Five Questions with Coely

“I’ve found an answer to the question: who am I and what do I want? But that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped searching.” A rapper with a Congolese heritage born and raised in Antwerp, Coely is on the verge of taking a plunge into the unknown and making it into the big leagues. Ever-curious about the paths that will unfold before her.

She used to dance to Congolese music in her mother’s living room. “She taught me how to survive”, says Coely. “She had a tough life but at the very least she made her own choices and stuck with them.

Although that was hard sometimes, she always pulled through and was there for my brothers and me whenever we needed her.” Music could always be heard in Coely’s childhood home, like Michael Jackson, 50 Cent, Jay-Z but powerful, soulful and headstrong women such as Lauryn Hill, Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston were also played regularly. “When I wanted an escape, I used to watch MTV. Or we’d just lie in bed and listen to the sound of raindrops falling on the roof, just to fall asleep and forget about our money problems.”

Coely’s secret weapon? Optimism. Nothing can bring this girl down. “I’m playful. Joyeux, that’s what my mom calls it. People love seeing me perform because they say I radiate joy. And joy is infectious.” Coely’s baby steps in music mirror that of so many talented rappers and soul singers. She sang in a church choir and she participated in talent shows where her soulful voice stood out. But she also taught herself how to beatbox, inspired by the beating heart of hip-hop. Through music, she made friends at school. During lunch breaks, she started learning to play the piano, but quickly switched to the saxophone and later even picked up the trombone for a while. “But I didn’t fully commit to any one instrument. (Laughs) That’s how I am: I’m restless. But I could feel the notes, the rhythm, the music – that much is certain”.

It’s funny that Coely underestimated her own vocal talents at first. “I can’t rap, that’s not my thing”, she used to answer when asked. But her friends kept pushing her until one day, out of the blue, as if her life depended on it, she channeled her inner Nicki Minaj: “This is my moment / I waited all my life / I can tell it’s time / Drifting away I’m done with the sunsets / I have become alive’’. Jaws dropped and rapper Coely was born. Soon after, she teamed up with Beatville, a collective of producers/managers who provided here with the beat for “Ain’t Chasing Pavements”. Fueled by Coely’s inspired raps, the track became a surprise hit. Belgian radio station Studio Brussel made the song their Hotshot, and in no time every radio, every newspaper, and every magazine wanted to know who this tough hip-hop lady with the infectious laugh was.

She strung together a number of successful radio hits: “All I Do”, “Nothing On Me” and “My Tomorrow” – all funky, summerish hip-hop tunes with international potential. When Raah – The Soulful Yeah (Coely’s debut EP) dropped; it was the perfect calling card to convince a slew of club and festival promoters of her talent.

She showed her chops live on various Belgian stages (Dour festival, Les Ardentes, Ancienne Belgique), took the stage at Eurosonic (Netherlands) and played the Berlin festival, all while doing support slots for personal heroes such as Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg and Jessie Ware. She even played a memorable afterparty of a Kanye West gig in Amsterdam. Why everyone should see her live at one point or another?

“Seeing is believing”, says Coely with a wink. “Just come down and I’ll make it the best night of your life (laughs).”

Coely recently finished recording her debut full-length album; a collection of songs showing her ascension to the next level of her career. “The energy is different this time around. Vibrant. You have to move to these tracks.” Nonetheless, she’ll never forget where she came from. “My past is woven into my songs. Sometimes, I can’t believe I’m still standing. I realize there are loads of people in this world who are lost and can’t find their way in life. I came out stronger. From now on, only the future counts.”

Short promotional:
Hip-hop seldom comes as sunny and funky as Coely’s. Born and raised in Antwerp with a proud Congolese heritage, she simply can’t be pigeonholed into one particular box. Irresistible soul, R&B with steamy raps full of hooks, sick beats, a ton of street cred and the attitude to combine all the above still fails to give you a complete image of this extremely talented singer. But her tracks speak for themselves: catchy singles such as “Ain’t Chasing Pavements”, “My Tomorrow” and the new “Don’t Care” landed her support slots for artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West and De La Soul. And not without reason: when Coely plays live, you’ve got no choice but to dance.

As you see yourself, who is COELY?

I’m a 23-year-old female mc/ singer, hailing from Antwerp, Belgium. I have been making music for about 6 years now. I’ve been influenced by a lot of soul and gospel artists, so I try to integrate that in a more modern way into my music. The first song I ever released received a lot of media attention in Belgium, it got me to play at the biggest festivals throughout Europe, resulted in being the opening act for artists like: Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, J. Cole, Jessie Ware, and eventually I got signed to Universal Music last year.

Tell us about your current project?

I’ve just released my first full album called “Different Waters”, so I’m pretty excited about that. Also, I’ve had an amazing summer performing all of that new music at amazing festivals throughout Europe. I Used to tour with a DJ behind me, but now we’ve evolved to a hybrid band with a DJ and live musicians. I focus on performing live a lot, I push myself to make sure I deliver the best show possible. I practice breath control because I feel that it’s really important that I’m able to hit to deliver every verse, every bar and hit every not right, I’m a perfectionist when it comes to live shows. It’s important to me to give it my all, I want to make sure that the crowd has an amazing time.

What’s on your bucket list to accomplish as an entertainer?

When I first started making music I was coached by 3 local producers/hip hop artists, they discovered me in a local youth center where they heard me sing. They told me I reminded them of Lauren Hill and asked me if I was able to rap. When I told them I hadn’t ever tried, they set up a workshop for me and other local kids to coach us and guide us through the process of making music. That’s what I want to do for local talent, I want to create a space for these young kids to come to and express themselves the way I was able to do thanks to these guys. And I still work with them, they still produce my music, so this dream is a dream we share. We’re proud of the success we have in Belgium but we’re aiming at way more. I was scheduled to play 5 gigs at SXSW in March, but due to unclear reasons, I was the only one of my crew that wasn’t allowed to enter The States in March and had to fly back to Belgium. So making it there might be the biggest thing on my list at the moment.

Will you be finishing out 2017 on the road or what’s on your horizon for 2018?

Yes, like I said I have a European tour coming up, that’s gonna cover most over November and parts of December. A part from that I’m looking forward to making some new music. I’ve done some collaborations and that gave me such a boost, so I’ll be looking for some interesting people to work within 2018. And when I’m not making music I really want to make some time for my family, I’ve missed my mom and 2 little brothers a lot lately, I just need to make sure I can spend a couple of days at home with the people I love.

The Hype Magazine wants to know: What’s been your CRAZIEST “Where they do that at?! Or “WTF?!” moment thus far in your career?

This year I was the opening act of “Rock Werchter”, it’s the biggest festival in Belgium. I performed on the Mainstage and I was so afraid that people wouldn’t show up for such an early gig but I was totally wrong. About 30.000 people showed up to see my set, 30k! I just couldn’t believe it!! They were singing before I came on, anticipating my arrival. It was epic, it was so so sick!

About Coely:

Coely, the Belgian-born artist with Congolese roots, mixes a warm soulful voice with sharp raps. She has proven herself with supporting slots for De La Soul, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Kanye West and a performance at Glastonbury. Her first album ‘Different Waters’ (2017) reached the top 10 of the Belgian hit parade. Her first single ‘Ain’t Chasing Pavements’ (2012) was immediately a ‘Hotshot’ at Belgian’s most influential radio station Studio Brussel and ‘Don’t Care’ (2016) was the best urban song of the year. Keep an eye on this one as the best is yet to come…