• That brings us to my next question; you locked yourself up in the studio for 2 years working on your second album. Why?
Because you got to be there when inspiration comes, because inspiration as a musician as an artist, or to anybody that’s artistic or creative, it doesn’t just come. Its not a 9 to 5 job, you can’t go to the office and just expect to be creative it doesn’t happen that way. You got to watch T.V. and then all of a sudden you go shh I got an idea, you got to be talking to your friends it just happens. And I wanted to be there when it happens, because it usually happened when I was in the car traveling, or wherever it was it wasn’t next to my studio so by the time I took the car and went to the studio that inspiration disappears and I didn’t want it to happen. I wanted to be real fresh and artistic and that’s why I did it.
• You have been contacted by stars like Justin Timberlake and others, How did that make you feel?
Best feeling in the world, it’s like people are noticing my talent and that’s what I advice other aspiring musician, I always say, don’t force your music onto people, do it and they will notice, but promote yourself. So get yourselves out there, but if someone says I hate it, no problem, who cares if you don’t like it someone else will so just always work, work, work, work, work. Because people will start noticing when you start doing your stuff. Look, how did I get the opening for Mary J. Blige? I made my website, I made my career, I made my music. It’s action, reaction. I’m not saying it’s not surprising, it’s like Wow Justin Timberlake has asked me for stuff, it feels great, But at the same time I paid my dues I worked 8 years it’s like going to med school man. I spent 8 years trying to get to this place, so anything in this world you got to work for, nothing comes to you in a silver platter.
And that’s the best thing about growing up with my parents, I’ve always had the least of all my friends, growing up in Dubai everyone’s got a lot of money and we didn’t have as much as everybody, so I couldn’t get all the stuff that everybody had. But now I can, because I worked my but off to get it. And, also because I know the value of that dollar.
• Tell us about your album “The Face Behind The Face”
The Face Behind The Face, the meaning behind that is, again we go back to the producer story I was a producer for the longest time and I wanted to be heard and be seen, not only be heard with my music but also to be seen as the artist that’s interpreting that music. So face behind the face means, this is the true face behind the music that you hear.
• Does your Lebanese background have an effect on your music?
That’s an interesting question, I’m a creative guy so I love new things, I like it fresh. I’m a big fan of Missy Elliot, Rodney Jerkins Darkchild, I was with him last year in LA, and all these people are big producers and artists and they’re so creative and they’re always trying something fresh even though it might not be acceptable they always try something different. And I know there’s a story with Missy, when she was you know overweight and no company really wanted her and she was making weird music. I think you got to make the boundaries you know, they’ve never heard Arabic infused in R&B music in North America and I wanted to do something like that. Because like, Why? What, are you guys racist? I don’t understand why, what’s the point? Let people hear the beautiful culture of others. I mean Jay Z is using it, a lot of hip hop artists are using Arabic tunes and Indian tunes man, everyday. So, I just wanted to do a sort of authentic, R&B pop world and I love being creative like that, I LOVE standing out, I love doing stuff that is fresh.
• Where do you intend to go with this music?
I intend to go all over the world, spread a good and positive message to kids. I’ve got a few songs that are really inspirational, on my album. There’s a song called life, it’s just me and the piano singing, it’s about life obviously. It’s about parents, who neglect the needs and dreams of their kids, but my parents never neglected that they always took that into consideration they appreciated that and I thank them a lot for that and I wish, everybody could see that, because their son has become this musician, artist and successful guy because of their love and support to what I wanted to do and not forcing me into becoming the four typical, Doctor, Lawyer, Accountant and whatever. You know how those parents do it, especially in the Arab world and the traditional world and maybe its right for most people, like if you want to be a journalist and they don’t want you to, you’d be like I want to do this because the support from the family is so important it could ruin or make your career or life and could affect him for the rest of his life.
• How do you categorize your music? You’ve got genre’s all over, you have a lot going on there.
I know, that’s true. I don’t know if I’m very proud of that, because as the co-president of my record company in Canada (Lone Wolf Records) and we licensed deals with EMI here and universal in Canada. So as a businessman, I like to categorize and it bothers me that it’s not categorized exactly as R&B. Because it is R&B, it is R&B generally because I’m soulful and there are beats there’s rhythm so Rhythm and Blues. But it does touch on Arabic influences, Reggae, even pop. As an artist though, I like to have no boundaries, and that’s where all the mix-up comes in. It got to be perfect.
• You were supposed to perform in Dubai with J Lo to a crowd of 20,000, which got canceled, and now you will perform with Mary J. Blige to a crowd of just 4,000. Is that better for Karl Wolf?
Listen, J Lo is a major superstar so obviously opening up for her is a major deal; she’s not necessarily a musician’s musician. She is more like a superstar actress, so the name weighs heavy and to be associated with that is amazing, and just to be associated with her was amazing for my career coz it made waves all over the world. |
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But opening for Mary J. Blige, I mean she is amazing, she is the queen of R&B. This woman is an incredible artist, musician, and philosopher. So I’m honored to be opening up for such a legend, I mean she’s a legend; she’s been in the business for what 15 years? Maybe more and that’s hard to do in the business, especially in the R&B game. How many people you know that stayed this long?
• Let’s talk about “Butterflies”
The song is about this girl, that I recall I would always see her. You feel the butterflies, weather it’s a girl or anything, like maybe it’s a shoe that you’re nervous about something that gives you butterflies, like something that makes your stomach kind of excited. Like for example me doing the show with Mary J. Blige, I feel kind of butterflies, not because I’m in love. But in this case, I would see a girl and can’t say names but she was from Dubai, and I would see her a lot, I couldn’t talk to her I only used to see her from far. I always wanted to talk to her, for the longest time and that feeling that it gave me was butterflies, it was the sweetest feeling I’ve ever known. So, umm, finally I ended up with her so it was pretty cool.
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• So did you write that song back then when you were in Dubai, or in Canada? No, I didn’t write it in Dubai, I wrote it when I was in Canada thinking about that time, reminiscing about that moment. • Any last words, for your fans at Viva Dubai? Yes, go check out the website, www.karlwolf.com it has videos, pictures, bios and you could even reach me it comes straight to my e-mail, so if you guys want to go and say hi to me and tell me what you think of my music or anything and if I have time I’ll write back. I hope you enjoy the show, come you’re going to love it, I’m going to get you energetic I will get you guys hyped and your going to hear me play something on my piano, just me my voice and my piano.
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