Holizna - ‘Be A Man’
Our featured ALBUM, ‘Be A Man’ by Holizna, is OUT NOW and available to stream on all major streaming platforms!
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Holizna is an up and coming Pittsburgh based artist whose latest album, ‘Be A Man’, is out now: click HERE to listen on Spotify; click HERE to listen on iTunes! Having always had a natural affinity for music and lyricism, Holizna gradually honed his craft as a rapper, producer and multi-instrumentalist over the years.
He officially starting making his original music back in 2009 but chose not to publish any of his material until he created something that he was “really proud of”. To date, Holizna has thirty-one tracks in his SoundCloud discography but couldn’t clear any of the samples for official releases. Some of his most popular tracks on SoundCloud include the likes of ‘Leviathan’, ‘The Hangover’, ‘21’, and ‘The Road so Far’.
Although he receives creative inspiration from a number of styles, Holizna combines a variety of compositional elements to form his unique sound that spans multiple genres; from Rap, Hip-Hop and Lofi, to Indie, Folk and Acoustic. Having already gathered a growing number of followers and listeners, there is no denying the fact that Holizna is developing a dedicated following of loyal fans.
Described as a “poet and storyteller”, Holizna has already built a reputation for his authentic lyricism that is inspired by the “true, unfiltered human experience”. Growing up on the edge of poverty in a small town outside of the city, Holizna has first hand experience dealing with suicide, drug addiction, witnessing abusive relationships, failing loved ones and handling the struggles of love. Amalgamating all of his life experience, Holizna channels his energy into songwriting in a way that listeners can truly relate to.
Rather than looking to other producers, Holizna produces all of his own beats to fully capture his vision for each track and set the perfect platform for his vocal. Proving that hard work, time and effort pay off, Holizna managed to make his latest album in his home studio on a computer running Windows Vista, using Fruity Loops and Cubase. This level of dedication shows how committed Holizna is to creating his music:
“Life is hard and sometimes embarrassing. I’ve witnessed a lot of good people, including myself, go completely the wrong way. For me, music is a place where I can exist unfettered by the mistakes I’ve made, and the reputations I’ve built in the eyes of people I respect. When I make music, the concept, the way I present myself, the style... everything gets to be exactly what I want. It’s not about the money, it’s about trying to be comfortable with my existence.”
In addition to releasing his music on streaming platforms, Holizna also started his official YouTube channel roughly five months ago where he uploads mainly, “lofi raps and lofi hip hop instrumentals”. Holizna has uploaded an impressive fifty-three videos, gathered hundreds of subscribers, and amassed more than forty-two thousand views.
Some of his most popular videos include the likes of ‘We Drove All Night’ with more than six thousand seven hundred views, ‘Christmas Morning and Mamma's Cookin' Bacon’, gathering five thousand eight hundred views, and ‘"2020 Won"’, achieving over five thousand one hundred views. Click HERE to check out some of his latest uploads!
FEATURED RELEASE
Our featured album, ‘Be A Man’ by Holizna, is out now and available to stream on all major streaming platforms! The album lasts around thirty-eight minutes and consists of nine tracks:
‘Home Runs’, ‘Puppy Love’, ‘Death of Superman’, ‘Wings’, ‘Shots’, ‘Hangovers’, ‘County Jail’, ‘Be A Man’, ‘Good Again’.
‘Home Runs’ sits at 82bpm and lasts four and a half minutes. The ominous flow, ambient instrumentation, smooth strings and wind element delivers a creative flare that will have you hitting that repeat button the moment this track draws to a close.
‘Puppy Love’ sits at 92bpm and lasts around four minutes. The track features a foundational piano layer that provides the perfect platform for the deep lyricism; telling a love story that involves familial abuse, drug addiction and the difficulties of life that effect a relationship.
‘Death of Superman’ sits at 90bpm and lasts six minutes. The rhythmic beat and subtle backing vocal layer adds a depth to the overall sound without detracting from the seamlessly synchronized lyricism and memorable melody.
‘Wings’ sits at 96bpm and lasts three minutes. The track features a syncopated percussive beat that merges with the ethereal piano and emotive vocal color of the reverberated backing vocalisation to form its unique vibe.
‘Shots’ sits at 90bpm and lasts four minutes. The catchy hook features the stylistic use of imitated vocal layers at varying octaves; giving a powerful unified sound that makes the chorus all the more memorable.
‘Hangovers’ sits at 93bpm and lasts around three minutes. The foundational bass, soulful organ and steady beat amalgamate to form the uplifting melodic progression. The honest lyrical topic addresses Holizna’s personal experience dealing with the inner “demons of [his] psyche”, and his battle balancing the desire to “stay right” or “stay lit”.
‘County Jail’ sits at 90bpm and lasts around five minutes. An effected vocalization sits distantly in the mix; delivering an ambient effect. The systematic implementation of a wind based hook and a breakbeat drum section, check out 1:25 to 1:36, showcases Holizna’s instrumental/production talent.
The title track, ‘Be A Man’ sits at 83bpm and lasts around five and half minutes. The powerful lyrical topic shares Holizna’s life journey; his development into becoming the man that he is today, and how his perspective has shifted over the years, hoping that the next generation can “unlearn the bad shit” previous generations accepted and dealt with.
‘Good Again’ sits at 98bpm and lasts just over two and a half minutes. Holizna gives an insight into some aspects of his life that he would like to have changed if he had the opportunity. The main chorus features a gospel-styled layer of vocals that delivers just the right amount of dynamic diversity to ensure that this track is engaging from start to finish.
From the well balanced production and creative compositional arrangements, to the impressive vocal performance, fans of Holizna, as well as those who appreciate new and creative music, will definitely want to hear this album.
Although the album ‘Be A Man’ is technically grouped under one genre classification and has been depicted as having a “gritty underground feel”, Holizna’s undeniable diversity can be found on his YouTube channel with tracks like ‘I Miss You | Lofi Rap’ sliding right into the mainstream pop music scene; its easy listening Lofi style will leave you lost in the hypnotic melodic flow of the song.
‘Be A Man’ is OUT NOW AND AVAILABLE TO STREAM ON ALL MAJOR STREAMING PLATFORMS! Make sure you follow Holizna on social media to keep up to date with upcoming releases and performances!
ARTIST: Holizna
ALBUM: Be A Man
