“Badman” short film
Giving yourself time to grow and develop as an artist is a battle that a lot of us struggle with while we advance in our creative careers. This journey is detailed in the Badman short film as a group of Irish musicians move to London only to find themselves working a 9–5 and not spending their hours creating art. In order to sort out their issues, we follow their quest filled with crime, partying and gunfire. The film features all 3 songs on the North King Street EP by Prettyboy Francis (all three party tracks feature The Vyce). Below is my interview with Prettyboy Francis and Raphael Boamah-Asare covering the short film and what else we can expect from the two creatives launching their first short film and EP respectively.
You have both been making art for several years, why did you choose now as the time to launch your solo career?
PBF: It felt right, the body of work was complete, and it’s the right time especially after AfroPunk. (Blackfish Collective, the group Prettyboy Francis founded, won the London Battle of the Bands in 2017.)
RBA: The time was right, in the past, I’ve done many shoots as practice but now is the time to put that practice to good use. Me watching Blackfish Collective on stage made me want to bring that vibe across in the film.
The stakes for the both of you are quite high as I can image you both want to disturb the music and film industry and have them sit up and take note. What do you plan to do now you’ve launched the EP and short film?
RBA: To do as much as I can as an individual while also using my partnership with Asare Simms to my advantage. Whether it means working on an in-house feature film or collaborating on more music videos, you’re just going to see more work from me.
PBF: Well, the plan from now up until the end of the year is to keep putting out content to keep everyone entertained. Also, just raising the awareness for Blackfish Collective and to put ourselves in a position where we are a household name, but for now we got to take baby steps to build our consistency. The aim is that by the end of summer each member of Blackfish Collective has released a project or single.
Being business owners (Prettyboy Francis is the leader of Blackfish Collective while Raphael Boamah-Asare co-owns Asare Simms, the film studio) do you feel the pressure of your career having an impact on others?
RBA: I feel like I’m doing okay for myself and there are so many other talented people out their that I personally want to collaborate with. My collaboration with Blackfish Collective has been a good balance of creating work that benefits myself, my business partner and others.
PBF: It would be difficult to say there isn’t, but at the same time as an artist/businessman that is when you rely on your team and have confidence in them. Some people would see the situation as a stressful one whereas I see it as an encouragement. When I look at the team, I see that everyone is a leader in their own right. I translate the pressure into a competitive nature in the sense of “Wow here’s Princess making amazing beats” or “Ah Squarehead is singing amazingly in his boxers”, that pressure should lead me to create more. It’s not pressure but motivation and the fear of not wanting to be left behind.
“You also have to lead by example.” — Prettyboy Francis
There is a huge blend of creativity and business, have any materials, (books, videos, courses etc) helped you get on this path of being focused on business and creativity?
RBA: For me, reading comes with its challenges so I learn from watching videos. However, nothing beats actually getting out in the field and getting to know your craft while meeting likeminded people. Also, what I will say to those who don’t like to read or have troubles with it is to have conversations with people who are creative or bosses. You really do learn through conversing and sharing.
“having an experienced business partner helps a lot in business.”- Raphael Boamah-Asare
PBF: In business, you read a lot of books (The 48th Law, The Art of War) there is a great read called “The Alchemist” there is also this small book, about 30 pages, called “Who Moved My Cheese?” However, the main one that got my attention is “The Life of Pi” believe or not.
It’s just about understanding that it’s all a journey and whatever path you take just look for the template and a balance which you can find in these books. — Prettyboy Francis
As a business student from school, all the theories are at the back of my head, but for someone who doesn’t have to foundations it is intimidating. Just understand that you can grow and learn these things in time. Also, I’ll definitely recommend The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon. You have to read it.
The conversation ends with sounds of the shutter filling the room as Prettyboy Francis and Raphael sit on the stairs. “I didn’t know it was your director’s debut man” Prettyboy Francis remark makes Raphael laughs and he replies “I guess that’s a good sign then!”
What mark are you planning to leave in 2018? Let us know in the comment section below!
Article and photography by Shaneika Johnson-Simms
