are proud of accomplishing in life.
Upcoming 100: How important do you think video or other visuals are to your music?
Akasha Rah: Videos and visuals are very important to me. As a filmmaker, I take visuals very seriously and when I write my songs I incorporate sound design and sound effects to create a visual reference to tell the story of the song and to prepare my listeners for the videos to come before their release. Whether my audience notices it or not it creates some sort of a subconscious setting in your imagination that the story is happening there beyond the lyrics.
Upcoming 100: What do you hope to achieve with your art?
Akasha Rah: I hope to inspire and empower people with my music.
I want to share hope with others, that’s why I share my personal experiences freely hoping that others that are going through similar pain can feel like they are not alone, and if I can overcome adversities in life, abuse, and spiritual battles they can too. I hope to give people strength and encouragement on the spiritual level.
Upcoming 100: What advice would you give to new artists entering the industry today?
Akasha Rah: Just be yourself. If you don’t know who you are yet that’s okay, take your time to figure it out. Don’t rush chasing the clout or trends or patterns. Being an artist requires self-disciple and self-awareness. Don’t compromise who you are and don’t compromise your voice to please others. Befriend your ego so that you can separate your true voice from being defensive and stay open to the opinion of others while staying centered in your own mastery. You gotta stay open and flexible to hear the professional opinion of others that are trying to help you on your journey yet dim the voice of those who are not and stay true to your core values are a person. And if you don’t have any values take your time to work on yourself, become a master of your own field before you let others lead you somewhere you don’t belong.
Upcoming 100: What sets your music apart? What is unique, or at least uncommon, about your sound and style?
Akasha Rah: My music is hypnotic and soulful. As a hypnotist, I use my hypnotic voice to empower my music and as a spiritualist and artist, I pour my heart and soul into my craft. Even if you don’t like it you can’t deny my truth, because you can feel it when listening to it.
Upcoming 100: Has your music career/journey had a deliberate direction or did it simply evolve organically?
Akasha Rah: Both. It took me a long journey of finding myself as an artist and also having a clear path and goals while staying flexible with whatever challenges this journey took me on. I always had an inner knowing where I was heading as an artist but the key was to let it happen organically while staying patient without forcing it. It’s the balance of trusting my divine journey while doing whatever is necessary with clear goals and directions on my part.
Upcoming 100: Where can potential fans find out more about you?
Akasha Rah: My music is available on all streaming platforms.
You can also find me on social media sites :
http://www.instagram.com/akashaausetrah
https://youtube.com/c/AkashaAusetRah
https://open.spotify.com/artist/0bAjN3j2scv7IGUMdA3phR
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMd25RwCf/
https://m.facebook.com/akashaausetrah/
https://mobile.twitter.com/akashaishere
https://music.apple.com/us/artist/akasha-auset-rah/1521863877
