Meet Gabriel Amzallag | Art Director & A&R

We had the good fortune of connecting with Gabriel Amzallag and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Gabriel, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I think that being an artist is a risk in itself because it makes you vulnerable. To make good art you need to be truthful and that takes introspection. After you’ve succeeded in making something authentic you need to confront that art to the rest of the world. It’s a big risk because you never know how good you are as an artist and how much potential you have.

I think as an artist I’ve taken quite a bit of risks, working as a freelancer can be tricky but I’m quite satisfied about how it turned out. It gave me the opportunity to work with amazing artists and put me in a place where I wouldn’t be if I followed a more traditional path. Now that I’ve made more than 150 covers and organized two art shows I’m starting to feel a little more comfortable and feel confident in fully betting on myself. I have some really amazing projects coming this year and even though it’s risky I feel good about it.

At the end of the day there’s no way you can create without ever taking risks.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
It’s always very hard as an artist to say what makes us special. I think my art reflects who I am as a person and I’m proud of that. My pieces are raw, sensitive, melancholic, funny, sweet, satirical but never mean. I use references to modern art, comic books, jazz, Hip-Hop and popular culture to tell the stories of those I draw and myself. It’s a storytelling tool. What we consume says a lot about us I think.

As an artist I create in many different ways: I draw, I make animation, I rap and I play saxophone.

I’m very proud of the objects I’ve created: the records, the clothes, the art pieces. People who bought them see my art all the time and it’s now a part of their lives. That’s beautiful. Making people feel things through art is very humbling.

I got where I am as an artist 100% through grinding. When I was 17, I would do prospection, sending messages to rappers on Instagram. I would look for a specific type of artist: already has a fan base, approachable by me and has room for improvement. Obviously the most important criteria was that I had to dig their music. After sending a ton of messages I landed my first collabs. At first it was for free, then I built myself a portfolio and got paid for what I was doing by the age of 18. A contract led to another and I’ve never stopped since then. I think the key is to stay open-minded and know your value.

As an artist I think it’s important to really develop you business side. You really need both to succeed in this business. Also diversifying is very important. That’s why I do visuals and musical art direction for labels now. If you’re versatile enough you can always fall back on one of your projects if something falls through.

If I had to sum up my brand in a few words, I’d say brash, ambitious and creative. Do not be afraid to try stuff cause you need to fail to succeed.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If my friend was coming to Paris I’d definitely take him to Centre Pompidou. It’s one of my favorite places in the world. Their permanent collection is one of the strongest in the world with pieces from Braques, Matisse, Chagall, Miro, Delaunay and so much more! As you may have noticed I’m a little bit of an art fan. We could also go to L’Orangerie or the Louis Vuitton Foundation.

I always love to go to the jardin du Luxembourg, it is one of the classiest gardens on Earth and it always takes me back to my childhood to go there. I also recommend le Palais Royal which has amazing flowers you can smell during spring.

Also, if you want a nice concert night you can got to the sunset for some jazz or la maroquinerie for something more modern.

For the food we’d go to Bim’s to have some Korean chicken! We could also go to la Maison de Chengdu for the best Chinese eggplant you’ve ever had. Finally L’as du Falafel is a must-have for anybody visiting Paris. I have many many places to go to for tasty food so hit me if you’re in town!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There’s many people I could give a shout out to, It’s extremely hard haha. I’d have to shout out my family, especially my siblings and my mom who have always believed in me as an artist. It’s cliché but it’s true. My mom is an artist as well and she would bring me to a ton of exhibitions as a kid. She showed me how beautiful it could be to create.

I’d also like to thank Francis Réveillaud for giving me my first solo exhibition at his gallery in Paris. It was a real milestone for me as an artist and was a big validation. I’ll always be grateful for that.

Obviously big shout out to all the musicians that have worked with me (Asher Roth, Dr. Dundiff, High John, Curtis Roach…) and the record labels who gave me a shot when I was just a young artist like Jakarta Records or Melting Pot Music Music.

Oh and one last shout out to my friend Nizar13 who suggested I’d do this interview, he’s an awesome producer and I’m sure he’s gonna go far! Check out our song “Pour Moi”!!!

Website: https://www.behance.net/gabrielamzallag

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mcblue_matter/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielamzallag/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MCBlueMatter

Other: https://open.spotify.com/intl-fr/artist/3ZvvVKJaAxFMnRw8I2PLDw?si=tPQe-g0aQWO0VgNSlW99UA