Boston's Brandie Blaze Is Following Her Calling

I was stoked to get to know Boston native Brandie Blaze before her performance at Boston Calling this May! I love her energy and knew we would get along immediately (spoiler alert: I wasn’t wrong.) Check out our full conversation below!

Where did it all begin for you?

I'm from Dorchester. I'm actually a third generation Bostonian. My mom and my grandmother are from Roxbury. So like, we bleed green over here! I've been performing since I was three years old and this is pretty much what I do. My big dream was to be a singer. Unfortunately, I cannot sing. So, you know, that's a little roadblock to that dream that I have. But I started writing poetry in junior high and I always just loved rap and hip hop. I'm a 90s kid, so you know, growing up in the golden era, it's like, you're just immersed in it. You just can't hope to fall in love with this. I started rapping and here we are.

What is the hip hop scene in Boston right now?

I think it's growing and is amazing. The rap scene in Boston, I love it so much. Just because I feel like we're all connected in a way that maybe we weren't as solidly connected as we are now - especially female rappers. The female rap community, like we know each other, we love each other, we support each other. We really tried to make sure that we're all uplifting each other and that we're also getting to know the younger female artists. You know, I've been doing this for a while and there's a lot of upcoming female representatives. I try to make sure that I know who they are and they know who I am and we keep building together and sharing our resources. But the energy for Boston, right right now, it's just like crazy. It's like, wow, people want to hear us! I'm like, let's go!

Your latest album, Late Bloomer, came out in 2019. What inspired this album for you?

Late Bloomer is technically a concept album. The concept of it is you start with the first interlude, and it's about a conversation that happens between a man and a woman over the course of a night. The album was inspired by something that actually did happen to me. I had been kind of, you know, what we'll call it “dating.” We'll call it “dating” tonight. But I was “dating” this guy and he heard one of my songs from my first album, and he thought the song was about him. But it wasn’t and he was very upset with me, he left me the craziest voicemail just cussing me out because he thought the song was about him. And it really wasn't, I wrote the song before I had met him. So I was just like, “Oh, you didn't like that song that you thought was about you? Guess what? Now are we about to give you something to be mad about.” That's really where the concept of that album came from and, you know, other experiences I had at the time as well. But that was really mainly it. And also shout out to Mr. PSA, who was on the interludes on the album, he really brought it to life because I was gonna use the actual voicemail. My team was like, that's not a good idea because he was already upset. He hears that and he's probably going to try to sue you. It's going to be a big thing. So I said, Okay, let's recreate it and Mr. PSA did an amazing job. I thought the voicemail was funny, but I don't think maybe other people would think it sounds funny, because he's like, cussing me out. But Mr. PSA brought the humor to it that it really needed at some points as well. So he played it amazingly. I'm so proud of how it came together.

What are you working on now in terms of new music? Do you have another album on the way?

Yes, there is another album on the way. I can't tell you the exact date right now, but I will tell you that it comes out before Boston Calling.

Let’s talk Boston Calling - take me through that moment when you found out you were going to be on the lineup for this year!

I cried. This is something that I wanted for a long time. I was really inspired seeing other amazing hip hop acts from Boston do it. I really, really look up to them as artists and for what they do for, not even just Boston, but for New England as a region. I was so proud to see them up there and I was like, I want to do that too. So it's something that I've been working on low key for a little bit, but it's finally here. I'm totally not freaking out.

What other artists on this year’s lineup are you excited to see?

I'm a huge fan of Najee Janey, I'm so excited to see him. I'm also really, really excited to see Paramore. The thing about black people liking Paramore is true. I also low key died when I saw that I was the same day as the Foo Fighters. I'm super excited for them too!

Have you started planning for your performance yet?

Definitely. I'm still like, not so much processing it, but I'm just like, I want it to be like the show of my life. I'm really giving it the seriousness of that. I may be a little picky about the songs that we do. Definitely going to be picky about the look. My mom actually styles me, but we've already talked about that. She's actually going to make me something custom because she's the truth. Like we love mama Blaze over here. If you ever come to Boston, you could just ask for Mama Blaze. She's a celebrity. That has nothing to do with me. People chose to see her. She's definitely about to pull out all the punches, so you know the look is gonna be right. I'm so excited.

In addition to Boston Calling, do you have any other performances coming up?

Yes, I'll be at Big Night Live in Boston on March 9!

What other goals and plans do you have for the rest of the year?

Absolutely. I have a line of lipsticks. Um, yes, I'm branching out. My makeup line is called PhyRe by Brandie, After releasing the album, hopefully I’ll be going on a tour. My next really big dream is to keep expanding my makeup line with more colors, and eventually spinning to like eyeshadow, liners. Maybe one day I can get up to foundation, but you know, baby steps. That's really my baby right now. I'm also a part of a musical called Come To Pass. We did our first short run last summer, and we're going to be going on another run this year and going on a little tour with it. Really trying to expand that musical, which is incredible. It's all hip hop artists and poets. It's an incredible story. We got an amazing reception the first time we ran it. So definitely make sure y'all look out for Come To Pass. You can follow that on IG as well. Absolutely the makeup and the musical are my big dreams outside of working as a solo artist.

You keep yourself busy! What do you do in your free time?

Low key, I'm a big nerd. If I'm not working, I do try to make sure I build in my self care time so I can relax and have a good time. But I'm a big nerd. I read a lot of books, and I play video games. I'm not good at them, but I enjoy it. I don't have time to get good, but I am a big Final Fantasy seven girl. You don't necessarily have to be good, you just have to get through the story. I can do that.

Time for a round of “F, Marry, Kill” with artists from your Spotify festival lineup!

Round 1: Drake, Jay Z, and Meek Mill

Oh, wow so you're just not gonna make it easy. I have to marry Drake because I heard that he has a room of Birkins in his house for his future wife. I'm a huge Drake fan anyway, but I also just really want the room full of Birkins. I would definitely have to F Jay Z because that's the goat to me. That's the goat. Then, unfortunately, I have to kill Meek. I am a big Meek Mill fan, so nothing personal.

Round 2: The Game, Lil Wayne and Kendrick Lamar

Marry Kendrick Lamar. You have to marry Kendrick Lamar. I feel like that was like the easiest though. My love for Lil Wayne knows no bounds, so I'll say F Lil Wayne and kill The Game. I love The Documentary, but I really feel like I really learned how to rap and build bars and punch lines from Lil Wayne.

Round 3: Beyoncé, Megan Thee Stallion, and Alicia Keys

You just went right for the heart. Wow, this is the hardest one. There's no good answers here. I would just go with my gut. I would just go with my heart and my heart says to marry Megan. That's what my gut and my heart says. I just adore her, which I know it's like the crazy answer. Everyone's like Beyoncé and I adore Beyoncé, but my heart belongs to Megan. So I suppose marry Meghan, F Beyoncé because I gotta breathe her air. I would pass out. Unfortunately, have to kill Alicia, but I do love Alicia Keys.

Last, but not least: here in Maine, our state motto is “The way life should be.” According to you, what is the way life should be?

I think that life should be beautiful. It should be free. Everyone should have access to the same type of life and opportunities and ability to pursue what they're passionate about and love. Life should just be happy and we should all be able to coexist together peacefully. That's one thing that I really love about hip hop because I feel like it gives us a little peek into what it's like to be able to coexist all together peacefully and be happy and appreciate beautiful art.

Much love to Brandie for taking the time to chat with me! Snag your tickets here to catch her live Friday night of Boston Calling.