Emerging hip-hop sensation RickyBoy makes a powerful return, unleashing his latest track, "Step Up Freestyle", directly from the vibrant heart of north London. Drawing inspiration from his upbringing and fueled by an unwavering love for music, RickyBoy's latest release guarantees to enthrall listeners with its authentic energy and irresistible beats. We spoke with him about his latest track, biggest influences, who he'd like to work with in the future and more.
IGNITE: Tell us a little about your story and background
RickyBoy: Where to start! Growing up in Enfield was a smooth upbringing of course you have your up & down moments but I believe that’s all part of the journey. I started putting verses together around secondary school like year 9 however I wasn’t until late lockdown times I started putting out my music. Of course during this period was tough as well as I couldn’t perform as much however I began putting out more singles and videos in my own page in order to boost my core audience, this gave me the confidence to take my career by the horns.
IGNITE: Who are your biggest influences?
RickyBoy: I wouldn’t say I have many but my dad is probably the person I look up to the most. He may not be as in touch with his music side, however being a family man and looking after those close to him is something I admire a lot as in a way it transpires with my ethos as an artist.
IGNITE: How have friends and family reacted to your journey so far in music?
RickyBoy: I remember when I showed my mum my first video the shock was quite hilarious! Of course I don’t want to be swearing around her all the time however the passion I had and still have today is what made her believe this is the career path for me so my only wish is to carry on making her proud and to progress further. My peoples that I keep around me are very supportive as well without them this journey wouldn’t been a lot harder; our fellowship goes a lot deeper than just the music so for them to see me going full steam ahead with my music is only a blessing.
IGNITE: Congratulations on the release of your new single “Step Up Freestyle”. How did it come about and what’s the meaning/message behind the song?
RickyBoy: I was abroad in Kenya for a month, and the time I was there I always thought it’ll be sick to record some music in a complete different environment. As soon as I heard the beat the raps just came to me instantly (no pen or pad). Few months down the line I showed the members in my team my work overseas and the uproar was crazy! We decided to shoot the video in Manchester in a vlog style format just to show our real side to who we are as individuals which payed off quite well. The message id like people to take from this is simply just to be yourself - we’re all going to be judged anyway so why not have fun with it? Individualism & uniqueness is at an all time low so I wish to show my creative side whilst still sticking to my roots as much as possible.
IGNITE: Speaking of freestyles, what are some of your favourite freestyles performed by other rappers?
RickyBoy: Just off the top of my head probably lil baby - freestyle. Only because I think this was the first song that put him in the map and is still being played today. The song has no chorus as well so it’s definitely a commendable track altogether.
IGNITE: Who are some artists or producers you’d love to work with in the future?
RickyBoy: Bandplay - (PRE Producer) one of my favourite artists is the late young dolph which when he passed away made me reevaluate a few things as this was someone that got me through a lot of hardships. Bandplay produced many of Dolphs tracks over the years and his attention to placements and overall quality of instrumentals is crazy so it’ll be sick to team up with him in the future.
IGNITE: If you could only listen to three albums for the rest of your life, what would they be and why?
RickyBoy: Young dolph - dumb&dummer - this album was on my repeat playlist for a long time once it was released; the production and heavy hitting bangers motivated me on a day to day basis.
RickyBoy - RickySzn - of course I have to add myself in there! Just to have a memoir and remind myself where it’ll started this was my first project I put together so I love to go back sometimes and reminisce on the songs that people still play today and think how I can do better in my next releases.
Travis Scott - Astroworld - again I remember the first time I had listened to this album, the production, vocals, song placement everything was just perfect no skips in this album too so pretty much every song is a banger. The anticipation was crazy so there were no skips on this album.
IGNITE: What are your plans for the rest of 2024? What can fans expect?
RickyBoy: BIG PLANS! I’ve got a lot of singles I wish to drop throughout the year along with videos. SPMM (my team) are planning to do a music retreat in the summer where we plan to bring some artists with us and just have a vibe & create music, content, BTS Etc. this will enable everyone to come out to there comfort zone & work together with different artist and ideas throughout the duration. A mixtape is definitely on the cards as well but we’re still in the works with that one!