In the dawn of a new decade, music lovers are seemingly trapped between sounds that emulate the resurgence of ’80s babies and those that showcase a shift toward the more futuristic—sometimes, we’re bombarded by nonsensical mash-ups. Enter Wordsmith. An aficionado of the stuff hailing from Baltimore, Maryland, Wordsmith will be dropping The Vintage Experience on March 30th, and has a good idea about music’s past, where it’s going, and what he’s got to do to get where he fits in.

URB: You’ve been doing a lot of running around and getting ready for your album to come out. What has preparation for The Vintage Experience been like for you?
WORDSMITH: Because I’m independent—I don’t have a manager, I don’t have an A&R, I don’t have a publicist setting up press or album release parties for me—I have been handling a lot by myself. I have a great team around me but a lot of the contact I’ve had with people I have to make myself. And the type of project I did was coming from me trying to make a movie on wax. That’s what this album is like. So I’ve been really trying to establish that atmosphere for the public.

URB: Movie on wax? Would you say that you acquired some of your creativity while majoring in theater?
WORDSMITH: Yes, and I have been seeing how the business is, and how major labels are ran [sic], and how TV stations heavily influence one another. Entertainers like me are like the black sheep of the industry just trying to break down doors and get in, but they don’t want to let us in. So my mind frame is very independent; I’ve been like that my whole life. My theater background made it natural for me to transfer that to my music and present it like that on-stage, and also present it like that on a record.

URB: What was your biggest inspiration for The Vintage Experience?
WORDSMITH: I grew up on the pioneers of hip-hop. Literally, I’m chillin’ in my studio charging my phone and I have a tape collection of 500 tapes in mint condition. This is what I grew up on. I didn’t grow up on the Soulja Boy or Gucci Mane era, not putting them down, but that’s not my era of music. I think with this project I wanted to make the guys who came before me proud because I feel that a lot of artists today are making millions of dollars and these guys weren’t making that kind of money back in the day. They put in the work so we could have careers today. I wanted to make sure I put an album together the pioneers could be proud of. The “Experience” part of it comes from me wanting you to grab something from the album. When you take that full ride through the album, rate it like you would a movie. You’ll notice as you listen that you’ll get something from it. Like, when you go see a movie and you say, “man, that movie touched me,” that’s what I want this album to do to you. Touch you, make you call your friends and make you realize we need something like this in the game right now, not just in hip-hop, but in music. I just want my music to touch somebody.

URB: It can be rough for artists who express lyrical-inclinations. What has been the biggest obstacle you’ve faced thus far?
WORDSMITH: Getting recognized. I feel like I’m a very consistent artist who puts out consistent music. I put out new music every two weeks or some type of media footage. Even when it’s not album time, or when a mixtape isn’t dropping, I’m always trying to gain press for myself. One thing I’ve noticed about the industry that frustrates me is when artists that don’t work as hard as me or put out as much material, or aren’t in front of as many people, get more shine. A lot of that may be because they’re being repped by somebody who’s pretty big—I don’t really have that. I had the Bridging the Gap project with Chubb Rock last year. Being honest, unfortunately, I didn’t feel that project did what it was set out to do. I think the biggest obstacle is being recognized for the work I put out. I appreciate when people reach out and tell me they love how lyrical I am. It lets me know I’m doing the right thing and making my music the right way.

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