ALI GATIE TALKS TO US ABOUT HEARTBREAK, HIS FANS AND FUTURE ALBUM PLANS
Ali Gatie is certainly one to watch. His single It's You is surging on charts across the world. We got the chance to speak with Ali Gatie on the phone where we talked about his journey so far, heartbreak, his inspirations, his fans and his game plan.
Hit play to stream It's You and more while you read our chat below.
We’re huge fans of your music here in NZ. We’ve been playing It’s You on repeat. Hits us right in the feels. It’s such a pleasure to speak with you!
The pleasure is all mine, thank you so much!
We know you’ve been on the music hustle for a number of years. In the last couple of weeks, things have really exploded for you. How are you finding the newfound fame?
I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s newfound fame. I’d just say I’ve been long very overdue for new music. My last release was August 2018, and so during that timeframe of waiting and developing songs, I was growing.
The last time I released a song I had about 10-20,000 followers, and this time I’d say I had about 300-400,000. It was a bigger audience. So, I don’t know if it’s newfound fame, but it was new… it was this like this army that was waiting for songs to support. When it came out my fans went so crazy with support, naturally, it spread, and then that developed into this newfound fame if you know what I mean?
Yeah, sounds like you’ve got a really close relationship with your fans!
Of course.
We saw Kim K recently shared your single Moonlight on her Instagram. That must have been pretty surreal!?
Yeah, that was crazy for me. It wasn’t even just her. It was this artist Pia Mia. She had posted it and then Kim had reposted it, so it was getting two co-signs from two pretty big people at the same time. And I haven’t really ever had famous people share or support my music so for the first person to be like the biggest celebrity in the world, it’s a blessing.
Can you tell us about anything your working on at the moment? Is there an album on the horizon?
There’s definitely an album that will be coming, eventually. I don’t have a release date or a complete album yet. I think fans can expect a few more singles, just to get my name out there and for people to understand I’m not some kind of one-song artist. I’m here to build a catalogue of beautiful music that gets you in your feelings. Eventually, that will turn into an album. But right now I’m enjoying It’s You - I’ve just shot a music video for it - and I’ll just keep creating music.
What about a tour?
So, when it comes to shows it’s surprising… I’ve never done a show or performance ever.
Ever!?
Yeah. I’ve never even been on a stage, ever in my whole life. So, that’ll be a cool experience for me and my fans, we’ll get to experience it together for the first time. The conversation is definitely there, we’re just starting to build my live show and figure out the markets we want to hit. I’m nervous but I’m very excited, not just to do the shows but also to meet the people who are contributing so much to my life and my success.
We’d love to get you over here in New Zealand one day!
Yeah, I hope so. I’d love to come over there.
You’ve said It’s You is a sort of continuation from Moonlight. Heartbreak is a big theme in both those songs. What do those songs mean to you now? Has writing them been a healing process for you?
I think the beauty of those songs is that I write them to cope with things I’ve been through and then once I release them it’s almost like it’s for everyone else to use now. Anyone who is going through the same thing has been through the same thing, or maybe anyone who hasn’t been in love but is curious… I get a lot of messages from fans saying “I’ve never been in love but you’ve now set the standard so high, I want someone to love me the way you describe love in your songs.” That means a lot to me, to know that people who maybe haven’t even been through what I’ve been through can still find the beauty in my lyrics and my songwriting. It just motivates me to keep writing emotional music.
we read you were born in Yemen then moved to Dubai, is that right?
Yeah, so I was born in Yemen, I lived there very briefly. The two places I kinda grew up are Abu Dhabi, which is very close to Dubai, but I pretty much did most of my growing up here in Canada. I moved here when I was about eight or nine.
Those early years in your life, you’re still a kid, a baby, you don’t really have everlasting experiences. So, I’d say Canada is where I was raised and brought up. Canadian culture is what influenced me with a mixture of my parent's Arab background of course.
Do you think the travel and diverse cultures you experienced in your childhood has influenced your music?
Yeah, I think so for sure. I think being raised in an Arab household, and Arab culture means being hospitable. The way my parents raised me was to always be compassionate and emotional, always speak the truth and have integrity. I try to keep those same values as a man, and then that obviously just comes through in my music. My music is very real and very honest. And I’m just being fully authentic to myself. People accept me because I’m also very accepting of people.
So, you’re based in Canada now?
Yeah, I live in Mississauga, it’s like a suburb right outside of Toronto.
The music scene in Toronto sounds phenomenal. What’s it like being part of that?
Toronto is definitely becoming like this musical hub. Some of the biggest artists are from here, like Drake and The Weeknd and Shawn Mendes. I mean Shawn Mendes isn’t from Toronto, but he’s from around the city. It’s a blessing to be in a city with so many creative minds and it’s a city that wasn’t always so respected in the music scene so it’s nice to see it get the shine it deserves. I think more and more beautiful music is going to come out of Toronto and I’m just glad to be a part of that group of people.
I’m vibing on the acoustic/R&B blend you’ve got going on with It’s You. What artists did you listen to growing up and how do you think they influenced your sound?
My sound is still in a way yet to be determined. I think the tone and the emotion behind my music is there... But I think inspiration wise, two big artists I personally love are Ed Sheeran and J.Cole. I think they’re very different.
We can hear that. In some of your tracks, it almost sounds like you’re on the verge of rapping. We wanted to ask you about the Rhymestars competition you won a little while back, could you tell us a little bit more about that?
That was a really long time ago. It’s kinda funny that you bring that up. That was just me like hustling, trying to find a way to make some money to show my parents that they can trust me, that leaving school was a good idea and that people care about my music, I won’t be homeless singing in the street.
I found this contact, I funded the video myself and just tried my best to make the best song. That was actually the first time I was ever got paid for music - It was a little, small amount, it wasn’t lifechanging money, but it was like “okay, someone out there believes in me”, which was just like a great feeling. That’s a trip down memory lane. I’m happy you brought that up.
That’s very special. That first moment you’re like “I’m doing this”! So, did you leave school early to pursue music?
I went to university for just one semester, and I was already doing music, but just one semester there made me realise… like why aren’t I fully investing myself into my dream? Like, I can do this, other people have done it. If I invest the same amount of time that I would invest in university and maybe spend four years studying the game of music and trying my best, like, I could do it. So, I left school and my parents were obviously upset but I just worked hard, I didn’t waste my time, and I guess it paid off. People are enjoying my music which is a great thing.
How did you get into music in the first place?
I always had a love for writing, in general, writing, poetry, writing stories, never to share, just for myself. Then at the same time, I always had a love for singing. I was never that good, but just loved it, but also just kept it to myself. As I got older, I always had this feeling like… I can write songs… When I heard songs I would think “I wonder how they recorded that or how they wrote that. I want to understand.” Curiosity got the best of me and I ended up in a studio one day that my friend took me to, I made my first song and nobody has been able to get me out of the studio ever since.
What new artists inspire you now? Who are you listening to?
So, Khalid, he’s kind of new. I really like Khalid. He’s really cool. Then there’s this guy named Pink $weats, he’s a kind of similar vibe. I really like their music. It’s emotional, it’s in my lane, kind of. They’re young, they’re my age. Khalid and Pink $weats are two people I really, really like, and I really like Bazzi too.
We sort of brought this up before - But you sing a lot about heartbreak, have you got any advice for anyone going through a painful break up themselves?
I do have some advice. I get this question all the time in my DMs. I think the key to getting over heartbreak is being patient. It’s understanding things happen for a reason. It’s often understanding a lot of insecurities and self-doubt comes from lack of self-love. So, spend time loving yourself, spend time letting your heart heal before investing your heart into something new.
If you broke your leg no doctor would tell you, “you know what keep running on that leg it’ll get better,” they’re going to tell you to rest your leg, give it time to heal, don’t use it as much. Take the same mentality and give your heart time to heal, but don’t just sit there and just wait for it to heal! Try to keep busy. Be very patient with yourself and understand that moving on will happen at its own pace, so don’t try to rush it.
Holy hecka, self-help could maybe be an avenue you could think about later on.
*Laughs* Maybe.
Your last few singles have become viral hits. It’s You is climbing charts around the world - it's currently #21 on the New Zealand Spotify charts and inching up every day. (At the time of publishing, It's You is now #7).
Wow!
It’s very exciting. Feels like the whole world has suddenly switched on and is watching. Have you got a game plan for the next few years?
Right now I’m just very happy and thankful that my music is reacting globally. It’s early to call it a hit, but people release songs and sometimes they react really well in like America or in Sweden. My song seems to be reacting everywhere, and I’m not #1 everywhere, but I’m in the charts somewhere almost everywhere and it’s really cool. So the game plan for me right now is not to think too longterm and overwhelm myself. To just create the best music, I can in the most honest and beautiful way I can and keep engaging with my beautiful fans and everyone who is supporting me and just make sure they know I appreciate them so when the next song comes we’re not on #21 in New Zealand we’re #1. That’s kind of the game plan.
Thanks for taking the time to talk to us. We hope we get you over this side of the world soon!
Thank-you! I hope so too!
For more swoon-worthy songs that are in a similar ballpark to Ali Gatie, follow Topsify's Some Type Of Love playlist below.