When I sit down to talk with Taktix, he’s getting over a cold he caught after spending two days filming a music video. He suspects he got it because he was run down. “I didn’t sleep for almost two days man, it was like 36 hours [of no sleep]. I think I’m just suffering from major exhaustion.” That’s the thing about Taktix: he’s dedicated to his work and is always pushing his boundaries. As a rapper, singer and producer, he understands the need for constant evolution and progression in order to improve.
He has high aspirations, but he balances them with a dose of realism—acknowledging that he and his team still have a way to go. “It’s just gonna change again and again, and it only changes for the better,” he says. When speaking to him, it’s clear he has his sights set on making the most out of his talent.
Taktix is one part of the trio New Wave, which comprises his older brother Kid Laze and childhood friend Moses. Over the last few years, the three rappers have gone from relative obscurity to being some of the hottest names in the Australian hip-hop scene.
It’s a rise that’s been entirely organic. Particularly in the case of Taktix, so much of his music journey has been characterised by letting things happen naturally and falling into things—from listening to Michael Jackson in his room in Cranbourne and being inspired to make and sing over his own beats, to rapping with Moses and Laze and making the fateful decision to release their work. His desire to make music that comes from a place of authenticity—to never force a thing—shines through both in his work and when speaking to him.
These days, Taktix is in a position to work with some of hip-hop’s biggest names in both Australia and abroad. He’s also a culture-defining figure, which earned him a spot as the star of JD Sports’ latest Hoodrich campaign. Complex Australia sat down with Taktix to discuss both his and New Wave’s origins, how the area he grew up in shaped his sound, and that Mixtape Madness episode that set the internet ablaze.
What were your early experiences with music? When did you start wanting to rap?
So I grew up in church, and I was doing church choir when I was nine-years-old. I was conducting a church choir. At the same time I was the biggest Michael Jackson fan. We used to have this old tape recorder—this is back when he was still performing—and we used to record his performances. I would watch him over and over. When I eventually had access to YouTube, I watched even more.
Then around 14-15, I started making beats on the computer and sending them out to people, but I didn't really like what they did with them so I decided to sing over it myself. A couple of boys wanted the tune and were asking who it was, I said it was me and they didn’t believe me. When they finally did they told me I should make more, so I did.
When the whole OneFour thing kicked off, it made me fuck with the Aussie style a lot because I was rapping in an American accent at that point. So yeah, I reckon around 18 was when I really started writing raps and rapping.
And how did you link up with Moses?
Moses and I go way back—I’ve known him since I was 13. When it came to us making music, it was a social thing where we’d have a few drinks in my room which used to be our studio, and I used to be the producer/engineer. So a lot of the time when we made our music it was purely for us to hear it through the speaker and have a few drinks. And then when we had other people come around, they were like “Send me that, send me that.” In the end we just dropped one of the songs we made and it was really good fun. That whole process of dropping it was a bit stressful, but I don't know, I loved feeling the pressure of putting the song out. That first song didn't do very well, but then we just continued to make more, and then that's when [things] started picking up. We had a few of the drill Instagram pages reach out, and a lot of other people were reaching out. A lot of people started saving the songs to Spotify, and so that's when it became real.
How did growing up in Cranbourne, and south east Melbourne more broadly, shape what you guys decided to make?
Well we grew up pretty broke. My parents got married really young, they had my older brother young, and they bought a house really young. So they were flat broke. And so I think we just had a lot of time to ourselves. You know, like when you don't have electronics, iPads, that type shit, you sort of just do other things—you play outside, you listen to music when you have a chance to—you just figure out different ways to have fun. Because there’s not much going on in Cranbourne and it’s not an amazing place, a lot of trouble happened there, there was a bit of crime. I wouldn't say that we got too involved with it, but it was present. But I feel like a lot of people, including myself, feel more comfortable speaking their mind on track, and I wanted to tell them about where I'm from, you know what I mean? So I think that's how growing up there influenced me in that aspect.
How do you feel that being part of a trio like New Wave has allowed you to grow individually as an artist?
I feel like when you have people who you work with closely who do the same thing, you get a different outlook on yourself, and you pick up on their style. One thing we've always been really conscious of is giving each other constructive criticism—that's one thing you don't get when you go solo as well. Yeah, and being straight up as well and giving straight up feedback.
You know, if it was somebody random that my manager said I had to do a track with, I probably wouldn’t feel comfortable giving feedback that I would give easily to Moses or Laze.
What rappers and producers in the Australian scene are you enjoying at the moment?
I still really enjoy a good OneFour song. I feel like they're a staple in Australian music, specifically J Emz—I think he's really creative, and I've heard a lot of the stuff that he's got in the works and some singing. And I think that I like him because my style is very similar as well, but I think he's maybe in a better position to showcase that. Another person I like is Tommy Gunn, he's killing it. He needs to be more recognized though, him and 99 Hurts, who's a producer/engineer—I mess with them a lot. I really like them.
Congrats on the JD campaign and fronting the latest season of Hoodrich. What’s it been like working with them?
Thank you, it’s been great. I think my first encounter with JD was with Moses for his first video. I was really excited to work with them this time around, they hit me up and I was excited to do it because they're really easy to work with.
The ‘Next Up’ Mixtape Madness episode that you and Moses did was dope. You were the first ones to start off that series, that must have felt cool?
Yeah, that was sick. We were in conversation with the Mixtape Madness executives and we sort of, I wouldn't say begged, but we were adamant about being the first, you know what I mean? Especially based on a couple of the things that happened last year with the whole Take Flight freestyle blowing up. I feel like they had the same thought process as us in terms of being the first—to set the standard—you know what I mean? It was either first or last. But I think it was a good choice to be first.
Yeah, gotta be number one.
Yeah, for sure.
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