It’s not often you get a chance to really embrace and talk to someone for so long you actually lose track of the time. Leave it to Canadian hip-hop artist Dax to provide enough comfort and engaging conversation to have this exclusive chop up session easily go beyond 30 minutes. Easy.

From dishing on his massive ‘Dear Alcohol’ success and its major remix to talking about his perspective on the difference between a need and want for a record label situation, Dax doesn’t hold back. Kick back and check out some highlights from the convo and keep scrolling to peep the entire interview.

I know you’re always evolving but this is a super new territory for you. When I think of Dax, I think of Tech N9ne-type style raps. This, you slow it down and get super deep with it. And the numbers don’t lie. Millions of streams. Just talk about putting ‘Dear Alcohol’ to the masses and then making it a remix.

Dax: Initially, when I first heard the song, Lex made the beat and I said, ‘I got wasted because I didn’t wanna deal with myself tonight.’ And I was like, ‘Oh shit, this is different.’ I always operate from whatever comes out first is what I go with. So I never choose a topic or choose a style. I always choose whatever comes to my brain first, based upon what those words are, I determine the song. So once those words came out, I was like, ‘Oh shit. This is important.’ Especially for where I was drinking at that point.

So I finished the song and I felt like this would be the song that would break some barriers for me. I released a lot of singing songs before but they’re usually tucked into an EP or an album. I knew people were going to relate it, because of the way I’m singing it, it sounds a little bit country. So I had a feeling that I was going to cross more barriers especially over the top wise. I’m expecting it to do a lot more. I feel like it’s just getting started.

Once I started the ‘Open Verse’ challenge, I didn’t expect this many people to do it but I do know I love doing ‘Open Verse’ challenges myself on TikTok so I didn’t know I was going to make it into a remix but I always operate off of what other people want. People were engaging and I felt like it was my duty to put together t these verses and put it onto my YouTube so it’ll live there forever.

Definitely talk about avoiding the negativity and keeping things positive with you.

I think the first thing I do, I’ve always told myself and realized humans are more likely going to lead to negativity. As soon as Adam and Eve took the apple from the tree, the world was a sin and the negativity was there. If you don’t teach a baby to do the right, it’s going to do the wrong. So to me, I try not to judge people who do negativity things towards me. I try not to even get down on myself and seem prone to that. Anything in life I learned from basketball is that repetition - you can do anything if you do it enough times. So what I’ve learned to do with my brain is consistently practice positivity from my affirmation to my thoughts.

I remember when I first started this shit, I took a mental inventory and remember saying that 90 percent of our thoughts are negative and I took an inventory of my thoughts during the day and thought, ‘Oh shit, my thoughts really are negative.’ That came from me also wanting to be a better basketball player. So once I figured that out, I reprogrammed my brain and I stated the word, ‘Big play, big play,’ so I just reprogram my brain to stop saying more negative things and saying more positive things and I just started seeing life half full instead of half empty.

It’s just consistently, everyday, flooding myself with positivity and that’s why I love reading comments on my YouTube and going through it. The people who are for me give me hella positivity.

Were you able to create during the start of COVID? You even put out a COVID-related song. Talk about that immediate impact on career and professional.

For me, it was a blessing. I was always the type of person who loves the rain. The reason I love the rain is because most people - when it’s raining - don’t go outside. But I like walking outside in the rain. So for me, the pandemic was about making the game - because I see this as a sport - making it harder. I love those types of scenarios. So for me the pandemic was a blessing. I got to sit. I got to create.

Everything I do, it’s quick one and done. I’m doing one-take videos and going to a place like two hours away and going to a random road to shoot. For me, it was great. I was able to separate and I didn’t even have to tour and could just focus on the creativity and stuff.

So I liked it.

Check out the full chop up session with Dax below.