One may wonder who this new face on the hip-hop scene is, among the countless others who have added their own touch to the growing local music scene. Schumi, the man whose drive lies in the simple words “Bakit, Why Not?”, elbows his way through the sea of pretenders and establishes himself as not only another artist but a fresh prince in his kingdom. Underneath the surface of an artist who strives and pushes to be the best that he can be, is a person that holds his friends and family close to his heart.
To those who haven’t yet listened to his music, Schumi describes it as “no rules”, further explaining that he makes music according to what he feels. It is never limited to a single genre, pointing out that with his recent album, “Fresh Prince”, there is not one track that sounds like another. His album Fresh Prince is based on his emotions; condensed in a way that others can enjoy, understand, and relate to. He expresses himself through these songs, with a wide array of emotions defining the underlying soul of each track.
During the face to face classes, one may not have noticed the unassuming artist among the masses, but upon further exploration, there is much more to the man that is Schumi, also known as Albert Michael Guallar, is currently a second-year student under the program BS Information Technology. He talks with TomasinoWeb about his journey in honing his craft.
Photo courtesy of Schumi
He explained that his name was derived from the legendary Ferrari race car driver Michael Schumacher, of whom his mother was a fan of, “My mom was a racecar driver sa UP, parang nag-drag race siya noong college days niya, and yung idol niya doon si Michael Schumacher, yung Formula 1 Racer. Eh yung nickname niya is Schumi.” He elaborated that the “Michael” part of his name was influenced by this. As a great family man, he considers his family as one of the greatest inspirations and motivations in his life, noting that they were the reason that he pushes himself to go to a hundred every day.
Names aren’t the only thing influenced by the racecar driver, as he was growing up; Schumi would be a great fan of racing and cars and explained that he lived his life having difficulties relating to others and having trouble fitting in. He attributed this to a part of his personality that seemed to go at a speed that everyone else had trouble trying to understand. During his high school days, he shared that he tossed aside what made him unique in a bid for him to fit in with the various cliques and groups. But as he went through this, it made him miserable, being unable to express his true self.
He describes himself as a risk-taker. He expounds, “it’s not bad to take risks, but you always need to make sure that it’s safe in the long run. It’s all about taking risks and thinking ten years ahead.”
As he went into college, he allotted a great amount of thanks to his friends for helping him realize that it was much better being himself and was grateful that they helped him in his journey to realize that he was more than Albert Guallar. His best friend Esca was also a major motivator through his journey to become Schumi. He accompanied his friend through gigs, supporting in his own way, seeing another side to the hip-hop scene that opened his eyes and was the inspiration that paved the path for the Fresh Prince.
A major catalyst that lit the fuse to his career would be an emotionally daunting breakup with his girlfriend, through which his best friend urged him to try and express his emotions through writing his own songs. The process would eventually spark something in him, and in his own words, “It was like I discovered fire!” he said with a beaming smile on his face.
When asked about his foremost inspiration in music, without hesitation, he replied, “Ang pinaka-idol ko na artist is Drake, kasi, I look up to him, binreak niya yung norm ng genre namin [hip-hop]. Kasi hip-hop should be gangster, should be street. Pero yung ginawa niya, hip-hop should have feelings pa rin. Music should have no rules, so ang ginawa ko ‘yung no rules. Bakit ka may sinusundan na formula, ‘di ba?”
Photo courtesy of Brin Isaac
Everyday, he continued writing his own songs whenever inspiration struck and would never let up if an idea came up––following an exercise method of writing songs whenever inspiration strikes. Impassioned songwriting revealed itself in his tracks, added further by his unrelenting pursuit of the perfect lyrics that matched his feelings.
“May formula ako dyan eh, binalikan ko ang mga dati ‘kong sulat na drafts, I go through my drafts and I see something that fits, and I place it there. Mga kanta na ‘di ko pa narerecord or narerelease, I just do it daily, I do rhymes daily, parang naging exercise siya. Importante talaga yung exercise method.” he said when asked whenever the occasional drop of inspiration happens and the ever-so inevitable writer’s block strikes.
Schumi’s journey as an artist was not without potholes and barriers, however, as he would experience criticism and ridicule during his journey to the top, he recounted, “I was ridiculed by my peers, sobra, as in sobrang pinagtatawanan ako, like, ‘Oh my God, that’s trash. Ano ba iyan, ano bang ginagawa mo sa buhay mo?’” Despite these setbacks, he found that his family was the one thing that he could count on.
Describing himself as a sort of rebel against the norms established by society, his signature color of pink is a form of speaking out against what society has deemed acceptable for males and females to adhere to.
“It was like I discovered fire!” he said with a beaming smile on his face.
When asked about his personal motto and actual song title of “Bakit, Why Not?”, he explained in his own words,“ ‘Di ba ang ‘Bakit, Why Not?’ is breaking social norms, parang bakit yung lalaki naka-blue, yung babae naka-pink? I wear pink kasi it’s a protest, it’s a protest na sinasabi na gender fluidity, ganyan. It should be normal. It should be normal for everyone to wear any color they like while being secure sa masculinity nila.”
Believing that a person is free to express themselves in any way and should be free of discrimination—this is the motivation behind how Schumi chooses to dress in his signature pink hoodie as well as his bandana streaking across his head, in a blatant show of “Here I am and you will hear me out!”
He describes himself as a risk-taker. He expounds, “it’s not bad to take risks, but you always need to make sure that it’s safe in the long run. It’s all about taking risks and thinking ten years ahead.” He also explained that a person needs to escape what is usual and comfortable to go beyond one’s barriers. Additionally, if someone doesn’t have anything to lose, why shouldn’t they risk trying to do something, as every single event is an opportunity to learn and grow as an individual.
Photo courtesy of Schumi
Schumi says that his passion for meeting new people and experiencing new perspectives is a driving force of his exploratory nature. He explains, “Kung nandoon ka lang sa teritoryo mo palagi, wala ka matututunan doon, or meet unexpected people like Brin […] gusto ko ‘yung fresh new perspectives, meet new people.”
Leading his rapid rise to stardom is his daring nature—beginning with the first semester of his first year in college to culminating with signing with Viva Records. Schumi explains that these risks led him to the success he holds right now. He says that it is in humanity’s nature and in his that whenever he goes out, he wants to get something, and will never accept nothing.
When asked what he would like to share with aspiring Thomasian artists, or even those looking to break into the local hip-hop scene, he immediately quipped “Yun nga yung parang mali eh, you want to fit in, eh you’re never meant to fit in. Don’t ever try to fit in when you’re meant to stand out. Yun talaga for me.”
Schumi is a diamond in the rough—a prince carving out his space in the industry, hoping to be a king of his space in the future. You can check out his new album, “Fresh Prince”, on Spotify and other music streaming platforms. Antonio Emmanuel A. Espina
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