Simultaneously making his way across seas and the internet’s network abyss is midwxst, who has confidently taken the wheel in the cyber generation’s sonic takeover.
Born in Indiana and raised worldwide, midwxst, aka E3, finds his comfort in creativity. There’s something electric about him; the way he seems eager to feed an insatiable curiosity at all times. He has that vibrancy in conversation which keeps you on the edge of your seat, hanging onto every word. ‘Impossible’ is just a word thrown around by those who choose to remain stagnant rather than explore the uncertainty of uncharted waters. ‘Impossible’ isn’t a word in E3’s dictionary. It’s more like a dare. And it’s this intrepid nature that allows him to see straight into the heart of the matter, never taking the back seat in a challenge. Having used music to shape and expand his identity since he was young, his creativity feels inspired by chaos and angst, which translates sonically into an exhilarating rawness. Something that now gleams through his rapturous lyricism and glitched-out synths.
E3’s music is a study in contradictions. After a shallow dive on Twitter or Reddit, you might find E3 referenced on ‘hyperpop icebergs’ – a classification of artists who have risen to fame in some remote corner of the internet, usually Soundcloud, and whose stardom has often been accelerated through platforms like TikTok. But this definition feels trivial. It’s highly inaccurate to place midwxst in any kind of category as his sound is not bound to any one genre. On early releases like ‘Useless’ you might find him playing with influences of EDM, inspired by his younger years spent in Belgium, or glimpses of indie rock ballads on tracks like ‘riddle’, with lyrics that evoke relics of past relationships.
Last year, the 19-year-old made a gambit to NYC, where he found himself experimenting in a whole new arena of music. His ostensible dive into novel genres inspired by his fresh surroundings has had a lasting impression on his sound he admits, “It’s been a safe space to try new things and a lot of people are making sounds that haven’t necessarily been heard before or been done in that particular manner.”
The internet is a strange world, there’s no doubt about that. But E3 seems to have hacked the algorithms. His latest project is the third addition to his Back In Action series: a collection of energetic leftfield sounds which have generated millions of streams packed with such a variety of vocal styles and effects that a single track almost brings the energy of a posse cut. “All the ‘Back In Actions’ are me talking my shit and letting people know that I’m not the one to play with when it comes to this rapping, it’s me getting into my bag to talk about a lot of stuff that I wouldn’t really talk about in my normal music; it’s storytelling music”, he gleefully declares.
As long as he maintains an environment where he can express himself unapologetically, E3 knows he’s doing something right. He even aims to shoot all his upcoming music videos to hopefully culminate as one feature-length film if watched in sequence. And his music videos are a trip, to say the least, presenting a window into his vortex of thoughts filled with intricate imagery and animated lyricism. The 19-year-old’s latest visual, ‘Tally’ featuring Denzel Curry was shot in the style of an early Midwestern film and is an ode to the mark he’s leaving on the international rap scene in a whirlwind fashion.
Words & interview: Sophia Hill
Graphic Design: Emily Gouveia