Born and bred in Brooklyn, N.Y., Robin Hoodd says that he grew up hearing his mom in the kitchen singing along to the bachata, merengue and salsa hits of the time, but Hoodd would be holed up in his room singing along as well. Eventually, the Williamsburg resident, born Robin Reyes, began writing his own lyrics inspired by his daily struggles such as being bullied for being overweight and wearing hand-me-downs, as well as living under a strict household governed by an abusive father. It was at this time that the Dominican artist also discovered that he could draw, often switching from writing to drawing what he saw outside his bedroom window.
Fast forward to the present day, and we find that Hoodd has taken his talent for music and art to another level, dropping a number of tracks, and showing his abstract artwork in galleries. His sound blends his Latino roots with his urban upbringing, yet also contains influences from a number of genres like EDM and freestyle to formulate a sound that’s uniquely his own.
Hoodd’s latest music video for his single “Trouble” — directed by himself in collaboration with videographer, Jason Perez — has been making the rounds online, and ‘LLERO got ahold of it. We also got a chance to chop it up with Robin Hoodd, while he prepared one of his paintings for an art show in Miami, as he gave us the details of the inception of his musical and visual arts journey, his inspiration, the message he’s trying to bring across with his music, as well as what the future holds for the multi-talented artist on the rise.
‘LLERO: What inspired you to make music?
Robin Hood: I went through a lot of shit growing up. My family was really abusive. As much as they tried to bring you up in a strict manner, they sometimes went overboard trying to discipline you. My father was really an abusive person, and he used to verbally and physically abuse us. That kind of lead me to just wanting to be by myself and kind of expressing myself through writing. I used to write so many poems, and then, the poems would turn into music. I used to have so much time to myself to kind of channel my inner challenges. After getting a whooping or a beating, and also getting called a “fat fuck” or this and that, I would just cry and go into my room and start banging on the bureau like drums. So that inspired me to write music—to escape from all the bullshit I was going through.
‘LL: What type of music were you into at that point?
RH: We’re Dominican, so we grew up on a lot of merengue, bachata and salsa, but I was always more into the [American] culture. You go to school and kids are listening to hip-hop and pop, and I was basically just trying to take some of the Spanish vibe and the English vibe and mix it together to make my own—which is what I’m doing today. The way I say certain words or express certain feelings comes from the bachata, and the way that I produce comes from the [American] culture, like pop and hip-hop. I mix it all in one, and that’s how I come out with the music that I have.
‘LL: How would you describe your sound?
RH: I’m making my own little path. I call it like an urban pop. The urban community, that’s where I’m from, and I love hip-hop, but I’m not a hip-hop artist, and I’m not going to make believe that that’s me. So, I created this vibe where it’s things people can relate to, but at the same time it’s happy. It’s urban pop. It’s about hustling, but with a beat that’s uptempo. This little type of wave is my own, and I’m going to try to put it out there.
‘LL: Who were some of the merengueros and bachateros that you were listening to back in the day?
RH: I was into Zacarias Ferreira, Anthony Santos, El General – he was dope. It was a lot of them, El Canario, some of that old music, like Chicas Del Can and Juan Gabriel—all that shit. There were so many other artists that mom and dad were blasting, and I just grew up listening to that. The way people make Spanish music, it’s so emotional, they get so into it. Like with bachata and merengues like, “Donde estan esos amigos…” [Zacarias] goes so into his shit! I took that. That’s in my blood.
‘LL: How about English-language music—who were some of the artists you were listening to back then?
RH: Growing up, I used to listen to a lot of Michael Jackson, Jay Z. I was listening to a lot of Linkin Park. I was never just into one genre. I listened to all types of music. To me, if I could feel it, I would listen to it. But, growing up I listened to everything, like Queens of the Stone Age, 2 Pac, Biggie, Jay, I listened to all that shit. I listened to everything, everything.
‘LL: Who would be your dream collaborator, and why?
RH: I think my number one would be Kanye. He taps into different markets, and that’s the way I am. I don’t think we should all be like, “Okay, this is pop. That’s what it should be like, that’s what it should sound like. This is hip-hop, and this is what it should sound like.” No, this person fused this thing this way, because this is the way he likes to listen to it. Let’s give it a chance to see what that person has to bring to the table. Maybe it’ll sound dope. That’s why I would love to collaborate with Kanye. J. Cole would be amazing. Even Lady Gaga would be amazing. People that are talented, who love to create. I would also like to collaborate with J Balvin, Nicky Jam, Anthony Santos, Romeo, all them dudes—Marc Anthony definitely. These people could create. When I was like 18 or 19, I used to roll with Henry [Santos] and all of them [Aventura] dudes, so I saw them in the studio. They all create. I was inspired by that. Max and Lenny [Santos] would create things from nothing. I’d watch them, and they would create, and right there on the spot.
Learn why Robin Hoodd went from vinyl to canvas after the jump…
When you have time to really find yourself, you see you have more potential in life than just waking up, eating, going to school, going to work and going back home. You see that you’re worth more than that.
‘LL: Tell us a bit about your visual art, and how that all came about.
RH: That all came at around the same time. I was just going through everything. When you have time to really find yourself, you see you have more potential in life than just waking up, eating, going to school, going to work and going back home. You see that you’re worth more than that. So, while I was going through the tough times at school and in the streets, all the time that I would be by myself, my mind just started creating. I would just sit there and I would just draw and paint. I started to find things that I didn’t know I could do.
‘LL: Is your visual arts something that you’re trying to take to the next level like you’ve been doing with music lately?
RH: Yeah, I’m trying to take both of them. I’m trying to do a whole brand. There aren’t that many people out there who people can say of them, “Oh, shit, this dude can produce music, this guy can draw, write, and do a brand?” I want people to think of me as a brand.
‘LL: Are there any painters that you look to for inspiration?
RH: To tell you the truth, I don’t. I’m so stuck into creating myself and just letting things happen that I don’t really look into other people’s work and see what they’re doing. Every time I do that is if I’m at an event with another artist, and I’ll go around and speak to them. Other than that, I feel that if I get too stuck into seeing what other people are doing, then I’ll start thinking, Oh, they got this amount of this and that. Then I’ll start feeling like what I’m doing is not cool.
‘LL: How do you manage your time working on all of these projects?
RH: I got ADD, and I’m happy that I have it, ’cause shit [laughs]. I move at a thousand miles an hour [laughs], and everybody is always like, “Yo, this dude! I don’t know how the fuck he does it.” But, it’s like it never bothers me. It never tires me out. I just tell myself that I can do it.
‘LL: Do you find that painting helps you with your music or vice versa, like does one inspire the other?
RH: Yeah, it does. I feel like the more I do it, the better I get at it. The more I paint, the better I get, and then I tell myself, “Damn, I’m getting nice at this, so I gotta get nicer at this other thing. I’m putting so much details in this drawing. I should put some more details into what I write.”
‘LL: When will we get a Robin Hoodd album?
RH: I’m working on that now. The mixtape is almost done. The album will be out, hopefully, in June. I’m working with getting a bunch of artists from all over, like artists in Ohio—I’m talking to artists in Miami. I’m trying to get everybody from different states and countries. I’m also supposed to travel to Japan. I’m trying to get an artist from Japan. I’m trying to create an album that’s going to be music from all over the world. That’s been in my mind, and I started working on it since I’ve been here in Miami. I started working with some reggaeton artists. I’m trying to have a mix of everything—like I’m doing something in English, and then in the next eight bars you’ll hear a Japanese artist.
‘LL: What can you tell us about the mixtape that’s coming sooner?
RH: The mixtape is going to be dope. I put some old school vibe into it. I love freestyle music. I know it’s beyond my time, it’s way older than me, but I love it. Freestyle is the shit—like the instruments, the lyrics, the things they say is dope. I was listening to freestyle, and I made like a freestyle type of beat. Then, I created like an EDM pop type of song. It’s pretty cool, man. It’s a mix of different types of beats. It’s so dope, man.
The message that I’m trying to get across is that music is like a canvas. It’s a blank piece of canvas. It shouldn’t have a budget. It shouldn’t be about how the person looks. It shouldn’t be about you having to be skinny or look a certain way.
‘LL: Some artists have a message that they hope reaches the world by the time they put down the mic and decide to retire. What message are you trying to get across with your music?
RH: The message that I’m trying to get across is that music is like a canvas. It’s a blank piece of canvas. It shouldn’t have a budget. It shouldn’t be about how the person looks. It shouldn’t be about you having to be skinny or look a certain way. It’s just a blank canvas. I just want people to create, and create things that you feel. Create things that you go through in your day by day. I want people to go out there, and just go do it. Through my music, I want people to just feel that—just do it, man. Don’t let the next person tell you that you have to have this or you have to have that to get this much of a following. It’s about what you can do, and how you can make me feel. Put your words and feelings into it, and while you create, and spread. Spread knowledge to the next person. Don’t just make them more ignorant. Enlighten them. Don’t tell little homies to go out and shoot a gun when you probably never held a gun in your life. I want people to hear my music and say, “This dude went out there and did it the way he did it.” Like Frank Sinatra, I did it my way.
Just click below for a look at Robin Hoodd’s latest video “Trouble”.
