Sairas T („Sairas Takkinen“) on hetkel üks huvitavamaid põranda-alt-välja-murdvaid räppartiste Soomes. Tal on omapärane flow, sotsiaalkriitilised teemad ning ta teeb „vana-head-räppi“, kõlades seejuures ikkagi moodsalt. Videotes ja keikkadel kannab ta pahaendelist hokimaski. Aastal 2013 lasi Sairas T välja kasseti „Handelista Hurstiin“, mis hetkega läbi müüdi. Käesoleva aasta märtsis ilmus temalt aga veidi põhjalikum ja küpsem album „Delirium“, mis on kõigil võimalikel andmekandjatel kättesaadav (juhised intervjuu lõpus). Erinevatel põhjustel on usutlus ingliskeelne.
Now that you have the new album “Delirium” out, how are you feeling about it?
I’m feeling mostly relieved, cause it took a much longer than I expected due to the reasons I can’t control, but I’m really happy about the result. There’s nothing I would’ve done differently about the album.
You talk a lot about the “dark side” of society. How much does that reflect the guy behind the mask; where do these topics come from?
Most of the things I rap about are somehow personal, they have happened to me or to my friends/family some point of the life. Of course some of the things are fictional and exaggerated. At the end, the guy behind the mask is a lot different than Sairas T.
Who has done most of the beats and productions in your new material? How did you meet?
Most of the beats come from my main man OD KOKEMUS, who I met years ago through Soundcloud, and who nowadays is like my little brother from another vagina. The album also contains beats from my other friends like SLS, VELI PUOLIQ and KHETTOKASME. Meeting all of them is a whole different story.
How do you feel about “Handelista Hurstiin” now? (is Raine a real person?)
To me “Handelista Hurstiin” sounds like shit musically, when I listen to it now. But I have a certain nostalgic feeling about it and I can be proud of it. (Hell yeah, Raine is a real person! He’s a good childhood friend of mine who I started to rap with when I was younger.)*
Do you still consider yourself underground or do you see yourself differently after the new album?
I still consider Sairas T as underground rap, cause it’s very different from these radio-friendly-penis-grinding-ass-licking so called rap-artists that most of the Finnish rap scene is made of.
You are not originally from Helsinki. Where are you from and does that reflect any way in your music?
I’m originally from a small town of Kotka, which is as depressing and dark place, as it sounds in my lyrics. Propably everyone who has ever lived in a small shitty town can relate to that.
Finland has a big number of immigrant-rappers like Musta Barbaari, Gracias, Noah Kin, Ekow and so on. Are they considered like a separate rap-scene in Finland or are they also part of the “suomiräpp”?
I don’t know about that, I think they’re all the same. I mean part of the finnish rap-scene just like other finnish or “finnish” rappers. I don’t see any difference.
How do you feel about people sometimes associating you with the other “T” named Finnish rappers?
All of us are doing our own shit, so there’s nothing else in common in us, other than the T -thing. We all have a different story behind the “T”, and it is a total coincidence that there’s so many finnish rappers with “T” in their name.
What kind of music do you listen yourself?
Musically I’m mostly influenced by my grandpa, who used to play old blues records to me when I was a kid. As I got older, I started listening to rap artists like Psycho Realm and ODB and those finnish artists who got something to say like Julma-Henri, Jontti, Laineen Kasperi and Konna. Nowadays I try to listen to different genres from country to reggae and of course hardcore punk and heavier shit.
How did you become a rapper anyway? Has it become like your “full time job” now?
I was like fourteen when I stared to freestyle and battle with my friends at the park and twentyish when I started to write songs. I don’t make millions yet, but usually I can keep myself quite drunk. Shout outs to Super-Alko in Tallinn for cheap refills!
You also have a lot of featuring projects. How have most of these happened?
Most of my friends have some kind of musical projects, and usually all featuring stuff is a bunch of drunken ideas, which then accidentally happen for real someday. The easiest is to work with my Pohjalla gang homies of course.
Can you recommend any interesting upcoming Finnish rap artists?
Well of course all my Pohjalla bros OD Kokemus, Toluhaukat, Kuollut Mies/Köyhä Jonne, Painajainen, Jonestown, O’Malley and Silmälappu-Steve. Also all my homies at Kolmas Raide. From different record label there’s good shit like Mikidi&Gaiaf, Likanen Etelä, Sipsipussi-Pasi, Ventovieras etc. Rap game in Finland is doing really well generally nowadays. It’s cool that you can reach nr. 2 spot in Finlands official music charts.
Who is Simo Silmu?
Simo Silmu is a Finnish “iskelmä”** -artist. But he’s also THE LIQUOR like mr. Lahey from the trailer park boys.
What is your favourite drink?
My favourite drink is a free one. But who can resist a good old 24-pack of beer.
What is the most FINNISH thing in the world?
The most finnish thing in the world is to get shit-faced-drunk, go to the sauna and yell PERKELE. It’s also traditional to get drunk and drown in a lake at mid-summer-party. To be honest, everything involving getting drunk out of your mind and making an ass out of yourself can be considered a finnish thing.
Shoutouts to Estonian fans! It would be cool to have a gig in Estonia! POHJALLA!
* Raine on peategelane Handelista Hurstiin EP samanimelisel träkil
* *Iskelmä on Soome muusikažanr, mis meenutab šlaagrit ja mida kuulavad peamiselt keskealised melomaanid
Buy CD, cassette or LP: https://www.3rdrailkauppa.fi/product/61/sairas-t-delirium
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/55zt05Vx5iZkdxCA9wrYDK
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sairastee/
Instagram: @sairas_takkinen
Intervjuu autor:
Kristjan Ait