A$AP Ferg

Rising from the notorious streets of Harlem, New York, the hip hop collective known as the A$AP Mob are making waves within the global music scene. It’s an organisation that houses rappers, producers, video directors and fashion designers, all dedicated to taking the brand to the pinnacle of culture. An ambitious goal, one that rapper A$AP Ferg admits he had to get used to.

“I have learned how to be a team player,” he says. “It’s kind of odd because growing up I was an only child, so when I came into the group I had to reshape my thinking. When you’re thinking for the group, you have to think like, ‘If I blow up, then that’s cool but if [A$AP] Twelvyy blows up and [A$AP] Rocky blows up, then it’s better for the group as a whole’.”

From our conversation it’s clear that Ferg is anything but your average rhymer. Darold Ferguson, Jr., as his mother would call him, first set his sights on fashion through his father. The owner of a boutique, who also printed t-shirts for the likes of Bad Boy Records, Ferg took over his business following his father’s passing and continued on to design his own belt line. Rapping, it seems, came later as yet another creative outlet for Ferg.

“Music didn’t draw me away from fashion, I’m still very connected to fashion, but music has always been a big part of me,” he explains.

“I listen to myself rather than listen to other hip hop artists,” he adds. “I’m not going to lie; I listen to myself to better myself. That’s how my style has come to be, I’m not being biased or anything like that, it’s just how I work.”

It’s an unorthodox method, yet Ferg still indulges in collaboration. Despite releasing his debut album Trap Lord in August last year, Ferg is churning out feature tracks in earnest.

“You have to look out for them because they’re with some of my favourite artists, some mainstream and some underground artists,” he says.

A Harlem boy through and through, and with a profile that’s garnering global attention, is it any wonder why so many people outside of his city find something special in his unique amalgamation of lyrical tenacity and pounding beats?

“I’m a worldly person,” he says simply. “I could come from Harlem but I’m very interested in culture and I’m just a fan of different music and how different people carry themselves.” (CD)

Apr 4, Metro Theatre, 624 George St, Sydney, $60, (02) 9550 3666, metrotheatre.com.au