Sam Astaroth 
Thanks for taking some time to be interviewed by Trap Metal Arsenal. Let’s get down to business.
1) What are the circumstances that pushed you to become a musician? What changes have being a musician brought into your life?
I’ve always wanted to be a musician, specifically a vocalist. But for a very long time that was just a dream. That was never a reality for me; I had WAYYY too much anxiety to show anyone my music.
However, I like to think that even the most negative events have positivity as well – life is full of balance. As I worked through some of my mental blocks I realized I was gaining confidence as a vocalist and a person. At that point I began recording.
Aside from being able to essentially live my dream of being a vocalist, one of the biggest positive impacts has been that music has really helped reduce my depression.
2) How did you get into the trap metal scene? Who are your biggest influences?
I heard a type of sound in a song I liked at the time. This was many years back, I’m talking before the $B, X, or BONES era, and I honestly don’t even remember the artist. The sound I heard fell right between rap and metal. I loved it, so I dug deeper into scream-rap until I began singing along and hitting the notes.
It took a few years from enjoying listening to metal to actually vocalizing in a semi-professional manner – it got easier over time. I am also a part of two amazing communities: Wasted Youth Collective, and another that I co-founded called Devth Kvlt.
These communities continue to push me to work even harder despite any personal setbacks.
3) Why did you decide to become a musician over anything else? How long have you been making music? Will you continue making music no matter what?
Despite my age and issues with mental health, music has been the only personal outlet or job that I’ve had that turned from a passion of mine into my own personal ‘legacy’ that I’m happy with. Now, I work with extremely talented artists, as well as popular artists, and receive amazing support, insight, and motivation.
2023 was my first year making music, and I learned a tremendous amount during that time. So I’m happy doing what I do now, and I expect numbers to keep rising cause ya boy has a LOT of releases planned in the next couple of months!
I will absolutely continue making music! For many reasons, but most importantly is that it’s a healthy outlet. It’s also one that leaves a personal mark on my PERISHED HART persona and allows me to spread positivity to a much larger audience.
4) What is the best advice you can provide to someone that’s thinking of becoming a new artist or is struggling to make it in the music industry?
My most experience is in Trap-Metal, but my general advice is:
A) Do NOT be afraid to experiment with genres and subgenres until you’ve found the one that suits you the best. It’s helpful to use others as examples, but in the end, you want to create your own unique style to fit your unique sound and skillset. That’s how genres are made.
A passionate song will always leave you with more appreciation than plain stream seekers. And that goes for critics too – every new genre has caused controversy until it is accepted by many in the underground scene, which gives it potential to blow up. So negative feedback is not always a bad thing. Hell, it’s free publicity!
B) For vocalists and producers, watching ‘How To’ videos can be an incredible resource for learning the basics or expanding your range. Another awesome tip for vocalists, if you have the means, is to meet with a vocal coach. You’d be surprised how well that can improve your vocals.
I’ll give a shoutout to my coach, Sam Astaroth ( @samastaroth666 ) who is an incredible vocalist and vocal coach!
5) What do you wish to accomplish through your music? Who do you aspire to become as a musician? What symbolism does your music represent?
Since music is my full time career, which I started at the beginning of 2023, I’ve wanted to improve my vocals and my range so I can deliver a darker, more intense sound with more flexibility with pitch. As much as I love my favorite artists, I only want to look to them as an example for myself. Ultimately, I aspire to be a more talented version of my current self. But that’s not meant to sound conceited.
What I mean is that one of my goals is to create a genre that hasn’t yet existed. Similar to how Sam Astaroth has created Demoncore, or the early underground artists that went from the depths of SoundCloud to super mainstream, much like Xxxtentacion or Lil Peep for example.
My music’s symbolism is nearly all centered around pain that I have lived, pain that I can only express through lyrics and vocals. But my goal, what I want to accomplish, is to narrow down my niche and truly create a legacy for myself, and lift up those who have supported me through this process.
6) What is your favorite thing about making music? Lyrics? Vocals? Do you play any instruments? What is your song writing process like?
My favorite part about making music is hearing something like 5 seconds of a beat I really vibe with all while the energy of the beat hits me like a train. I can freestyle my vocals as soon as I hear the beat.
For me it goes like this – when I have the ability to record, I do, and the rest of the time is spent on lyrics and promotions. I would say that the lyrics are my favorite part though. I sadly do not play any instruments, at least not anymore.
At this point I think I’ve really dedicated my life to vocals – that’s my favorite ‘instrument’. As far as my writing process, I’ll pump out a rough draft quickly, wait a day to let my brain reset, and come back and fine-tune any of the lyrics that could be better.
7) Who do you have to thank for getting you where you are now in life and in your music career? Who has been there for you through thick and thin?
I am certainly indebted to my family for all the BS I’ve put them through over the years. This music also isn’t their cup of tea, but they support my passion nonetheless. I absolutely have to give another shoutout to Wasted Youth Collective and Devth Kvlt for being there for me and offering support and opportunities.
Another shoutout to my man Sam Astaroth for helping set up this opportunity. And a huge thank you to Producer and Mixing Engineer ARAGOTH for teaching me how to record properly when I first started out and for producing and mixing many of my tracks and vocals.
I also have to give credit to a couple of my producers and close friends, darkangel & ScytheFM, for keeping me motivated and supporting me no matter how hard times get. But also, I have to have appreciation for myself.
2023 was incredibly rough for me due to many unfortunate circumstances. So I have to recognize the accomplishments I’ve made and for persevering despite these unfortunate times and for working on some real bangers yet to drop!
8) Can you tell us about the music scene near you? What do you like or dislike? Do you have any show or tour plans? Who do you want to play shows or tour with?
My only gripe with living where I do is that it’s really isolated. But that doesn’t stop me from wanting to perform! I live several hours away from fantastic performance opportunities, so in 2024 you will certainly see me on stage!
I am naming just a few of the artists I want to do shows/tour with, but there are many more. I would love to perform on stage with Sam Astaroth, CXVEN, Necr0sis, DEATH BLADE 6.6.6, Vile卑劣, Ras Bootin’, CHXEU…..damn there really are so many artists I want to perform with!
9) Who are some of your favorite artists and producers you have gotten to work with? Which are the artists and producers you are looking to work with next?
Since I’m close friends with many of the artists I’ve worked/collabed with, I won’t name anyone specifically, but if we have worked/are working together I’d be more than happy to collab again!
And there are many others I have not worked with yet that I would love to work with, and if my growth continues I’ll have even more opportunities to collab with more amazing artists! For instance, one of my biggest goals is to bridge the gap between metal and other genres. While it’s not true Trap-Metal, I love to do covers of other genres with high energy using rough vocals.
10) What are your artistic goals for 2024? Where do you see yourself in 5 years? What about 10 years? Do you have an end game goal?
Early 2024 will consist of several collabs and releases. Once my collabs are complete I’ll move on to solo tracks that I have planned for my album. In one year I would love to see my music gain a lot more traction – playlists, shows, boosts, editorials, and many others that will help me gain a larger following.
My 5 and 10 year goals are also my ultimate goal – I want to grow as large as possible, create a niche genre, and I want music to remain my greatest passion. I’m incredibly resilient and I can do whatever I set my mind to, so I believe my hard work will pay off.
I don’t want to give away spoilers, but 2024 will be a year full of dark, gritty, and demonic vocals. Lastly, I would like to add how grateful I am for Brett ( @brettdeadly ) and Sam Astaroth for including me in this issue!
