Welfman is the latest single from New Brunswick Indigenous rapper/producer Wolf Castle, whose new EP, Da Vinci’s Inquest, will arrive via Forward Music Group on August 6.
On his latest single Welfman, New Brunswick Indigenous rapper/producer Tristan Grant (Wolf Castle) levels the playing field, taking ownership of a high school insult and giving it a new interpretation that celebrates determination and inner strength.
“Doesn’t matter if I came from a rough spot, all of us are strong, thrifty, and know how to do things because we had to find any way to keep going and move forward no matter what,” explains Grant. “Welf, short for Welfare, was an insult when I was in school used to make fun of people who were poor. My family has had their struggles and so have a lot of other people where I’m from, so I wanted to make a song that said it was okay to be from that and to do what you had to do to get by. It was my way of saying ‘screw you’ to those people. The insult ironically also sounds like ‘wealth’ and I also wanted to abbreviate it to W.E.L.F standing for Working Everyday Living Famous.
“Welfman is a de-colonial, working-class banger all about being dope, stylish and intelligent.”
His upcoming EP, Da Vinci’s Inquest, follows on from his 2020 EP Gold Rush, which scored Grant nominations for two East Coast Music Awards: Rap/Hip-Hop Recording of the Year and Indigenous Artist of the Year, as well as earlier releases in his series of Da Vinci Chronicles EPs which began in July 2019.
Da Vinci’s Inquest will be released digitally on August 9 with limited edition CD/vinyl releases shipping in early September. Pre-orders are open.
Related:
2021 is shaping up to be an incredible year for Pabineau First Nation artist Tristan Grant with a pair of ECMA nominations, a new single and a new EP arriving via Forward Music Group.
Pabineau First Nation hip hop artist Wolf Castle has released his first instrumental album – Wolfio Beats Vol. 1
Wolf Castle shares the second installment in his ongoing series of EPs.
