Ruby Ibarra Exclusive Jackfroot.com Interview

Respected all around for her flow, Ruby Ibarra is a young and inspiring lyricist, spoken word artist and rapper from the East Bay Area, California on a new level of music production. This passionate and hard working young artist is setting the bars higher and higher for all rappers and lyricists out there.

Her powerful flows not only radiates a stream of consciousness, but also carries a depth of lyrics rarely found in many artists. Ruby Ibarra is definitely one of the next up and coming artists to rise! Check our Jackfroot.com’s exclusive written interview with Ruby below..

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What was the spark that inspired you to become a musician of words and sounds?
I’ve been listening to rap since as early as I can remember. When I was 5 years old, I remember going through my mom’s music collection, and a Filipino rap album stood out to me. I ended up listening to that cassette tape every day and was eventually able to recite the lyrics in verbatim. As a writer, I was fascinated with poetry at a young age. These poems inevitably became rap lyrics as I became inspired by Tupac & Eminem’s ability to tell a story through rhymes and rhythm.

As an artist, what are your major influences and inspiration that keep you progressing?

I’ve always been intrigued by how rhymes can be used to create interesting sounds so I always experiment with different rhyme schemes and inner bar rhymes. I also love exploring how one can say things in different ways, so I love using word play and metaphors to get the listener to think about the lyrics. In terms of subject matter, I’m inspired by my experiences, cultural history, and stories that have generally been left untold by the media.

You’ve been doing this for about 6 years now, where do you want to see yourself in the next 3-5 years?

In a couple years, I definitely hope that my music will be heard in a grander scale. This past year, music has taken me to cities I’ve never been to before and allowed me to meet people that I’ve been a fan of, so I’m absolutely excited to see where it continues to take me. I also see myself still continuing to write honest lyrics, and I hope that people will still be listening because I certainly have a lot more to say!

What kind of artists have you collaborated with and as reflection, how was it to work with them?

I’ve worked with both underground rappers and singers. I’ve found every collaboration to be helpful as they’ve given me a chance to be able to work with like-minded people who share the same passion in music as I do. I’m also very excited about the collaborations that are coming up because recently, I’ve been fortunate enough to link up with artists that I’ve been listening to for years.

“Although Asian Americans are still a minority in the mainstream American rap media, I know that this will change very soon.”

– Ruby Ibarra.

Being a female Asian-American lyricist, it is clear that you’re breaking barriers that no others in our community has stepped into – what would you say as words of advice to our community to motivate others to go down the path you have helped pave.

Although Asian Americans are still a minority in the mainstream American rap media, I know that this will change very soon. With the help of websites like YouTube and Tumblr, Asian American artists have been able to display their talent in another medium. Sooner or later, music executives will take notice and see that Asian Americans can generate an audience and have a story to tell, too. To ALL aspiring female lyricists, keep grindin’ and continue to be yourself. Skill has no gender, so I hope more of my ladies are represented in rap! Peace to lovely ladies like Rocky Rivera, Hopie Spitshard, and Shin-B, who are also contributing to hip hop and helping to pave the way for the Asian American sistas.

We hear that you’re currently working on a mixtape for release, can we get a peep? Lol.

NOPE! Haha! I’m such a perfectionist when it comes to my music that I’ll probably be revising all the songs up until the last minute. Jackfroot will definitely be the first website to receive the finished songs though. 😉

Thank you, and are there any last drops of knowledge, FYI’s, or comment you’d like to make?

For more of my music, please check out: http://www.rubyibarra.com and http://rubyibarra.bandcamp.com. Thank you for the interview, Jackfroot! I absolutely respect what you’re doing for the API artist community. Much love! xoxo