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Theman has done it all - Joe Flizzowspeaks to
Brianne JasminAeria
56 | FireFlyz
Not Just Another Joe!
A
lways
in his hip-hop wear, sunnies and his cap, Johan Ishak or better known as Joe
Flizzowwas once part of the dynamic duo rap group, Too Phat. Both he and Malique
were the first to have brought the Malaysian hip-hop scene to a whole new level.
And now, together with SonaOne, they managed to win the best song for Anugerah
Industri Muzik 21 and the recent Anugerah Juara Lagu 29 for the top prize with the
song
“Apa Khabar.”
Joe also recently launched his latest single titled,
“Baek”
which
he worked on it with SonaOne.
Joe the entrepreneur
Now riding solo, Joe Flizzow has added entrepreneur to his repertoire. Kartel Records was founded by
Joe in 2005 and currently has Altimet, Ila Damiaa, Sonaone, Zamaera and many more under the label.
The label has also since ventured into music publishing, talent management, music production and
advertising and video production. Kartel currently manages celebrities including Anis Nabilah amongst
others. Having all these artists under him, Joe together with Altimet and DJ Cza created streetsmartasia,
a platform where you can find Kartel Records’ merchandise as well as street wear under one roof. And
about a year-and-a-half ago, Joe and his partners opened Joe’s Kitchen and Barber Shop in SS15, Subang.
Joe who believes that one should never be afraid to dream big and never be afraid to try anything at
least once, has come a long way to be recognised as ‘The President’. Still holding that title, Joe set out
his dream of becoming a rapper ever since he was young. “I am just happy doing what I love doing.
When I was in school, I told my classmates I wanted to be a rapper and now I am a rapper,” says Joe
confidently.
Never thought that he’d become an ‘influencer’ in the hip-hop scene, Joe however did want to
become a voice for the industry. One of the reasons Joe founded Kartel Records was simply because
he wanted to take care of people in the entertainment industry, especially those currently under his
label and also to run with the people who runs for them. “We (Malique and I) always took one step at
a time, we also try to accomplish one thing at a time so I don’t think the intention was to be a leader
of the industry.”
How did Flizzow come about
“Flizzow was given by Malique, cause Flizzow means flow. In rap, you have rhythm and poetry. So
the poetry is the lyrics and the rhythm is how you flow,” shares Joe regarding his nickname. When Joe
started out, everyone who heard him rap including Malique said he had a nice flow. And with that,
Malique started calling Joe, Joe Flizzow. “Malique and I were big fans of Snoop and Dr Dre and they
had their own language, so Malique and I used to have sort of our own language too, you know like
how back then when the PJ kids used to talk,” adds Joe with a laugh.
Talking about collaborations, Joe who has worked with many local and non-local artists says that
some collaborations are unplanned. Sometimes when he happens to be in the studio and different
artists are there or a producer walks in with a new song, somebody starts composing something or
rap or even play the piano.
“Given a choice, I’d love to collaborate with Nas. I love MCs from New York. If it was someone new,
I’d want to collaborate with French Motana and J. Cole. For a local collaboration, I’d choose to work
with Awie simply because I am a big rock fan. I am a fan of Wings and Search,” adds Joe. Not wanting
to change anything about what has happened or is happening to him, Joe takes it as a lesson in life be
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