PHREEBOY - Dollar & A Dream

Canadian artist from West Africa blends melting pot of sounds on eclectic new EP ‘Last Try, Attempt One’

CALGARY, ALBERTA, CANADA – Phreeboy is an artist who began molding his craft growing up in Montreal – one of the most eclectic cities in the world. A virtual melting pot of cultures and socio-economic status, young Emmanuel Boateng grew up seeing so many different walks of life that it left an indelible mark on his impressionable mind. All of that has informed his unique voice and with his new EP “Last Try, Attempt One,” he is ready to share that voice with the world.

Born in Ghana, West Africa, Phreeboy was 9 years old when his mother raised enough money to send him to Canada for a better education. But prior to moving, he remembers fondly joining his family in church and youth choirs. Those experiences planted seeds that would bloom during his teenage years in Montreal. Eventually, he started writing poetry and began to explore more of what it would look like to connect with the world through music. He started putting songs together and that led to his six-song EP which is slated to be available across all streaming platforms on Jan. 31.

“It’s a project that really is about encouraging people to keep going until you get there,” Phreeboy said. “A lot of times in my life there have been moments where I’d wake up every morning and have to convince myself to just try again. Sometimes, that’s what you have to do – just keep trying even if you fail. Just try again. This current time in my life is when I’m going to put everything into this push with my music. If I fail, then I’ll try again – a kind of ‘Attempt 2.’”

The debut single from the project is a song called “Dollar & a Dream” which encapsulates the entire theme of the EP. Phreeboy calls it a wake-up call to people – pushing them to do what they have to do to realize their dreams.

“Don’t make any excuses,” he said. “Don’t tell yourself you can’t do it. You’re gonna die someday anyway, so why not try?”

Phreeboy said that though “Dollar & a Dream” has a real “boom-boom” vibe, the entire EP showcases more variety and truly embraces the different sounds and genres that come from his home town of Montreal.

“There’s a certain kind of feel to this EP – there’s a hunger to it,” he said. “You can tell from the first bars that there’s a special quality to this EP. Growing up, because I lived in Montreal, I didn’t listen to just one genre. I listened to Jazz and Reggae and Africans and Hip-Hop and so many other things. And with this EP, I want to show that side of Montreal that has all that variety. It’s a city with a lot of different cultures, and that really influenced me growing up. Music is a depiction of what’s going on in the world, and I realized at a young age that it has the power to influence people to do something they wouldn’t originally consider doing. I guess in that way you could say my music is a little bit rebellious – which is where my name comes from. I just want to be able to do what I want to do instead of trying to accomplish all the plans that other people have for me. And that’s a message I want my music to send to other people. If you don’t want to fit in and you feel like there’s no path for you, create a new path. You’re going to make mistakes, but keep pushing. That’s what my music represents – it’s rebellious without a specific direction but that’s how life is sometimes.”