A Palestinian you should know: Big O

A Palestinian you should know:

Big O

The following was originally published in Palestine in America’s 2020 Music Edition. Order a print copy or download a digital copy today!

PiA: What’s your name?

Omar, 3omar, big O.

PiA: Who are you?

Big O: A passionate son, brother, uncle, creator, overthinker, attorney and human trying his best to play this thing called life the right way in unison with other humans.

PiA: Where do you live?

Big O: Earth, somewhere in Michigan.

PiA:How has your experience been in the music scene there?

Big O:Great. The scene is diverse and full of so many talented artists in almost every genre. Plus, there’s tons of history and plenty of inspiration floating around.

PiA: What type of music do you make and how did you get into it?

Big O: Primarily hiphop and R&B. I was heavily influenced by sitting shotgun in my siblings’ cars growing up. My oldest brother got me into Mos Def and Wu Tang and my sister had me singing Keith Sweat. I was also always jotting down notes and rhymes throughout my schooling and decided to really get into it after attending a couple open mics/freestyle competitions.

PiA: What kind of themes do you explore in your music / lyrics?

Big O: It ranges anywhere from love, heartbreak, mental health and battles of the conscience, to issues of social justice or sometimes simply having fun experimenting with frequencies.

PiA: What's your favorite lyric you've ever written?

Big O: My answer constantly changes depending on my mood but as of this present moment it’d probably be

“Papa said fear no man, I’m a nomad

Got no home, got no land,

Just a notepad, and a kodak,

I’ma throwback, for my homeland

First, gotta get yo dough man!”

PiA: Brag about yourself: have you collaborated with any cool artists?

 Big O: Tbh, I really haven’t collaborated as much as I’d like to but a memorable person was Pierre Anthony, a local artist from Detroit. To brag, I started producing a lot of my own material in 2017 and like to think I’m pretty good with my pen.

PiA: What are the dream collaborations that you're trying to manifest?

Big O: Brother Ali, Jai Paul, Tame Impala, Kendrick, Cole, Lupe, Mos Def, Common, The Fugees, Narcy, Yuna, Snoh Alegra, Frank Ocean, Childish Gambino, Chance the Rapper and Mohammed Assaf.

PiA: How does your Palestinian family / friends / community support you?

Big O: They’ve always been really supportive, from simply listening to my music to making me feel less alone in my journey. It feels like they all want me to succeed and represent and because we’re known as a very resilient bunch, whenever I’m in my own funk I like to think of our history as inspiration. I also once got to open for Mohammed Assaf which was a major highlight on this adventure.

PiA: How does Arabic or Palestinian music / culture find its way into the music you make? (if at all)

Big O: Arabic music plays a huge role for me from angles of both lyrical content and production. For example, listening to Abdel Halim growing up really got me into my emotions and poetry, and listening to the buildup of strings, wind instruments, and drums helped me with cadence and rhythm.  I also absolutely love sampling Arabic songs, the sounds are powerful and can be chopped and used in versatile and dope ways.

PiA: What kind of future would you like to see for diaspora Palestinians in music?

Big O: Honestly, I’d love to see stronger bridges and less division. Sometimes it feels like our collective frustration and struggle with identity drives us further apart when instead it’d be dope if we created a home for all of us. I want to be able to talk about how I’m too west for the east and too east for the west with artists born in/living in Palestine. We all have unique angles and perspectives on a similar issue, but we often unnecessarily ostracize ourselves.

PiA: What's the best career advice you've ever received?

Big O: Take what you do seriously but don’t take yourself too seriously.

PiA: In the near future, Palestine is free, we're throwing a big party there to celebrate, and everybody gets to play some music, what records (not your own) are you bringing to play at the party?

 Big O:   Onadekom by Hawa Dafi

         Sun by Narcy

         Kick, Push by Lupe

         Kids by MGMT

         One more time and harder, better, faster, stronger by Daft Punk