Drake doesn’t over saturate at all and when you hear a new record from him it’s like, “‘Oh s**t did you hear that new Drake record?'” Says Miami up and comer, QuEST. While he’s been a mainstay on sites such as 2dopeboyz and illRoots (who happen to be presenting his upcoming mixtape), he’s not confused about his own standing in the larger Hip Hop world. “You talk to people about QuESt and there’s more people saying, ‘Who’s QuESt?’ then people saying, ‘Oh s**t that’s QuESt!’ I got to pay my dues and let people know who I am.”
Find out exactly who QuESt is in our new RH First Look.
RubyHornet: You’re from Miami where the “goons” reside, would you classify yourself as such, why or why not?
QuESt: No. Because I’m too pretty to be a goon. (laughs)
RubyHornet: You don’t sound like the typical Miami rappers. Do you agree, or are we at large given a small representation of what Miami has to offer Hip Hop wise?
QuESt: I guess from what you are accustomed to hearing I am something different, but I couldn’t tell you too much about the Miami scene because it is too diverse. But for the most part what you’re getting is 85 percent of the Hip Hop scene in Miami. So, yes, I am different.
RubyHornet: Instead of releasing music through a label, you’ve linked up with websites to introduce you and your music. Is this something you thought of on your own or was this a general consensus type of thing?
QuESt: It all happened on accident in reality. I was new to the internet scene, I didn’t know anything about these blogs or Hip Hop websites. I then hooked up with Mike Waxx from illRoots in December and released a mixtape called Where’s My Rhymebook, and honestly it’s just been taking off from there. So, in actuality it’s only been five months since I’ve stepped onto the scene.
RubyHornet: There’s no doubt that more artists are doing that these days. Do you think it’s because that’s more out of necessity?
QuESt: It depends. I think more than ever it is becoming a trend. It’s a band wagon affect. It’s just like when everyone was snapping their fingers or when everybody was leaning and rocking or when everybody was using auto tune. The internet is that. If you want to get your music out, you hook up with a blogger and put your music out. Don’t get it twisted, it’s a great tool but just because you can put your music out through the internet doesn’t mean that you’re a dope artist or that you’re going to be prominent. It all depends on your grind and how you utilize it, because the internet world should be a stepping stone to your career not your actual career, and that’s how I treat it.
RubyHornet: “Losing My Mind” is one of your joints I’ve seen across the internet. What are the things that drive you crazy?
QuESt: In a good way, chicks with long legs from Australia drive me crazy. In a bad way, chicks who wear Capri pants drive me crazy. That s**t is NOT cool.
RubyHornet: You’re putting out a lot of material in a short time. Are you worried about over saturation or even feeling creatively burned out?
QuESt: No, only because lately I’ve been taking it easy and the material I have been putting out has been relatively just freestyles. It’s not like I’m pulling a Charles Hamilton and dropping mixtapes every month. I’m just relatively keeping my name in rotation and that’s how I do it. I feel like when you grind it out and build a name for yourself, however you do it, whether you are over saturating or not, you’re building a name and that’s what it’s about. Once you establish your name that’s when you can pull back and say, “Hey I want people to cherish every record I do.” A good example is Drake. Drake doesn’t over saturate at all and when you hear a new record from him it’s like, “Oh s**t did you hear that new Drake record?” You talk to people about QuESt and there’s more people saying, “Who’s QuESt?” then people saying, “Oh s**t that’s QuESt!” I got to pay my dues and let people know who I am like, “He’s that dude that dropped three songs in one week, that’s QuESt!”
RubyHornet: As a very young cat how do you deal with patience and waiting games?
QuESt: Patience is a virtue and without it you might as well just fall back from this industry. I just keep my head up and keep reminding myself that all I’m doing is making music.
RubyHornet: You recorded your own version of “Flight School” on which you say, “Reality is something that you shouldn’t really fear.” Definitely easier said than done. DO you feel that the internet and blog presence can sometimes give young artists a wrong perception of their standing?
QuESt: Yes and no. it all depends on how the artist views himself in general. Really I feel like my presence in the internet world is pretty okay but could be a lot better, a whole lot better. Just because I’m on websites doesn’t mean that I’m gonna go outside and expect everyone to ask for my autograph even though it’s happened twice. But I mean it all depends on the person and what their perception is because 5,000 downloads on a mixtape doesn’t mean you’re popular. It’s great, you have a good internet buzz but think about people who get 50,000 downloads in two minutes just because of who they are. I think a lot of young artists can get caught up in the midst of the internet world and they become people that they aren’t because they are trying to fit some kind of image that has evolved over time from being in the blogging world. But then again, as long as you know your standards then there really shouldn’t be a problem.
RubyHornet: So you’re name is QuESt, you know I had to ask this, what is your “quest” so to speak?
QuESt: I’m just trying to do whatever makes me happy. I’m not gonna say, “Oh yah I want to be the greatest rapper!” Or “Music is my life!” even though it is. But music isn’t promised for the rest of my life. The only thing promised is change and I’m well aware that two years from now this Hip Hop s**t may not be as important as it is to me right now. My quest in life is just to do whatever makes me happy at the end of the day.
RubyHornet: You have the Broken Headphones project coming out this summer. The title makes more reflective music come to mind. Is that what we can expect from this project?
QuESt: Yes, most definitely. This whole project is definitely reflective and it’s intended to get out things that I feel are necessary to release in order for me to grow as an artist so I can move on from it and not have it reflect on every single song that I do.
RubyHornet: Lastly tell our readers three things you’d like them to know about you before going and checking out more music?
QuESt: Don’t expect meaningless punch lines that flow one after the other to get sixteens completed. Expect the truth, cause that’s all I’m about to give. And this is what I love.
RubyHornet: Lastly, lastly, when you goona hook up DJ RTC with an RH Exclusive? Hahaha…
QuESt: Whenever you’re ready, I’m down man. It’s not a problem.