Osa caught up with WTS from the airport, half an hour before boarding, squeezing in the conversation between the rollout of his new EP, Feels, and his next stop. The New York-based artist and founder of the More Good Music movement (MGM) has spent the past few years building a sound rooted in the African rhythms he grew up around, even as he balances music with a full-time job in healthcare insurance and a small, self-taught team he is still figuring things out with. Feels is his most collaborative project yet, pulling in features chosen for their vocal texture as much as anything else, and by his own account it is also his most personal.

What follows is a conversation about the accidental moment that pulled him into music, the making of the project, and the lessons, money matters included, that he has picked up along the way.

How did you actually get into music? Do you remember the first time you knew this was what you wanted to do?

It was the summer of 2020. I was with my current manager, VZN, and we were out playing basketball. I was messing around with music at the time, just trying stuff during quarantine. He mentioned he had some music friends in another state and invited me to come through, telling me it would be a good experience. At first I wasn’t sure, because up until then it had just been something I did by myself in my room. But I went, and I met people I still work with in music today. That experience made me want to pursue it more intentionally. I’d say that was the moment.

Was there a song or an artist that made you think, I really want to do that too?

I’ve always been a fan of music as a listener, but what fascinated me more was how some artists packaged their rollouts. Amaarae had a project around that time, the one with “Fancy” and “Trust Fund Baby” on it. That’s The Angel You Don’t Know. The way she rolled that project out really inspired me, and around the same time Odunsi (The Engine) put out Everything You Heard Is True. Seeing how they branded those projects pushed me, maybe not necessarily to do music, but to want to explore rollout and branding within music.

MGM stands for More Good Music, and the slogan is Tell a Friend. Is there a story behind that phrase?

I was originally using it as a hashtag while promoting one of my releases. My manager encouraged me to lean into it more. A friend had a printing press at his house, so I printed it on a shirt and posted about it. People started asking for their own shirts, and from there it grew into Tell a Friend.

Who’s the last artist or song you told a friend about?

I told one of my guys about YKB’s music recently.

What’s a mistake you made early on that you’d tell a new artist to avoid, or something that’s funny now but wasn’t at the time?

Making sure you get split sheets settled when you’re collaborating with other artists or producers. I learnt that one the hard way. It wasn’t really an issue, since splits are usually fair and reasonable, but not having it settled early caused some unnecessary drama. Looking back, it’s funny, but it’s something worth avoiding.

You’re New York-based, but your music carries Afrobeats influences. Do you feel the distance when you’re creating, or does it always flow?

I don’t feel a distance when I’m creating. I was raised around Africans and Nigerians directly, so I’m still very immersed in the culture. Geographically, sure, there’s distance, but not when I’m making music. It feels innate at this point.

You described your new EP, Feels, as moving through falling, losing yourself, and finding your way back. Does that come from one specific period or relationship, or is it more an aggregate of things over time?

It’s mostly a series of different time periods and events, sharing perspective from my own lived experiences as well as things I’ve seen or heard.

You call this your most personal work but also your most collaborative. How do you hold space for both? Did working with other people take away from the personal angle at all?

Not really. Each collaborator, from the producers to the featured artists, is someone I’ve built a relationship with over time, some newer than others, but that’s just how it works. As long as I’m honest and intentional, I don’t think I lose that personal perspective. I also wanted to bring in their own perspective on the direction of the songs.

There’s a wide range of collaborators on the project. How did the pairings come together, and was there anyone who surprised you?

I’m big on vocal texture, so that mattered a lot when picking who to work with on each song. Aema was the most surprising. She was actually the last feature to record a verse, and it happened last minute, right as we were closing out the project.

Did you grow up in a house where music was always playing?

To an extent. On weekends, while cleaning the house, there’d definitely be Fuji music playing. Also at events, birthdays, baby showers, that kind of thing, I was exposed to that African groove and rhythm early.

Do you think that factored into wanting to do music as a career?

Maybe subconsciously. I only started doing music as an adult, so I’d say it played a role without me realising it at the time.

Is there a genre of music you haven’t been able to get into?

I don’t feel much of anything toward country music, honestly. Just indifference. I haven’t really explored it, but I’m not sure I could get into that sound.

Was there something you thought being an artist would be like before you started, that turned out not to be true at all?

I thought every artist automatically had a team once they got into music. For a lot of it, it was really just me and my manager figuring things out, and we’re still learning. There are more hands on deck now, though. I don’t know why I assumed everyone starts with a full team, but you learn as you go.

What does a day in your life look like?

I work full-time in healthcare insurance, so that takes up most of my day. In the evenings, I might edit videos, since I handle a lot of my own visuals, or record music. Sometimes I’ll go hang out at shoots with creative friends, just to be around people and meet new ones.

Do you have any other creative talents besides music?

I do graphic design, some creative direction, styling, modelling, and photography. I kind of pick things up as I go.

If you had to describe your sound as a food or drink, what would it be?

Gbegiri. At first glance it looks like a lot, but there’s a certain texture to it that I think translates to the music as well.

What’s your creative process like?

It varies. I might hear something or get sent a beat and start freestyling melodies, building around those. Sometimes I already have words and build from there. Other times I’ll have a direction for what I want to say without the words yet, and build from that. I also have collaborative sessions with other artists or producers where we build together. It really depends.

Do you remember the first song you ever made?

I do, actually. It never came out, and I don’t even know if I still have the file. It was called “I.” Just “I.”

What do you hope happens within the next five years?

I want MGM to go global. We do activations in New York now, but within five years I want us doing that across the country and internationally. It’s one thing to see the analytics of where your music is being played, but it’s another to actually be present in those places, meet people, and learn about different cultures firsthand.

Have you always lived in New York? If you had to live somewhere else, where would you pick?

Yes, always New York. Right now, I’d pick LA. It’s hard to explain; it’s a feeling, the landscape, the fact that it’s never cold. I like nature, and my experience out there has been really pleasant.

If you want people to know one thing about you, what would it be?

I’ve been learning recently that to allow is to let go.

Last question: do you have a favourite song on Feels? If someone told you they’d only listen to one song, and that song would decide whether they kept listening to you as an artist, which would you put forward?

Either “Parté” or “Garagwé.”