Above The Influence: Zilla Rocca and Disco Vietnam Talk Inspiration

Art by Evan Solano

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The fact that someone is always watching SORCERER on Letterboxd gives Will Schube faith in humanity.

Instead of watching Bravo shows or doomscrolling on Twitter in the crevices of time between their day jobs, Philly rapper Zilla Rocca and producer Disco Vietnam are instead making some of the best indie rap records of the last 10 years. Their latest, FAST EDDIE, follows in this tradition of art for passion’s sake–one’s life’s work versus their livelihood.

“I don’t like money having anything to do with my music,” Disco Vietnam says. The Long Island native has been releasing music for a while, but this true hero of modernity keeps his list of collaborators tight. Aside from his House Rabbi Series, the only artist he regularly works with is Zilla. The beatmaker served as an executive producer on Zilla’s excellent 2021 record Vegas Vic.

For DV, the process is the reward. “You have to live life to be an artist. If all you do all day is be an artist, I’m not entirely sure I can relate to you and I’m not entirely sure you can relate to me,” he explains. For him, the beats on FAST EDDIE came from real life: from taking the train, from grinding through the day. “Art’s gotta come out of that real life. It can’t always be escapism. I’m old enough now that I don’t need that.”

The two have been close friends and collaborators since linking up on the POW Forums in the mid-2000s, which led to a handful of one-off collaborations, and eventually, Disco Vietnam served as an executive producer on Zilla’s excellent 2021 record Vegas Vic.

Both artists had aspirations of pursuing music professionally, but eventually came to the same realization: money is messy. Case in point, Zilla’s been a staple of Philly’s underground rap scene since 2008, but sometime in the mid 2010s, he stopped rapping full time. I think it’s the best decision he’s ever made. It’s allowed him to thrive without pressure, to rap because it’s what he’s best at, not what he has to do to make money.

Zilla just wants to be rap’s equivalent of Travis Fryman. For people unfamiliar with ’90s baseball, Fryman was an extremely solid third baseman. He was a five-time All-Star, won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger award. When he was on your team, there was one less thing to worry about. “He could hit third, he could hit sixth, no headaches. It’s solid,” Zilla says. Another reference point for Z? “I just wanna make a great 3.5 mic album in The Source.”

For Disco Vietnam, the stakes are similar: “I don’t put out enough music to not put my best foot forward. I always want 12 bangers. I want an album that people say is really good. I want an album that I’ll be proud of 10 years from now and not wince.”

For the latest installment of Above the Influence we spoke with Zilla Rocca and Disco Vietnam about the work that inspires them, and the magic of being able to rap for fun.