B.A BADD: the EveryBody Eats movement stands for community.

Peace B.A Badd, first of all, thank you for your time. In recent years, Upstate New York has had an increasingly significant impact on Hip-Hop, with cities like Buffalo and Rochester making a name for themselves on the international scene thanks to some top-tier talent. Syracuse (N.Y.), on the other hand, has remained somewhat on the sidelines of this movement.Yet your voice is emerging powerfully, carrying forward an authentic and deeply rooted narrative from that very place. How would you describe Syracuse to someone who’s never been there? What kind of atmosphere does the city have? And in your opinion, how has it changed over time?

Syracuse is one of them small college towns. We got Syracuse University, which brings most of the money into the city, but everything outside of that is poverty stricken. It’s not a lot going on here so there has been a lot of drugs and violence over the years. I feel like it’s gotten worse, a lot of programs have been taken away, which depletes a lot of opportunities for the youth to get involved. Now it’s just like lawlessness with the young guys

Tell us a bit about your background and your journey growing up in Syracuse. What kind of environment shaped you, and which experiences — musical or otherwise — had the biggest impact on your development?

Syracuse is hard to describe because that’s all I know, so it’s regular to me. But like I said, Syracuse it’s a small town, small city, Upstate New York, a lot of drugs, lotta violence in my era. There was a lot more togetherness and that shaped me and my music because you gotta be authentic where I come from, your name had to check out.

So artists like Styles, Beanie Sigel, Mobb Deep, Capone and Noreaga, those are the artist I grew up listening to, that helped shape my sound and my style.

When did you first start making moves in the rap game, and what do you think were the biggest challenges you faced coming from a city like Syracuse? And on that note: what’s the story behind your stage name, B.A. Badd?

I first started recording in the studio when I was like 12-13 years old and I was a part of various groups in Syracuse, New York that was gaining buzz throughout the streets. 

I eventually moved to Buffalo, New York and became a part of a group there. We had a huge buzz under the name Da Zombeez, that was way before the Beast Coast and Flatbush Zombies. We were Zombeez first and that’s a long story which you can look up, you can type in our name. All the projects is on Apple Music, Spotify, or tap in. We were like 16, 17, 18,19 putting out this music which was the creative influence for Aarabmuzik . He was a producer that was a part of our movement during the later years.

My name, B.A, comes from my nickname, Bad Boy. That’s what I used to be called when I was younger. Once I got older, I changed my name as an artist because I didn’t want to conflict with the label Bad Boy.

In recent years, you’ve made a significant contribution to the local scene by founding the Everybody Eats collective, born out of a difficult period in your life. Can you tell us more about the vision behind EBE? And how did your time in prison influence your motivation and your approach to music?

EBE is a lifestyle. It was supposed to be a promotional company to throw concerts and events with a group of my friends and it just turned into a movement, and the ideology behind that is “community.” I want for you, what I want for me.

My time locked away influenced my approach to music in the way that everything is serious. I can’t play with it because I know that time is always ticking and you don’t get the same opportunities twice, so you gotta take advantage of them when they’re there.

Your new project with Sypooda is just around the corner. What can you share with us about this album? How does it differ from your previous work? And can you reveal anything about the collaborations featured on it?

Yeah, this album is a very personal album, very soulful. Sypooda did outstanding with the production. We wanted to show our versatility. This probably don’t sound like any of my other projects, which is more grimy. This project has a lot of soul to it and it gives me the space to talk about different subjects. As far as features go, I have my Prxfet, Bub Styles, and Cozz from Dreamville.

Looking back at your discography, which projects do you feel represent you the most, and why?

All of them to be honest because they all represent a different part of my life. It’s hard to separate yourself from your projects because they’re like your children and they represent different moments. One may be my favorite today but the next day another one may be my favorite. As of today “Painted In Hunger” which is produced by Sypooda, that’s about to come out as my favorite.

What’s your artistic and personal vision about your future? Where do you see yourself in the next few years?

I see myself as a brand, a brand that will stand the test of time, that inspires other artist to get up and do what they gotta do to find a way to win. My name is gonna be one of the first few names that you mention when you talk about Hip-Hop coming out of the East Coast.