NYC’s newest rap group, WHATMORE, is an eclectic 5-piece consisting of high school friends, Cisco Swank, Yoshi T, Sebastiano, Jackson August (Vocals), and Elijah Judah (Producer). The group, serving as native New Yorkers, draws inspiration from everyday experiences, bridging their community and craft. It’s these urban experiences that have drawn in listeners all across New York. Although the group has gained a lot of traction, the members all state their identity as “just a group of guys who make music .“ Meanwhile, WHATMORE is recasting traditional rap standards and heavily amplifying the Alternative Rap game.
47Magazine had the opportunity to chat with WHATMORE as they cover topics surrounding their debut album, their collective sound as a group, and preparing for their first tour.
This interview was conducted in person and has been edited for clarity.
[Harmony Robinson]: Which music video did you have the most fun filming?
[Sebastiano]: I definitely had the most fun filming the “chicken shop date” video. We filmed in the middle of the night, around 1:00 am. We had live chickens. Random people were coming in from the club next door just to check out what was happening. It was an unforgettable time, for sure.
[Cisco]: Lowkey, I would say the “eastside” video was actually kind of fire. We were on a bus, and everyone around was growing really tired of us, and we had to focus on dodging stop signs-
[Yoshi]: Don’t forget about those lights!
[Cisco]: Yeah, we almost died. Not joking.
[Yoshi]: My favorite was “Jenny’s” because we got to ride on The Cyclone twice.
[Jackson]: I gotta go “Chicken shop” with Seb. That might have been one of the wildest nights of my life. On top of filming with live chickens, we had some crazy interactions. People were coming off the street to see what was going on. Shoutout to the chicken shop; everyone who worked there was so chill.
[Elijah]: I agree. “Chicken shop” was definitely the craziest.
[HR]: What's been the hardest part of creating the album, and what's the creative process behind it?
[Sebastiano]: Honestly, I don't even say there's a hard part, because making music with Whatmore-the homies-is easier than doing it by yourself. We just all get in a room together. Elijah's the glue to everything. We throw down ideas on whatever was produced, and it's like a puzzle piece after that, putting it together, figuring out where the verses and hooks go.
[Cisco]: Yeah, the hardest part for me was going into a rural area and making it because I don't like leaving New York. But as far as the creative process goes, Elijah makes a beat, and we all start rapping.
[Yoshi]: The creative process is mad fun because, honestly, it's like nothing I've ever done before. We create a 16-bar loop, record over it, and then, as Seb mentioned, it becomes a big puzzle piece. It's like, oh, this is the verse and this is the chorus. When you make music alone, you write it fluidly and it makes sense, but when you have five other people, you never know what someone’s going to do. So I might think I have the hook, but then it's like, oh, no, wait, this is just a fire post-chorus. Then someone else chimes in with, "Let's try this and try that," and it just works.
[HR]: Congrats on playing Coachella and opening for LAUNDRY DAY! How are you guys navigating the nerves of performing for such large crowds?
[Yoshi]: So the way we're preparing to perform for Coachella is every day we get together and we spend like 7 hours watching Bey-chella on repeat. Every. Single. Day. Then we pray to Queen B.
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[HR]: With everyone being from such different musical backgrounds, how did you all converge your different ideas onto the album? Upon listening, do you think there’s a uniform sound or is it a blend across genres?
[Cisco]: The thing is, we all listen to different stuff, like Elijah and I, even though we don't look like the indie kids of the group, we listen to some alternative music. All of us listen to whatever. Jackson listens to hip hop-he loves 21 Savage. Seb listens to K-pop,
[Jackson]: -I do love 21 Savage.
[Cisco]: So it's blended from our primary inspiration at the top of different genres, but it's just an easy mesh cause we all listen to different things.
[HR]: I've been loving the visualizers you all have been putting out; it really feels like fans are navigating the music industry alongside you. What's one piece of advice you give to those just starting?
[Cisco]: You gotta go to Patrick, our videographer, for that one.
[Patrick Linehan ]: Find friends that you like making stuff with, and just start doing it. Don’t make excuses and don't be afraid to ask. You gotta be good at being told no.
[Jackson] My biggest thing was don’t be afraid. This is so corny, but don't be afraid to fail. Don't be afraid to be corny. I feel like we've been failing and being corny for so long, with videos that no one saw because they were bad. We put in years of just doing that, and then eventually you get to a point where it’s like, oh, wait, like, this is kind of good; and I feel like we're still working at that, obviously.
[Yoshi]: Our videos aren't corny. They're compelling.
[Jackson]: You're not going to be amazing at first, so don't be afraid to f****** fail.
[Cisco] Also, take everything with a grain of salt. Everyone's gonna have an opinion. Appreciate the opinions of people above you, but if you think something's fire, you gotta stand by it.
[HR]: What's one thing you want audiences to take away from the album?
[Elijah]: I just want people to feel like they know us a little better. I think that’s really the biggest thing. I want people to feel comfortable coming up to us and saying hi. I want people to talk to us about the music and how it influenced them. I want to know what it made them think and feel.
[Cisco]: We are regular people who love music, and today's the day, not tomorrow, not next week, lock in.
[Jackson]: We are people. We're out here on the street, come say what up to us. That’s it, Whatmore 2025, we’re here!
Written by Harmony Robinson
Photographed by Shane Allen & Razi Faouri
