Voli Contra Bio
“I try to get that feeling I first got listening to Big Pun’s lyricism or Timbaland’s production as a kid, and then combine it with a genre-bending format.”
Voli Contra Bio
“I try to get that feeling I first got listening to Big Pun’s lyricism or Timbaland’s production as a kid, and then combine it with a genre-bending format.”
Over a decade ago, recording artist-producer, Voli Contra, struggled to balance a life of musical aspirations and working a job in education.
One day, in a critical moment, a co-worker asked him, “What is your fallback plan? When do you decide it’s time to quit and move on?” But there would was never a backup plan. So, in an all-or-nothing move, Voli eventually quit his job and moved to Los Angeles with little to his name to pursue a career in music.
Photo by Zane Foley
“(Young Guru and I) became brothers through the music we made and during a particularly tough transitional time for me in LA,” Voli explains.
Voli had successes, working with the likes of artists J.Cole, Bebe Rexha, Rapsody and producers such as Broiler, William Larsen, and 9th Wonder. Songs ranging from “Pity” featuring J.Cole to “Undercover” with EDM group Broiler, exemplify Voli’s wide spectrum of sonic and lyrical exploration. “I’ve always wanted to speak for every man, woman, and child through different genres but also through their experiences,” he explains.
This musical variety is what initially attracted legendary mixing engineer and producer Young Guru (Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Kanye West) to Voli and ultimately led to a working relationship.
“We became brothers through the music we made and during a particularly tough transitional time for me in LA,” Voli explains.
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I became jaded with the music industry and these songs helped me through it.”
Photo by Conner Lee Coughenour
Now when posed with the question of a “fallback plan”, Voli will let his music do the talking.
Starting a production group with Guru, Voli decided to begin a blitz of new music releases and alter his name to illustrate this turning point. The addition of Contra to Voli’s name represents this point; an unwavering fight against self-doubt, societal expectation, and artistic norms. Putting forth a diverse blend of old school New York 90’s rap flows with a cinematic, yet modern pop sensibility, Voli explains, “When I write and produce, I try to get that feeling I first got listening to Big Pun’s lyricism or Timbaland’s production as a kid, and then combine it with a genre-bending format.” Now when posed with the question of a “fallback plan”, Voli will let his music do the talking.