- Azim Ousman on how to make it in the music industry
Azim Ousman is a Sri Lankan self-taught music producer, singer and mix-and-mastering engineer, who, after finishing his education at Christ King College, entered the music industry and has been in the field ever since.
In conversation with Brunch on how he entered the industry, Ousman told us that when he was younger, he was taken to late music director Claude Fernando, who was a best friend of his father. Since the music director played several instruments, upon watching him, Ousman was stuck with an interest in all things musical and decided to learn how to play some type of instrument. With Fernando’s help, he mastered the drums quite early on in life, but revealed that although he used to be quite proficient at it, he wasn’t able to continue it professionally. “So, since the introduction of technology in the music field, I started using the world famous music software named FL Studio and other VST plugins as instruments for my music,” he told us. He also mentioned that his father was incredibly adept with the guitar and harmonica as well, which again led him down the music career path he has picked out for himself today.
Over the years, he was inspired by producers and artists like DJ Khaled, DJ Snake, D.A. Got That Dope, Tay Keith, Eminem, Major Lazer, and Marshmello. Ousman told us that they motivate him and have shown him endless possibilities in his career.
Once Ousman began his career in 2006, he quipped that he was “way too into R’n’B songs,” but as the trend changed, he eventually ventured into hip-hop. He recalled a time where he would exclusively wear baggy t-shirts and trousers with snapbacks and huge chains around his neck, adding that now he almost feels shy when he remembers the things he’s done in the past.
“I am a changed person now,” he emphasised, telling us that it all changed in 2011 when he stepped into EDM. “I started combining dubstep, hip-hop, and R’n’B just in one track. It was a huge success then,” he told us, thinking about his musical aspirations a decade ago. Now, Ousman is back to hip-hop, reggaeton, and future trap.
“I would like to say that my single Cinderella became very popular among girls back in 2010!” he laughed, explaining that since then, he has featured several artists from Italy, India, and the Philippines. Right now, his target is to feature as many artists as possible to make his songs sound much better.
Ousman revealed that he had his mind set on making a career in the music industry since he was 13, and he was fortunate to be the only child in his family.
“That way, I had endless hours to spend on my music and furthering my career.”
From there on, the discovery of different styles of music and musical options gave him a wider range to work with and he used all that knowledge and experimentation to lead him down a prosperous path of composition.
When talking about his creative process, Ousman described the key aspect to this as “a folder filled with musical ideas in my head” which helps him focus more on discovering and creating unique styles of music. “If I come up with one little idea with one little melody and I play certain chords, then the sound might inspire me to create something else, like a totally different melody,” Ousman explained. He also added that while he is not particular about a special type of song, it is his wish to make songs depending on the tastes of his fans. “So, each and every song of mine is different from one another,” he told us.
Over the span of his 15-year-long career, Ousman described the moment when he first thought to himself that he had made it to be in October 2017. “This was when my song Take Me Tonight got nominated for the Yes Home Grown Awards under the category of Best Electronica Track,” he stated. He also says he was the first artist in Sri Lanka to own a VEVO channel back in 2015 and was granted this opportunity after he released Will U B My Valentine? featuring a 12-year-old Filipino singer who became a runner up in the Dubai Kidz Starz show.
Of course, his journey was not an easy one. Ousman told us his road to success was riddled with obstacles. “I have faced a lot of bricks and bats on my journey in the music industry, but I faced them boldly. People who do good things always must expect bad things from haters. I always try to conquer.”
Speaking of his last release that took off, he told us that in April 2021, he released the first song of his upcoming album, Sada Sulanga collaborating with DR.BSKing and Dulan ARX, who wrote Yohani’s Manike Mage Hithe. His latest release Ape Thaale collaborating with DKM, Kelwiz, and NST also became No. 1 in trending Sinhalese pop hits playlist “Sinhala Pop” on Spotify. Sharing his thoughts on this achievement, he commented: “This has always been a dream of mine. The music video has surpassed 100,000 views on YouTube. I know the number is small but it’s huge for me because I did a music video after four years.” He told us that the song did so well because of Ryo Hera, Dinusha Chamikara, Asanka Fernando, Thilanka Fernando, and their video production team from Wize TV who worked very hard to make the video look unique.
Currently, he is working on his upcoming album and hopes it’ll be nothing but game-changing. But for the moment, he told us that anyone can listen to his music on digital platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify, and YouTube.
