The Bite Magazine - Spring 2019 - Issue 24

Post Malone follows a long line of white rappers whose motives in making hip hop music, a genre usually dominated by black artists, have been questioned, some of whom have been mentored by black counterparts. Dr. Dre shepherded Eminem and Run DMC took the Beastie Boys on tour. Is it the way they dress or present themselves that poses the problem or the fact that they have chosen to deliver their lyrics through hip hop or rap rather than pop, house or electro music? An artist who doesn’t see himself solely as a rap artist but rather one that embraces all types of music, Post Malone told GQ in January 2018, “I don’t want to be a rapper. I just want to be a person that makes music. I make music that I like and I think that kicks ass; that I think the people who f**k with me as a person and as an artist will like.” But yet, a lot of his tracks have a rap underlining beat, despite him looking more like a heavy metal per- former thanks to the type of t-shirts he wears, than a rapper with hoodie tops and vests. Whilst he has had to endure crit- icism for his persona and type of music, there are rap artists like Kanye West who love his music, having revealed this to him after the artist performed at Kylie Jen- ner’s 18th birthday party. Post has also collaborated with some of the biggest names in hip hop such as 21 Savage, Ty Dolla $ign, Nicki Minaj, G-Eazy and Swae Lee who appeared on his second album Beerbongs & Bentleys released in April 2018. His ‘Feel’ track featured Kehlani who seductively mused, “You whisper in my ear and tell me ‘feel’.” Becoming fast friends with Justin Bieber after Post opened up for his Purpose World Tour in 2016, the two music artists later collaborated on ‘Déjà Vu’, which is said to be so catchy that listeners cannot help but sway their hips along to the beat. The remix of ‘Rockstar’ fea- turing Nicky Jam and Ozuna had a touch of Latino flavour that didn’t interfere with the infectious “Man, I feel just like a rockstar” hook. And Kayne West hooked up with Post and Ty Dolla $ign on ‘Fade’ from his 2016 album The Life of Pablo before getting on Post’s ‘Psycho’ track. The artist has been known to change his hairstyle up a lot, which has consisted of cornrows, a man- bun, shoulder-length, a mullet and braids. However, just before the 2018 American Music Awards in October, he decided to cut his hair into a short curly look. Also, at the beginning of his career, he had a fresh clean face but thanks to his budding friendship with Justin Bieber, he now sports a number of tattoos on both his face and body. It was during the recording of his first album that he decided to get inked. Another notable feature is Post’s cigarette habit – you’ll often see him on stage and in music videos with a cigarette in hand. In 2017, he denounced the act of smoking by saying, “I’ve seen the ads when I was young – started smoking at age 7 – I regret it. Its 2017, we need to put a stop to big tobacco! I will use what- ever resources I have to fight the big fight! Let’s all work together; I know we can all do it!” But fast track a year and he signed up to work with tobacco giants Marlboro Cigarettes who went on to sponsor his upcom- ing performances. Tipped to star in the upcoming adaptation of the 2013 film Won- derland with Mark Wahlberg and Winston Duke which will be shown on Netflix, hopefully Post will be able to do without his cigarettes long enough to concentrate on playing his part in the film when in front of the camera. This role will mark his first as an actor and it is not yet known which part he will play. The film based on the novel of the same name by Ace Atkins will see Wahlberg playing the main character, Spenser, an undercover detective. Venturing further afield from music, Post partnered with Crocs in November 2018 to create a bite music celeb BETTER NOW