Artist Highlight: Haze That Saxy Rapper
Our artist feature this Wednesday is arguably one of the best MCs in Arizona right now: Haze That Saxy Rapper. Matt Hayes is a 27 year old MC, saxophone player, father, friend and spiritual gangster.
Matt has accomplished one of the most difficult things in the world, getting sober, and in the past year has taken his craft to an entirely new level. Don't get me wrong, Haze has always been one of the best musicians I have the pleasure of knowing, but I don't think I've ever seen him more focused and self-realized. Haze has crafted a style for himself that I've never seen from an MC before: a conscious, uplifting message, with an energetic and light personality and psychedelic saxophone lines that you can feel in your soul... it's safe to say that this young musician has nowhere to go, but up.
Although I don't smoke weed anymore, I am still a huge advocate for medicinal marijuana culture. I actually use CBD every day and love it. Today my main focuses are the following: Being the best father I can be, spirituality and health (which involves a lot of prayer, mediation, yoga, and working out every day), and my job as a special needs aid. What I've discovered after focusing on my family, job, and health is that staying strong in these fields has helped my music blossom into something I never had imagined before in my using days. I've put so much positive work into myself and into helping others that I don't have time to dwell in the negative. When I finally sit down to write at the end of the day, it flows so naturally. My saxophone skills have taken off as well. My focus is sharper than ever before and thanks to my meditation and yoga practice, my deep breathing abilities are at an all time high.
Our question for Matt this week was:
You have been fortunate enough to be able to create another human life - how has having a daughter helped you grow as an artist?
This is a great question, and it actually has two answers. At first I felt like having a child was hindering my ability to create, because, at the time, it was really hard to manage my time. I needed to learn how to be a father. I was not ready to manage another human life better yet my own. So, at first, it really made things tough. I didn't have money or time to go to the studio and record. I still performed every once in a while but things were definitely different.
Waking up multiple times a night to feed the baby, working a job, and then coming home to more work as a father isn't exactly the most ideal environment for creativity. I was exhausted. On top of that I was also battling my inner demons and having trouble dealing with emotional trauma from my past. It all seemed to be re-surfacing in my life as a young parent. I was being forced to deal with my mother's death, which I never really dealt with properly before. I was only 17 when she took her life. She was a struggling alcoholic who never learned to love herself. I didn't know how to help. As a young father at the age of 25 I didn't know how to love myself either. I was starting to use drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism but it was making it much worse. Eventually my whole family noticed how bad things were getting and had an intervention. I went to rehab and was able to clear my head. For the first time, I was training my mind to write lyrics without the aid of drugs. And I realized, I was actually pretty good at it. That was a huge relief for me. I felt like I had to develop a new identity while still quintessentially being myself. I knew I could still be the fun party rapper while maintaining my sobriety, and that's what is happening today.
I don't plan to go the Macklemore route, but I do find myself writing about how I used to use drugs and don't need them anymore, and I think it's really cool. I would like to be a sort of beacon of light for people who have experienced depression and/or substance abuse and show them that you can get healthy and still have fun.
So, to more directly answer your question, the introduction of my daughter in my life has made my creativity grow into something absolutely incredible that I never could have imagined before being a father. My daughter, Lily Beth, not only helped inspire a deeper state of creativity, but she also saved my life in general. Without her I don't know if I ever could have gotten sober. She is my living Angel, and everything my fans hear from this point forward can be traced back to her birth. Although it's been a difficult, chaotic journey, I am forever grateful for the opportunity to be her Father.
To keep up with Matt, his new music and tour dates go here: https://www.facebook.com/saxyrap/ and make sure you follow him on Instagram: @hazethatsaxyrapper.
With love,
RIVIR.
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