Trickz Up Her Sleeve
->Bb Trickz Visits Terminal

In her recent interview with Terminal 27, Spanish-born rapper Bb Trickz talks about fashion influences, her new EP that’s a “rollercoaster of emotions”, staying positive through trials and tribulations, balancing a curated vision with an organic feel, and much more.

Los Angeles, California.

Avi Cantor: Did you grow up with your family playing a lot of music in the house or did you discover a lot on your own? 

Belize: Yeah, my Dad was a producer and DJ,  he would often play a lot of vinyl records. I definitely grew up in a household where there was a lot of music in the environment. A favorite memory is when we would pick out records together and listen to them. I was also an only child, so I had a lot of time to myself and I got into writing from a very early age. My Dad wouldn’t take me to the park, he would take me to the studio. I was always around adults as a kid and not doing what kids typically at that age do. When I was really young I told my mom I wanted to do adverts for TV and make music I just in general wanted to be involved in entertainment.  

Avi: At what point do you start hitting the studio consistently and starting to take music seriously? 

Belize: I would say last September so a year and two months. That’s when I really started taking it seriously and actually started rapping because I had never rapped before. All my life I had sung but I didn’t want to make singer-songwriter music and then my homie sent me this beat and  for fun I was raping to it. He said “You should fully rap” so I tried it and it was so cool! I had never free-styled before either I always used to write. Now I don’t even know how to write anymore I’ve gotten too deep into freestyle. Now if I write something it just doesn’t seem so pure to me. When I say something for the first time I’m really feeling it y’know. That feeling certainly comes off in your music too. Everything feels very organic. Watching the Charlie Brown video. People can read your authenticity. It’s refreshing, something people can gravitate towards. I’m very much a perfectionist about the videos and maybe the way I present myself aesthetically when it comes to studio time though, I’m the opposite I don’t care what I’m saying because I’m letting it all out. 

Avi: Where has been your favorite location to record music or to have shot a video? 

Belize: As far as recording, dead ass my crib. On the sofa and in the bed! That’s lowkey the best. Also Majorca, We’ve done a few boot camps on the island, we’d have our homies come out there. We typically bring friends to Majorca who have never made music before in their lives. I really do enjoy recording people who are making something for the first time because they have something new to bring to the table. Especially people who don’t aspire to be artists or make music. 

"For video shoots, I like it when it is low budget, just me, a DP, and some homies. Not when it’s a whole production team, I like when it is more personal."

Avi: That is interesting because your videos do come across as curated but organic. You’re not trying to be like Martin Scorsese with insane camera angles but you’re still building a world for your fans and yourself. What’s the process behind your videos how did you put them together? 

Belize: Yeah I’m very hands-on. I put out half of the videos I make because I’m a perfectionist. I put in the effort but I don’t want to come off as trying too hard either. When it is simple it’s better. I don’t want or need a lot of elements in my videos, I just want me and my attitude. The last video actually had the highest budget. I told the director: “you need to tone it down ! I wanna level it up a little bit but not so much!” (Laughs)

Avi: How did you bring that balance into the Lil Peep music video? 

Belize: We just made it simple and had the focus be more on the outfits and the colors. Instead of it being a whole thing and too planned out. My favorite videos I’ve made are the ones where we’ve just had fun together working and it goes smoothly. 

Avi: For fashion or outfits do you have any inspirations or do you just put your own things together? 

Belize: My style inspiration comes from my homies, I get inspired by them. I don’t really look at things out on the internet to find inspiration. Sometimes I look at my old outfits and “I’m like Damn!” I’m often just trying to see if I’m comfortable with it. I’ve definitely discovered I like wearing colors. Before, I used to be grey, white, and black. My friend P, she’s a stylist I started working with her and she loves color, so she really put me on to that. 

Avi: Are there any outfits that you put together that were super organic? Something you just threw on and said: “This is super fire!” 

Belize: For the Lil Peep music video, we pulled a bunch of clothes from Mexico-based brands, a few from LA, and then some of my own clothes. The whole idea was just to put outfits together with what we had. I just made color combinations that I hadn’t thought of or ever worn before. I went for what was not an obvious choice for me. In general, the clothing combinations are what I’m the most proud of. 

Avi: Which destination has been a highlight for you on your travels? 

Belize: Recently when I went to Mexico, dude that was pretty crazy! It was the first time I did a show for a Spanish-speaking audience.  Before in the EU, I had played in Portugal France, and Italy. I’d never played Mexico and it was the first time I’d heard people fully singing my songs in Spanish. I couldn’t even hear myself! There’s a lot of love out there, I hadn't experienced a place that has their type of culture either.  

Avi: Would you say you have more fans in the States or Latin America? 

Belize: I get love both ways. The Americans get me because of my beat selection and my swagger which appeals to their culture. Over in Spain, Mexico, and Latin America they love me because they can understand my lyrics and what I am saying. I would also say that Latin Americans really live it up more too! I don’t really know how to explain it but they’re just on it. 

Avi: For your artistry as a whole, what aspects would you say pull from American culture, what aspects do you feel you pull from Spain or Latin culture, or is it just whatever you’re into? 

Belize: My lyrics and whatever comes out is from me. Most of the rap I listen to is American. This is definitely where I get my ear for the beats, which is what I’m attracted to. There was nobody in Spain doing the type of music that I was listening to or the way I wanted to do it,  so that’s why I did it. There’s this whole Spanish influence with my lyrics I try to add in things about my culture or lifestyle the way we live, talk, how we be. 

Avi: What artist do you listen to in your free time? 

Belize: There’s a lot of different stuff. Yung Thug a lot. RXK NEPHEW. I love Shawny Binladen. Mexican Corridos tumbados, Bosa Nova, and Jazz. 90s RNB

Avi: How would you describe the feeling of this upcoming project? 

Belize: The feeling I would say it’s a heartbreak EP. Definitely a roller coaster of emotions but it's more on the side of things that have upset me about coming into this industry. Getting “famous”, and all these things; like how people turned on me and how things developed. For my first EP things were very spunky, where this one now its just so much more emotional. 

Avi: Overall you seem to be a happy-go-lucky person, how do you keep that optimistic mentality ? 

Belize: You just gotta! I mean I didn’t for a while I was sad for some of it. Now I’m just back on being happy because it is the best way to go through life. Seeing things threw a positive lens and having that outlook on life. I'm just super happy to be doing what I’ve low-key been dreaming about for basically my entire life. I’m living my dream. It does come with a lot of responsibility and a lot of things happen that you can’t control. 

Avi: Do you feel that since you’ve gone viral and you’ve had these moments of “Fame” people now have high expectations from you to keep this mentality up? 

Belize: You always Gotta keep it peak even if you’re sad y’know! I think that my music is kind of like this wake-up call sometimes “Like damn!” And I want people to be confident. I want the essence of what I’m putting out such as a good mood or positivity  to translate into my music 

Avi: Have you gotten used to people randomly coming up to you and wanting to take pictures with you or recognizing you when you’re in the streets? 

Belize: Ah no! (Laughs) I haven’t gotten used to it yet! I don’t know how long it’s going to take. It's still so weird to me but I do actually enjoy interacting with people who like my music. I also appreciate that at the moment it's not a big deal yet. 

Avi: Do you ever get annoyed when people ask: “Oh my god how is your English so good ?!” 

Belize: Nah I don’t mind it really. My Mom is Canadian, so at home I would speak in English and at school in Catalan, I would speak in Spanish. I understand why people would be curious or confused because I’m from Spain and I’m fully doing Soundcloud rap in Spanish. So I don’t mind, I get it.