Valkyrie MC
Valkyrie MC
Artist Bio
Valkyrie MC is a Rap Artist and entrepreneur from the Isle of Man. As a single mother with a disability, she embodies the warrior essence of her name, refusing to allow the challenges she faces to interfere with her goals. Her business boasts a successful gift shop with a community event space that has hosted over 200 events in the realm of art, music, and wellness.
“Mountains Of Pysh” – Valkyrie Valkyrie
What is the inspiration behind your music?
“I love all kinds of hip-hop. Being born in the 80s my earliest influences came mainly from American artists in the 90s. I was obsessed with the Fugees album The Score in my early teens, followed by falling in love with Lauren Hill’s solo work, which still inspires me today. In more recent years, UK artist Little Simz has impacted me in a similarly, profound way.”
Have there been any challenges you have faced in the music industry?
“The biggest challenge I face is physical disability. I have a painful connective tissue disorder which affects my ability to create in strange, extreme, and invisible ways and because of this, I have not been able to physically write or type for eight years which means I work things out in my head and use the voice to text app to get things down.”
“Additionally, my condition started to affect my voice around the same time. I was unable to speak for two years, then there was another two years where I could manage to talk quietly but only for short periods, but was still not able to rap.”
“During lockdown, I began to recover and started to rap again in manageable ways, making one minute content for Instagram. I’m still in recovery and have not been able to gig for a long time and can still only record on good days for short periods.”
What are your future goals?
“My future goals are all based around my health and ability to be able to perform live again. My priority is my EP that is progressing slow and steady. I set myself the challenge to create an all female production, I have all the beats and lyrics for four tracks but each one still needs some attention.”
What kinds of upcoming projects are you working on?
“I’m currently working on a few tracks for my EP, all with different female producers and features. I’m also working on a few collaborations where I’ve been invited to feature. Most excitingly for me, I’m talking with a few local musicians about forming a band which has been a long time dream.”
Can you share a personal story or experience that illustrates the power of Hip Hop as a tool for social change or self-expression in your own day to day life?
“I was a fan from a very young age and studied the art form through fascination yet it never occurred to me that I could be an artist myself, however something strange and magical occurred shortly after my 30th birthday. A whole verse and hook flowed through me, then another verse, and another. The floodgates opened, and a continuous stream of lyrics overwhelmed me for months, even waking up in the middle of the night, with whole songs coming to mind.”
“Eventually I was able to settle into this newly developed skill and began to really craft my rhymes. One year later a painful condition I was born with, took a major turn for the worse. It triggered a series of crises and my life began to crumble in every direction.”
Are there specific themes or messages that you aim to convey through your music, and what motivates you to explore these topics?
“I really enjoy versatility in my style, lyrics and flows however, one theme that underpins everything I create is truth and speaking from my heart. I also identify as a Witch, so weave themes of magic, mysticism and folklore into my rhymes.”
“I enjoy promoting female empowerment, peace, love, and unity, but also love to dabble in the shadow and play around with battle bars, sexuality, and frankly, anything that may be present for me.”
How do you define and maintain your unique artistic identity?
“I’m a natural born weirdo, so being unique comes easy. I couldn’t fit in If I tried, trust me…I did!”
“I’m from a small island of 90,000 people, and I’m the only female rapper here. Even on a global scale, white, witchy, disabled, female rappers, are a rare breed! Aside from those obvious things which I have no control over, I maintain my uniqueness by writing about my own experiences and perspectives, through my own unique lens.”
“During that period where I was largely bed bound, rhyming was the medicine that got me through. Both crafting my own rhymes, and watching hours a day of rap battles and hip-hop videos. At that time, I truly understood the phrase ‘Hip Hop saved my life’.”
A Message from the Artist
“Follow me on Instagram and check out my debut single on YouTube.”