My debut mixtape did well.
It pushed things forward.
But I was still waiting for it to actually pay off.
September slipped by—shows, small tours, the numbers climbing—but nothing that felt like a real breakthrough.
Then October hit. Our first nationwide tour.
Nagano, Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, Yokohama—running all over the country.
Crowds hitting 1.500.
Yeah.
Things were starting to move.
And then… I had my first interview.
Midterms rolled around, and while everyone else was stressing over exams, I was on a train to Tokyo.
Some hip hop outlet wanted to talk.
About the mixtape.
About "Forsaken."
About what comes next.
…Guess I couldn't dodge it forever.
And neither did I want to.
I'd somehow gotten used to Tokyo by now—but that didn't mean it ever stopped feeling bigger than me.
The streets outside still hit like noise turned physical. Neon signs stacked over each other like they were competing for oxygen, train doors sliding open and shut in perfect rhythm, crowds moving like they had somewhere important to be—even when they didn't.
Back in Matsumoto, you could hear yourself think. Here, even your thoughts had to fight to exist.
The building itself didn't look like much from the outside. Just another slab of concrete squeezed between ten others. But inside? Different world.
The studio of the hip-hop media outlet felt… curated.
Dim lighting. Not dark—just enough to make everything feel intentional. LED strips running along the edges of the walls, casting soft colors that shifted between purple and blue. A couple of worn leather couches that looked like they'd seen more artists than they could count. Framed vinyl covers lined the walls—legends staring down like silent judges.
There was a faint smell of smoke and something metallic. Equipment, maybe. Or just the residue of too many late nights.
A camera sat across from the main chair, already set. Mic hanging just low enough to catch every word, every breath. No classroom noise. No random idiots talking over each other. Just silence—with pressure behind it.
I sat down, trying not to look like I didn't belong there.
This was the kind of place where people either made it—or got exposed trying.
The interviewer was there, leaning casually against the edge of a table. Streetwear from head to toe—hood up, cap low, sneakers scuffed—he had that "I've seen it all" look on his face.
DJ Kenz. That's what he went by, from what I'd heard.
The guy behind the camera gave me a nod, like this was routine for him.
For me, it felt like stepping onto a stage I wasn't sure I'd earned yet.
But I didn't come all the way to Tokyo to hesitate.
If they wanted a voice—
They were gonna hear it.
"What's up, Forsaken, it's good to have you here with us at Shibuya Cipher," DJ Kenz said, his tone easy but measured. "First public interview, yeah?"
I coughed into my fist, buying myself half a second.
"Yeah… yeah, that's right, man." I leaned back just enough to look comfortable. "I'm really glad to be here. Heard a lot about you, about the show—it's crazy, honestly.
Like, I ain't even kidding, six months ago I was making trash tracks on my phone, and now I'm sitting here with DJ Kenz. That's wild."
I let a bit of that excitement slip through.
Truth was, I'd crammed everything I could find about him the past few days. Interviews, clips, old sets.
No point mentioning that, though.
DJ Kenz let out a low chuckle, shaking his head like he's heard that story a hundred times.
"Yeah, it happens fast when it happens," he said, pushing himself off the table and taking his seat across from me. "Internet don't wait for nobody. One minute you're nobody, next minute people act like they been knowing you."
He leaned forward slightly, elbows on his knees, eyes locked in—no smile this time, just focus.
"But don't get it twisted," he added. "We don't bring just anybody on Shibuya Cipher."
A small pause. Let it sit.
DJK: "So why 'Forsaken'? That name ain't random."
Me: "Yeah… it's not random. It's kinda like a blueprint, you know? Where I came from... I used to get bullied. A lot. Kept it in for a while… then one day I just snapped. I fought back. Bad enough that one of them ended up in the hospital.
And after that, everything flipped. Teachers on my case, people acting like I was the problem all along. Nobody really tried to understand it. So yeah… 'Forsaken.' That's what it felt like."
DJ Kenz: "Yeah, you had it real tough, man… But let me ask you this— You felt forsaken… or you chose to cut yourself off after that?
Cause there's a difference between people turning their back on you and you deciding you don't need nobody."
Me: "Honestly? My family started looking at me like I was the black sheep. My classmates? They just avoided me.
I used to be that quiet kid in the back of the class, you know? The one who just… exists. Like background noise or some shit. Then all that went down, and everything flipped. I became who I am today.
And I'm good with that. I wouldn't change a thing."
DJK: "Aight, aight… I respect that. But let's be real—without that Ai-chan diss, you wouldn't be sitting here right now. So tell me—where'd that come from? Pure clout chasing… or was it personal?"
Me: "Well… I actually got the chance to meet her in person, right? I showed her a song I'd been working on. And she just—tore me down, bro.
People don't know this… but I straight-up proposed a feature. Like, I didn't even know who she really was, just thought she was someone I could collab with.
And then she calls me a second-hand artist, says I overuse autotune and all this shit. And I was like… nah. Who the fuck do you think you are?"
DJK: "Damn… I like that. That's real. Most people just swallow that kind of shit and stay quiet.
You? You snapped—and made a track out of it. I respect that. That's the kinda fire that makes people notice you."
Me: "And while we're dropping first-time revelations,a label actually hit me up after that diss. I turned it down. Thought I should focus on my own growth, you know? Keep it real, rather than become some label's puppet."
DJK: "That's impressive. Explains why you achieved a lot after that moment—stuff that would've been impossible if you went industry plant.
One thing I really wanna talk about—your Lil V€xxx feature. That felt random as fuck. A Brooklyn rapper collabing with a Japanese town MC? That's ultra rare."
Me: "Yeah… no real explanation. Dude just DMed me on Insta one day. We recorded our parts separately, then linked up when he flew to Tokyo to shoot the video. And… the rest is history."
I shrugged. "If I had to guess, it's probably 'cause I actually sound more American than a lot of Japanese rappers."
DJK: "Yeah, that makes sense. So, what are your biggest influences? Like, the artists that inspired you to become who you are."
Me:
"Well… it's a mix, really. Lil Peep's probably my favorite. Then a lot of old-school rappers—NWA, Outkast, Nas, Wu-Tang—but also newer ones like XXXTentacion, Juice WRLD, Lil Uzi Vert."
I laughed a little. "I'm not even rap-exclusive, man. I jog a lot of Slipknot, Linkin Park, Killswitch Engage."
DJK: "Rock stuff, huh? You got a rock project coming up, Forsaken?"
Me: "Oh, hell yeah. That's in the works. Don't know when yet, but it's definitely happening."
DJK: "Alright. You mentioned you got a thing for American hip-hop—but what about Japanese MCs? Anyone you listen to?"
Me: (laughs slightly)
"No one. Fuck all the other rappers in Japan. I'm here to dominate the rap game myself."
DJK: (raising an eyebrow, smirking)
"No one? Damn… that's bold. Gonna need a hell of a track record if you wanna trash everyone and still survive."
Me:
"Dude, I was kidding!" I laughed harder. "Kurogane, obviously. Sora and Rei too—but Kurogane's like… our sugar daddy."
I had no idea what the hell that joke even meant, but Kenz and I both burst out laughing.
DJK: (after the laughter died down)
"Yeah, I can see MTB's growth is mostly thanks to Kurogane's experience. Me and a lot of fans are really looking forward to your first material as a group."
He leaned forward slightly, eyes narrowing with curiosity.
"But before that… I'm curious about Wake the Dead. It mixes street tracks with emotional ones in a way that feels messy. Not saying it's bad—just… an interesting choice. Can you break it down for us?"
Me: "Yeah, it's actually pretty simple. I'm a newcomer in the game, right?
So for the intro, I figured… why not just be myself? I'm basically what you get if an emo kid and a delinquent had a love child."
DJK: (laughing)
"Yeah, man… I really didn't expect Forsaken to be this lowkey funny."
A pause. Kenz leaned back slightly, eyes probing.
"Though… I imagine it was still pretty overwhelming, all this sudden attention. What scares you most about the industry?"
Me: "Losing myself. Everyone's chasing money and fame… I just want to stay the way I am, despite all that."
DJK: "That's an ambitious goal. But to make sure you don't lose sight of it, you've got to answer the question I'm about to drop—if you weren't doing music, where would you be right now?"
Me: "Probably at my PC, playing whatever new RPG caught my eye while looping rap playlists. Basically… a full-time NEET, lol."
DJK: "Aight. Now, let's see some fan questions.
jhopfan4life asks: 'What's your go-to snack in the studio?'"
I smirked. Could tell these fan questions were something else.
Me: "Wasabi chips. I like spicy food."
DJK: "Aight, next one—midnightflow_77 asks: 'Are you a morning person or a night owl?'"
Me: "Definitely a night owl. I used to stay up 'til like 3 or 4 AM playing games, sleep maybe two hours, drag myself to school… then recover all that sleep during class."
DJK: "Yeah, that checks out.
Moving on—XshadowbyteX asks: 'If you had to pick a superpower, what would it be?'"
Me: "Invisibility." I paused for a second. "'Cause I don't really want the world to see me."
DJK: "Next one—astrodrift_21 asks: 'What's your zodiac sign?'"
Me: "Scorpio. Guess that explains a few things."
DJK: "Aight, next one—pixelronin asks: 'Favorite video game or RPG?'"
Me: "Eyy, that's a tough one, man. I play everything—from Elden Ring to Dragon Quest XI…" I chuckled.
"But if I had to pick a favorite…" I paused for a second. "I'd probably go with Persona 5."
DJK: "Alright, last one—heartsnatcher asks: 'Does Forsaken have a girlfriend?'"
Me: "I can't give a straight yes or no, it's more complicated. Officially? No. Unnoficially... Maybe."
DJK: "Alright, that's all the fan questions we've got for today. Forsaken, it's been a pleasure having you here."
Me: "Likewise, man. Really glad I could do this with you."
He gave me a nod.
The cameras clicked off. The mics were down. And for a second, it felt like all the late nights, the diss tracks, the small shows… were finally paying off.