Wifisfuneral Interview

The South Florida legend is following up with one of his most acclaimed mixtapes, but he’s not done working anytime soon.

Photo Credit: Ahron Frankel

The South Florida legend is following up with one of his most acclaimed mixtapes, but he’s not done working anytime soon.

Isaih Rivera, better known as, Wifisfuneral grew up in Miami, Florida in the prime of the underground rap scene. Working alongside other rappers like XXXTENTACION, Ski Mask The Slump God, Lil Pump, and more, he cemented himself as a formidable force amongst his peers. Even with a tumultuous career, he has not slowed down, taking all of his pain, accomplishments, and unique life experiences and consistently releasing new music of all stripes. With the upcoming release of Boy Who Cried Wolf 2, we are transported back to a simpler time, yet at the same time, we get to see true growth from an artist who has seen it all.

Welcome back to NC! Have you done a college show before? Do you enjoy them more or less than regular concerts?

 I've done probably like three or like four college shows my whole life, and honestly, it’s just like any show that just show’s good energy, period. 

Can you talk to me about the Broward County [Florida] rap scene, and what that meant for you as a young, up and coming rapper? What do you think set it apart from other places? What influence did it have on your style?

I don't really think it had an influence on my style. It was just more so [that] we understood that if we were all unified together, and we all showed each other love, we wouldn't be weak. Atlanta was doing that very strongly at the time, but they were doing it on more of a mainstream aspect. So with the underground sh*t, I feel like when everybody kind of saw that there was a legit wave coming out of just Florida, [so] instead of [everybody] beefing with each other, we all just clicked up and supported each other.

Things are so different now. How do you feel about the state of rap right now?

 I don't really mind it. It’s more so [that] I think that people need to just start showing individualism and [be] their own self as opposed to following a template, and [they need to go] stupid with it. I feel like a lot of artists are just doing that, but [as for] the music aspect, I don't think the music is bad. I think the music's great, honestly. 

What’s in your rotation right now?

All I really listen to is Future and Young Thug, I play them before everything. I [also] listen to some of the newer artists: Osamason, Ken Carson, Destroy Lonely, Summrs, Autumn!, [and] Jace!.

You got a lot of praise because every project you do sounds a little different from the last. What are your most unexpected inspirations? 

 I get inspired a lot from movies as opposed to music. Music plays a part in it, but I don't really draw a lot of my main inspiration from music [like] I used to when I was younger. The older that I get, [the more] I get inspired by movies and situations that I’m going through right then and there.

What’s something maybe you haven’t tried that you’d want to do? 

Early 80’s punk music, some Black Flag sh*t. 

What is your favorite sample you've ever included in a song? 

It’s a song that’s on my [new] album, we just sampled ‘My Heart Belongs To U’ by Jodeci.

What is your dream collaboration? Doesn’t matter what genre they make. 

Easy, Frank Ocean.  Even if it's just adlibs, I don't even have to have him actually singing on it - it could just be him harmonizing. At that point, just having the song with Frank Ocean, I could die happy.

Another inspiration many of your fans know about is your love of WWE and wrestling. What’s your dream matchup? Any wrestler, any era going head to head. 

AJ Styles vs. Sean Michaels. I feel like if you took like a 2012-2013 AJ Styles and you put him against a 1994-1997 Sean Michaels, both of them were at their peak and were so revolutionary in their style because they're like both light heavyweights. They're not cruiserweights, but they still can move at the speed of a cruiserweight and have the same high-flying intensity as a cruiserweight. I think they also really know how to tell a story very well - they really sold their periods of wrestling. So I feel like both of them at their prime in a WrestleMania match would be crazy. 

You’ve come a long way - what’s the proudest moment of your career?

 I don't really have one in my career, but I'd say the proudest moment of my life so far is probably my son, honestly. Being a dad is cool!

Speaking of a long career, you have gone through a lot and have been working for so long. How do you keep yourself inspired? What keeps you going? 

I just don't feel like I'm at where I want to be yet. Until I get there, I don't think I'm gonna stop working at the pace that I'm working at right now. I feel like everybody should work like that. That’s what really pushes me. As much as people see me in certain lights, or put certain accolades to me, or have given me my flowers for certain accomplishments, I don't really feel like they're significant enough for me to be like, “you know what? I did it.” I'm [still] grinding to get to that point. Once I'm there, trust me, I let the world know.

Following up from one of your most popular albums - Boy Who Cried Wolf 2 comes out soon. What can we expect from this one, what’s it like compared to the original? 

The original one is a 19-20-year-old kid trying to explain what he's going through and the motions of my life. I had just signed a deal at that time, so life was completely different. I'm 28 now, so it's a completely different experience. I feel like it's the aftereffects of being not just in the industry, but also the cesspool of what [music] is now and the effects of it. It’s not from a perspective of me getting super vulnerable and super emotional, it’s more so that I feel like people are gonna see evolution. They're also gonna be like, “oh yeah, this guy's l out his brain a little bit.”

What else is coming up next for Wifisfuneral? 

After [the album], we're looking to put a mixtape that I put on SoundCloud [back in the day] on all streaming platforms. Then I want to try to drop another album. I got an idea for [another album] in my head already, but I should be able to have it done [soon]. We’re also trying to plan these 3 exclusive shows in select cities, because this year is the 8 year anniversary of Boy Who Cried Wolf. More info on that will come soon. 

Anything else you wanna shoutout, promote, a message you wanna send? 

Just keep going. Be yourself. Don’t be a template.