Too Posh to Rap – Changing Career Leaving Teaching

I often wonder if I'm too 'posh' to rap. Which is ironic because I'm hardly posh - I was born in Wolverhampton for example *insert laugh*.

There are a number of rappers who went to university. Calling yourself a rapper is a bit corny. I'm not really a rapper, I just put rhyming words together in a sequence, I guess I'm a bit more spoken word. I just happen to put it on top of a beat, but if I am one then I fall in to that cohort who got good grades at school and attended university.

I've used words like 'draconian' and 'empowerment' in raps and I use a lot of adverbs (words that end with ly). My last name is conscious but I do not do conscious rap. My rap is based on uk drill and trap with downtempo undertones. The overall mood is often mean, moody and sad or serious, although my vocal abilities range in the realm of comedic.

Changing Career

I spent the first part of adulthood in the classroom as a teacher. Moving into entrepreneurship after teaching proved tricky. I actually started a business whilst teaching and tutoring maths on the side. I decided to quit teaching and focus on building the business. I built the business and then sold it. A mistake in hindsight but nonetheless I learnt loads from the experience. I started rapping later on in life, after 30 years old. It's been over 8 years now and I am technically stronger than ever. I'm still developing an audience, it does take time.

I'm not sure if I'll ever make commercial success in music, but I would like to build a small audience who enjoy my sound and technical skills on the mic.

Leaving Teaching

If you are thinking about leaving teaching weigh up the costs. You may take a financial set back at first. It's important to do something you enjoy more than teaching. I did not hate teaching, I just found it psychological taxing especially with the volume of work and effort that was expected. I had serious health problems as a consequence of the stress. When you leave teaching you have an opportunity to gain tons of new skills. I learnt how to build websites, graphic design, rap, make songs and build a social media audience. That's the exciting part especially when you choose to work for yourself.

Ignoring the Obvious

I'm obviously transgender, a point which I frequently make reference to. This has been a barrier but not disastrously a factor. I have made it work for me. Selling my business as a transgender was interesting, I learnt the importance of being transparent, no pun intended. I can't help how I was born but I won't let it be an excuse.

You can check out Chaun Conscious Music here.