Exclusive: A.CHAL Talks About Using His Voice For The Oppressed

Check out our exclusive interview with A.CHAL!

After releasing his second critically acclaimed project ON GAZ a few months ago, A.CHAL is touring the country, connecting with fans and sharing his story. ON GAZ was included in Pigeons & Planes Best albums of 2017 so far, the second time one of his projects made their way onto Pigeons’ Best Album list. We caught up with the talented singer to talk ON GAZ tour life and his upcoming project!

Did you have a lot of musical influences while you were growing up?

My parents worked a lot so I would only have the radio—mind you I moved to New York when I was five so—I would just play the radio not really knowing what anything was about, but my parents, when they got home from work—they would—my dad would either play like 70’s rock or indigenous Peruvian music.

Would you say those sounds influenced the music you make today?

Yeah, a thousand percent. I feel like my music is a hybrid of contemporary music. It feels a little old school, a little psychedelic, and it definitely has some indigenous vibes in it too.

When did you know you wanted to be an artist and music was something that you wanted to pursue as a career?

I remember, being in 4^th grade and them asking “what do you want to be” and I said I wanted to be an artist but I needed to do better in English so I could say things properly (laughs) so maybe around then? There’s been a lot of times in my life where I was like “this is what I want to do” you know? I think I always knew it since I was a kid. It’s what I was most fascinated with.

Do you feel like you had to kind of overcome a lot of hurdles? Were those close to you supportive of your dreams or did you have to do a lot of convincing to get people to see your vision?

People being supportive of my music was very secondary to the other things I had to deal with.You gotta understand, being an immigrant from Peru people weren’t very supportive of me in general because they would sometimes not—they would kind of pick on me for being Peruvian -it was just hard for me to fit in at times, so I had to overcome that first before I even focused on music and I think those things helped me out in the long run as well.

With your music and where you’re taking it, do you feel like you want to/need to put on for Peruvian immigrants and immigrants in general and be a voice for people who’ve had to deal with those trials and tribulations?

If I can be a voice for people who relate to the circumstance that I’ve been through, whether being an immigrant, being an outcast, trying to balance two different kinds of lives—I’m here for that and I’m a voice for that, you know?

What has the transition into stardom been like for you? Pigeons and Planes labeled both of your last two projects the best albums for their respective years. That’s really high praise!

To be honest, it’s been very overwhelming—it hasn’t been that overwhelming actually, I’ve been very appreciative of it. Meeting the fans though, that’s probably been the best part because being able to talk to them face to face and then them telling me that what I’m doing—because of who I am—is very inspirational to them as Latinos, as immigrants of other countries, as people who want to pursue music, as just humans—the music style is just a vessel for that. I appreciate Pigeons and Planes for staying stuff like that, at the same time I’ve been working really hard on this for a long time —I put the craft first so the other stuff doesn’t ever really get in the way or aren’t things that I pay too much mind to.

Can you talk about what the process of making ON GAZ?

The process of making ON GAZ was fast and therapeutic. One, I was in a dark zone—trying to get out of a negative space that I had been in and I know I needed to work fast for what I wanted to accomplish. So I made the songs fast and I think you can hear it in the project, that it’s a motivational tool for anyone trying to do the same thing—accomplish something.

What would you say was probably your favorite song off the project?

It changes each time. Right now? No Service—I really like No Service.

Can you elaborate on why that’s your favorite song at the moment?

Probably because, now that I’m performing them, “No Service” is kind of like a hidden gem in the track—like, it’s not a single or anything—but when I perform it, I kind of see people trippin’, it’s like they’re in a psychedelic space when I do that song. I really like it.

Now that you’ve been able to perform the tracks, what else has surprised you about actually have the fans experience it in live? What has that experience been like for you?

The performance aspect puts my purpose in full circle because it connects the community that my music is building, that it’s creating. That is very inspirational, motivational—for me to do something great with my platform, not just do music, and not just make songs. I’m here to create an environment or a vibe for people who need it.

I know that you’re currently on tour, but what else do you have in store for your fans?

Currently, I’m finishing up my next project—I’m working up on music. The touring stuff has helped me get a perspective of where I should go with my music as well – I don’t think my breakthrough is gonna happen until the next project in my eyes. What do I have prepped for my fans? A very strong breakthrough.

Could you talk about any of the production or any collaborations that might be happening?

All I’m going to say is that the people that I’ve been collaborating with post- “ON GAZ” —it’s all been organic and it’s been out of the strength of music and I’m very humbled by the magnitude of talent that wants to work with me and all I want to say is my agenda is to be global.