Pheelz: Still Feels Like a Dream

For more than a decade, he’s been crafting chart-topping hits for the hottest stars in Afrobeats, while also pushing his music career. But in 2022, the Afrobeats sensation Pheelz had the spotlight fixed firmly on him with the catchy song ‘Finesse’ featuring BNXN. From there, his career  skyrocketed, signing with Warner Records, embarking on tours, and collaborating with global heavyweights like American R&B musician Usher, rapper Diddy and music producer Dr. Dre. Pheelz opens up to Vanessa Obioha about his rise to fame, the growing cultural dominance of Afrobeats and how everything still feels like a dream

it was a momentous morning for Pheelz, the day of his first headline concert in New York. He was already pumped up and ready to take on the world.  A mini studio has been set up in his room, with instruments and equipment scattered all around. Pheelz has been in his element all morning, ready to unleash his creativity and imagination onto his Tribe (the name of his fanbase) when he performed later that night.

He worked tirelessly to perfect his setlist. With a mix of recreated songs and fresh additions, he prepared about nine songs in total for his performance. Most of them were from his latest EP ‘Pheelz Good’ released in February. Despite the early hour, Pheelz’s voice was strong and steady as we chatted via Zoom.

Philip Kayode Moses, the producer and recording artist behind the persona Pheelz, can hardly believe that everything that’s happening is real. He was in New York for his first headline concert and would tour other American cities. That was not all. He’s signed with one of the leading music labels, Warner Records, and has had studio sessions with bigwigs in the U.S. music industry like American R&B musician Usher,  rapper Diddy and music producer Dr. Dre.  Indeed, the lines have fallen in pleasant places for him, and the artist feels like he’s living in a dream.

“From the rooms that I’ve been in, to the people that I’ve met, to the stages that I’ve been on. I actually have a loyal fan base,” he said, in a voice tinged with disbelief.

“People love my sound and are listening to what I have. All that still feels like a dream to me because coming from the producer brand where I’m always in the studio, being behind the scenes to now being at the forefront, in all these lights. It’s a blessing that I don’t take for granted at all. It still feels like a dream.”

Standing at six foot six inches, Pheelz, a native of Ogun State, cut the image of a basketball player but the closest he ever did in sports was soccer.  His interests have always been in the creative arts. He evinced an unwavering passion for music at an early age that was impossible to ignore. By age six, he was writing songs — for himself, his family or for church programmes. By the time he reached 10, he was honing his poetic skills by crafting lyrical masterpieces.

As he grew older, his creative talents improved and he became more forward-thinking. At just 13 years old, Pheelz tapped into his entrepreneurial spirit and started exploring new avenues for success. 

“I started writing for business when I turned 13. I would write poems and love letters for my seniors in school and they would pay me for that.”

Describing himself as a shy kid, Pheelz found solace in the world of words and art. He would spend hours drawing and painting, creating and editing videos and pictures in Photoshop. It was a way for him to express himself when words failed him. As he grew older, this artistic side of him flourished, culminating in the creation of Rii Collective, a creative solution company that showcased his visual arts.

“I make all my lyric videos myself. You can see this with the Rii Masks which I used in my lyric videos. The masks started from childhood. I would draw figures and put masks on them. The masks showed how I truly felt when I drew those pictures.”

Despite his love for art, Pheelz first gained recognition as a producer, creating award-winning beats for the likes of Olamide and Tiwa Savage.

“The reason why I actually started producing was so I could make beats for the songs that I’ve written as an artist during my childhood days. But the world just caught on to the production first, and I paid more attention to that.”

He described his creative process as organised chaos because inspiration can hit him at any time. Sometimes it starts with a melody and other times, the lyrics lead the way. He knows that perfection is just an illusion and has perfected the art of not falling down the rabbit hole of endless tweaking. “Nothing is really perfect,” he declared.

Over the years, he honed his instincts and trained his ears to know when a piece of music feels right.

While Pheelz recorded a few successes as a producer, he was unprepared for the blessings that came with his 2022 hit single ‘Finesse’ featuring BNXN.

It all started with a guitar loop from his new producer Michael that caught his attention. He left Michael to cook up the beat and was thrilled with what he heard. As he began to play with melodies, the mumblings gradually transformed into lyrics, and voila! ‘Finesse’ was born.

Curious to see how his fans would react, he shared a clip of the audio on TikTok, and the rest, as they say, is history. ‘Finesse’ became a breakout hit, catapulting the 28-year-old musician onto popular music charts like Billboard. It was just the beginning for him. The song’s explosion caught the attention of executives at Warner Records, leading to high-level meetings with industry titans in the U.S. A collaboration with Usher is in the works and is expected to grace the airwaves soon. For him, the success of ‘Finesse’ was the highlight of 2022, and he knows that the future is full of endless possibilities.

“The whole blessing that ‘Finesse’ brought is just mind-blowing and I’m still trying to wrap my head around it even till now. Big thanks to God and I’m really grateful for being here, where life has placed me this time around.”

Even now, Pheelz is at a loss for words whenever he attempts to describe the immense success of his hit single.

“It’s God to be very honest. I’m not going to sit here and act like I had everything in control or I had all this planned out or this was my turn.”

And just like that, the young man who grew up in the Ajangbadi area of Lagos State has the spotlight firmly fixed on him. It’s hard to talk about the top Afrobeats stars in the country without mentioning the young man. His ‘Pheelz Good’ EP is still captivating hearts with its catchy hits such as ‘Electricity’ featuring Davido, and ‘Pheelz Like Summer’ among others.

In retrospect, it seems that Pheelz’s success was predestined, as he revealed in the song ‘Pablo Escobar.’

“The inspiration for ‘Pablo Escobar’ came from my dad,” he explained. “He has a gift of seeing visions and dreaming dreams. One dream he had always stood out to me. In the dream, while others were riding different animals like horses, donkeys, lions, and cheetahs, he saw me riding on an elephant.”

According to his father, this vision held two meanings. First, it meant that Pheelz’s journey would take longer than others because he was huge, and he would have to take one giant step after another. Second, when he finally arrived, the world would shake.

“So that’s where the inspiration for ‘Pablo Escobar’ came from,” Pheelz stated. “When the elephant steps in, it’s over.”

As Pheelz continues to climb the ladder of fame, he remains grounded and focused on his mission to promote Afrobeats globally. To him, being part of the movement is not just a privilege, but a responsibility.

“It’s insane to witness how Afrobeats is taking over the world,” he expressed. “After spending over a decade in the industry, I’m amazed at how far we’ve come and how much more we can achieve. The boundaries have been shattered, and anything is possible. It’s a blessing that I don’t take for granted to be among the people who are pushing this culture forward.”

Pheelz believes that it is the responsibility of every African creative and artist to educate the world about their roots and the spiritual essence of Afrobeats. As he shared, “We have to make sure that we educate the world about who we really are and what our culture represents. We cannot just leave it to chance. We have to do it intentionally, just like Fela tried to do. This can be powerful and can change the mindsets of people and the narrative of Africa.”

Despite performing at various venues around the world, nothing feels like home to Pheelz. He was recently honoured at Industry Nite in Lagos, where his fans paid tribute to him for his contribution to the Afrobeats movement. Such gestures mean the world to Pheelz, who is not only aiming for a Grammy but also striving to see Afrobeats dominate the world and change the narrative of Africa.