Flow State with Harry Mack

Harry Mack

Harry Mack, multi-talented artist and rapper known for his electrifying freestyle rap videos, explores the many facets of creativity and artistic flow states. Through conversations with notable artists, musicians, and thought leaders, and casual explorations of Harry’s own process, Flow State seeks to inspire the creative spark within. read less

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Coast Contra: Evolved Nostalgia

Coast Contra: Evolved Nostalgia

The tenth installment of Flow State Podcast is here and this time Harry is joined in the studio by rising stars in the hip-hop world, Coast Contra. Comprised of rappers Rio Loz, Eric Jamal, Ras Austin, and Taj Austin, Coast Contra is best known for their viral video Never Freestyle. Gaining notoriety for their debut album, Apt. 505, and The Old Way Mixtape, Coast Contra has opened for Dave Chappelle at the Hollywood Bowl, appeared on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and traveled through North America on their own headlining tour. In this episode they talk to Harry about their journey as a brotherhood, the methods they use to create, and why staying independent means so much to them. After discussing the nuances of freestyle and off-top rapping, Coast Contra and Harry close the episode out with a cypher session. Coast Contra -AYO (Official Video) https://youtu.be/fDsmk7u8EQg?si=PbMuFpIB2zTUlDe8 Never Freestyle https://youtu.be/IdNxeepSpuk?si=rO_wBvm9iKHVx9X6 Apt. 505 https://coastcontra.lnk.to/apt505 The Old Way https://www.even.biz/releases/the-old-way Method Man - All I Need ft. Mary J Blige https://youtu.be/XW1HNWqdVbk?si=GVYaj9t4t8ysmIgZ Alan Jones https://ajampdx.com/ Whiplash https://www.sonyclassics.com/whiplash/ Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill https://bookshop.org/a/102858/9780143110163 The Magic of Thinking Big https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-magic-of-thinking-big-the-true-secret-of-success-david-j-schwartz/20264087?ean=9780593713235 Harry Mack - Napoleon Hill https://youtu.be/A12Q43RqP7s?si=AbyItPk0brZbCRTe The Colture Playbook by Ty Baisden https://coltureplaybook.com/ Show Notes 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:20 Who is Coast Contra? 00:03:15 Evolved Nostalgia 00:04:52 First Influences in Music 00:07:48 Choosing a Career in Music 00:13:18 Rio Loz’s Colombian Origins and Bilingual Rapping 00:17:24 Apt. 505 00:31:29 Never Freestyle 00:40:42 Freestyling and Off The Top 00:47:11 Staying Independent 00:55:12 Striking A Balance 01:00:22 Closing Rap

Episodes

Coast Contra: Evolved Nostalgia

Coast Contra: Evolved Nostalgia

The tenth installment of Flow State Podcast is here and this time Harry is joined in the studio by rising stars in the hip-hop world, Coast Contra. Comprised of rappers Rio Loz, Eric Jamal, Ras Austin, and Taj Austin, Coast Contra is best known for their viral video Never Freestyle. Gaining notoriety for their debut album, Apt. 505, and The Old Way Mixtape, Coast Contra has opened for Dave Chappelle at the Hollywood Bowl, appeared on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and traveled through North America on their own headlining tour. In this episode they talk to Harry about their journey as a brotherhood, the methods they use to create, and why staying independent means so much to them. After discussing the nuances of freestyle and off-top rapping, Coast Contra and Harry close the episode out with a cypher session. Coast Contra -AYO (Official Video) https://youtu.be/fDsmk7u8EQg?si=PbMuFpIB2zTUlDe8 Never Freestyle https://youtu.be/IdNxeepSpuk?si=rO_wBvm9iKHVx9X6 Apt. 505 https://coastcontra.lnk.to/apt505 The Old Way https://www.even.biz/releases/the-old-way Method Man - All I Need ft. Mary J Blige https://youtu.be/XW1HNWqdVbk?si=GVYaj9t4t8ysmIgZ Alan Jones https://ajampdx.com/ Whiplash https://www.sonyclassics.com/whiplash/ Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill https://bookshop.org/a/102858/9780143110163 The Magic of Thinking Big https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-magic-of-thinking-big-the-true-secret-of-success-david-j-schwartz/20264087?ean=9780593713235 Harry Mack - Napoleon Hill https://youtu.be/A12Q43RqP7s?si=AbyItPk0brZbCRTe The Colture Playbook by Ty Baisden https://coltureplaybook.com/ Show Notes 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:20 Who is Coast Contra? 00:03:15 Evolved Nostalgia 00:04:52 First Influences in Music 00:07:48 Choosing a Career in Music 00:13:18 Rio Loz’s Colombian Origins and Bilingual Rapping 00:17:24 Apt. 505 00:31:29 Never Freestyle 00:40:42 Freestyling and Off The Top 00:47:11 Staying Independent 00:55:12 Striking A Balance 01:00:22 Closing Rap

Start With What You Love

Start With What You Love

It’s time for a brand new installment of Flow State with Harry Mack! In this solo episode, Harry talks about his goals for musical growth through more collaborations with other artists. He answers questions about getting started in music and how to push past the difficulties of a low energy audience. He also addresses the difference between copying from your favorite musicians’ style and using them as an influence to help you grow. After reacting to a freestyle submission and a classic clip — Prom Night in DC — Harry recaps this episode’s journey in freestyle. Show Notes: Search by Lyric with Genius https://genius.com/ Atomic Habits by James Clear https://bookshop.org/a/102858/9780735211292 Kind of Blue by Miles Davis https://www.milesdavis.com/albums/kind-of-blue-legacy-edition/ Prom Night in DC (Guerrilla Bars 25) https://youtu.be/fShjMXWu6kU?si=6cuy6Zf0MFTl6DrF&t=1125 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:53 Creative Collaboration for Musical Growth 00:12:34 Question 1: How do you navigate the fear of unintentionally copying someone? 00:25:11 Question 2: How do you get started making beats and music? 00:34:21 Question 3: How do you keep the energy flowing when people are closed off? 00:41:28 Question 4: What catches your ear in a beat for a freestyle or written? 00:47:01 Freestyle Submission 00:53:29 Reacting to Prom Night in DC 01:09:19 Closing Freestyle

Daru Jones: In The Pocket, Crafting An Identity

Daru Jones: In The Pocket, Crafting An Identity

In this episode of Flow State, Harry welcomes two-time Grammy winner Daru Jones to the podcast. Best known for his genre-bending drumming and unique drum setup, Daru has performed, recorded, and toured with legendary musicians including Jack White, Pete Rock, Gloria Gaynor, Slum Village, Talib Kweli, Black Milk, and more. Daru tells stories about coming up in gospel music and discovering jazz and hip-hop through drumming. They discuss creating your own style in music, forging a path that transcends genre, and becoming anointed by the flow state. Bookended by studio jam sessions, this episode of Flow State is not to be missed. ---- Show Notes NAMM https://www.namm.org/ Daru Jones with Jack White - Ball and Biscuit/Don’t Hurt Yourself/Jesus Is Coming Soon (Live on SNL) https://youtu.be/Ai9b2IO5Ncs?si=nlzw9A2QcT5AS4__ Daru Jones with Jack White - Lazaretto (Live on SNL) https://youtu.be/hwNM-PSBeCY?si=kxsOA1N6JBcSZUjw 0:00:00 Intro Jam Session 0:03:31 Harry Introduces Daru Jones 0:08:53 Daru’s Origins with the Drums 0:12:59 Musical Memory 0:15:39 First Listening to Hip-Hop 0:21:29 Touring with Slum Village and the J Dilla influence 0:31:15 Playing Different Styles of Music 0:35:20 Daru’s Drum Setup 0:45:47 Flow State and Being Anointed 0:52:53 When Harry and Daru First Met 0:56:48 Closing Jam Session

This Is Non-Negotiable

This Is Non-Negotiable

In this episode, Harry explores some of the lessons he’s learned about sticking to goals, staying on track, and addressing what - if anything - he would change about his freestyle career. Harry also dives into his roots as a jazz musician with stories about coming up as a young jazz improviser, learning about how to really listen to the musical conversation, and offering recommendations for some of his favorite classic jazz musicians and albums. After fresh reactions to a multi-lingual freestyle submission and a classic Guerrilla Bars moment, Harry closes out the episode in his traditional way — through freestyle. ________ Show Notes: Relaxin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet https://www.milesdavis.com/albums/relaxin-with-the-miles-davis-quintet/ Art Blakey http://artblakey.com/ John Coltrane https://www.johncoltrane.com/ Sounding Well Writ (Guerrilla Bars 7) https://youtu.be/8JPdpyjwU7w?si=rl6sto-yJm6brJ0S&t=159 Prove it to Myself https://www.harrymackofficial.com/prove-it-to-myself Get Away From Everything https://www.harrymackofficial.com/get-away-from-everything ________ 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:09 Kobe Bryant and the Non-Negotiable Contract 00:09:49 Self-Compassion and Getting Back On Track 00:23:06 Question #1: If I could start over… 00:29:18 Question #2: Jazz Artist Recommendations 00:39:26 Question #3: The Jazz - Freestyle Connection 00:45:25 Freestyle Submission 01:00:01 Reacting to Guerrilla Bars 7 01:10:42 Closing Freestyle

Rick Glassman: Pushing Boundaries, Letting The Audience In

Rick Glassman: Pushing Boundaries, Letting The Audience In

Alright y’all— after 2 exhilarating improvisational explorations on his acclaimed podcast Take Your Shoes Off, it was time to bring the incomparable Rick Glassman into Flow State I knew it’d be a great pod, but I had no idea I’d get to reap the benefits of Rick’s PCS (Podcast Consulting Service) free of charge! I just genuinely love hanging out with this guy so much. It was awesome to hear about the parallels between my approach to doing improvised concerts and Rick’s approach to editing and animating his podcast. Also the narrative freestyle toward the end of this ep had my adrenaline soaring!!!! I think y’all are gonna dig this one— thanks so much for being here and enjoy SHOW NOTES: Sur Jazz’s Portra 400 https://youtu.be/YzLWJOloaTI?si=26AaljZ064nl8OqO https://surjazz.bandcamp.com/album/portra-400 Harry Mack on TYSO - #195 https://youtu.be/Hs5LSHuseL8?si=4eUzeOSgNTmI9xxJ Harry Mack & Lamorne Morris on TYSO - #243 https://youtu.be/A3mHjf6lt-w?si=Qmpj2uSeAdaeMRh- I Am Phenomenal https://youtu.be/pEZCTUymiUw?si=Gi4UA-5nxqCdLS2J Rick Glassman’s Will Smith Monologue on TYSO https://youtu.be/2GjobYxWAmk?si=ZzcvXoZNEYb0dXKB&t=4021 Jim Kwik https://www.jimkwik.com/ Hypest Prom Ever (Guerrilla Bars 25) https://youtu.be/fShjMXWu6kU?t=1122 New Music OUT NOW: https://harrymackofficial.com/listen Timestamps: 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:47 Podcasting Advice From Rick 00:11:03 Take Your Shoes Off 00:18:49 Struggles with Watching Yourself 00:21:16 Being Cool 00:28:08 Being Willing to Fail 00:31:03 Performance as Play 00:37:53 Focusing on Image vs Being Present (Smile and Be Ugly, Dude) 00:46:20 Visual Contextualization 01:03:34 Pee Break Freestyle 01:07:47 Long Form Freestyling 01:08:52 Three Girls At the Guggenheim Freestyle 01:18:00 Visualizing the Scene 01:22:59 Closing Conversation

The Magic Of Guerrilla Bars

The Magic Of Guerrilla Bars

What's going on, y'all? Welcome to another episode of Flow State. In this episode, I express my love for David Copperfield, we react to episode one of my Guerrilla Bars series, I answer some questions from the community, talk about my morning routine, react to a dope freestyle submitted from one of y'all, and close it out with the bars like we always do- Let's go! *Hypest Prom Ever (Guerrilla Bars 25)* https://youtu.be/fShjMXWu6kU?t=1122 *Guerrilla Bars Episode 1* https://youtu.be/zqSNeMxCWq8 *Di3sel Optics on Omegle Bars 18* https://youtu.be/VBBMfHGMs7I?t=786 *Limitless* by Jim Kwik https://bookshop.org/p/books/limitless-expanded-edition-upgrade-your-brain-learn-anything-faster-and-unlock-your-exceptional-life-jim-kwik/20284792?ean=9781401968717 *The Artist’s Way* by Julia Cameron https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-artist-s-way-30th-anniversary-edition-julia-cameron/6665657?ean=9780143129257 *Atomic Habits* by James Clear https://bookshop.org/p/books/atomic-habits-an-easy-proven-way-to-build-good-habits-break-bad-ones-james-clear/12117739?ean=9780735211292 0:00 Intro 2:31 Shooting Guerrilla Bars 7:17 The Busking Experience 12:43 Seeing David Copperfield 24:47 Reacting to Guerrilla Bars 1 34:10 Q1: Unforgettable Content Moments 41:07 Q2: Is Flow State Contagious? 48:37 Q3: Dealing With Stress 1:02:26 Freestyle Submission 1:09:20 Closing Freestyle

Josh Harmon: Drum Comedy & The Rhythm of Language

Josh Harmon: Drum Comedy & The Rhythm of Language

Josh Harmon is one of the most unique and entertaining content creators out there today and it was a pleasure to have him as a guest on Flow State! Josh is best known for his Rhythms of Comedy series and for creating live sound effects for scenes from some of your favorite cartoons, TV episodes, and movies. Part of what was so cool about getting to meet him in person and learning about his story was seeing how many parallels we share! From a childhood passion for drumming to forging his own path in online content creation during lockdown, this is definitely a man after my own heart. Hope y’all enjoy and be sure to check out his amazing work! Follow Josh on Socials: https://beacons.ai/joshharmon/ MonoNeon David Dockery MITCH HEDBERG // Rhythms of Comedy: Ep. 2 KEY & PEELE: Rhythms of Comedy (part 2) The Moth Josh Harmon Business Insider interview Creating the sounds of “Ratatouille” Timestamps: 1:51 What Does Josh Do? 7:36 Getting Into Character 11:52 Keeping It Authentic 15:57 Learning How To Drum 22:38 Mitch Hedburg Video 26:15 Find Your Interest 28:12 Rhythm and Language 33:17 Key & Peele Video 34:20 Seeing The Rhythmic Matrix 37:00 Before Content 38:57 Relationship with Social Media 44:32 NBC and The Today Show 47:05 Taking The Leap + Ratatouille Video 54:24 Mental Health Aspects of Being A Creator 1:03:54 Closing Freestyle

Freestyling For Ice Cube, Facing the Pressure, Releasing Music

Freestyling For Ice Cube, Facing the Pressure, Releasing Music

What’s goin on y’all? We’re back with another episode of Flow State. You probably noticed by now that I’ve been going in hard on new written tracks, and I wanted to take the chance to talk a bit about where that creative impulse came from and how it’s been going. Y’all keep submitting fantastic questions, so this episode we’re also talking about meditation, overcoming self doubt, and how exactly I remember all those random words during freestyles — including during one of the most exciting, high-pressure freestyles of my life… when I got to spit a flow for Ice Cube and the cast of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover, so pop in those ear buds and LET’S GOOOOO! *Wherever You Go, There You Are* by Jon Kabat-Zinn https://bookshop.org/p/books/wherever-you-go-there-you-are-mindfulness-meditation-in-everyday-life-jon-kabat-zinn/19968905?ean=9780306832017 *Contents Under Pressure* https://www.harrymackofficial.com/contents-under-pressure *‘Bounce House’ Car Freestyle* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqGThHzAilw *TMNT Freestyle* https://youtu.be/VH80FTveM_4?si=664RXSvFtDx77ieP 0:55 Releasing Music 8:30 Facing The Pressure 17:35 The Voice Of The Writer 21:00 The Turning Point 24:39 Q1: Mindfulness Practices 33:33 Q2: How To Go From Thinking To Doing 39:59 Importance of Putting Things Out 47:32 Ice Cube Freestyle Reaction 1:05:35 Fan Freestyle 1:11:00 Closing Freestyle

Sur Jazz: Touring The World, Music Production, The Art of DJ-ing

Sur Jazz: Touring The World, Music Production, The Art of DJ-ing

It’s only right that the first official Flow State guest is not only one of my closest musical collaborators, but also someone I feel very privileged to call a friend… the incomparable Sur Jazz!!!! The two of us only really started working together consistently a couple years back, but in that short window of time we’ve managed to live SO MUCH life together— traveling the world, doing shows, and making lifelong memories both on and off the stage. There isn’t a room on earth that Jazz can’t light up with his energy. His musical knowledge is DEEP and ever expanding. Beyond DJing, Jazz’s production skills are top notch (as evidenced by the banger we dropped a few months back called “2024”— y’all know what’s up). The two of us have talked for hundreds of hours off camera but it was awesome to finally sit down and chop it up with Jazz for the pod. Hope y’all enjoy!! 06:40 Life After Tour 09:06 Favorite Things To Cook 11:49 How did we meet? 20:25 The First Show 27:46 Being on the Road 37:21 Living In New York 47:20 Jazz’s dad 53:21 Jazz’s Musical taste 55:39 Producer Influences 58:19 Jazz asking about Harry’s different formats and the energy 1:01:05 Our 4DX Experience 1:07:55 Señor Jazz 1:12:19 Freestyle submission: Throwed Genji 1:18:00 Closing Out 1:19:19 Recap Freestyle

Entering Flow State

Entering Flow State

Welcome to the very first episode of my new podcast— Flow State! 🚀 In this episode I answer a few of the questions submitted by the community, delving deep into the challenges of touring, the crazy timing of the Omegle platform shutdown, and more. I’ll also react to a dope freestyle submitted by a fan, and provide a helpful episode recap in freestyle form. I can’t wait for y’all to check out the inaugural episode! Make sure to subscribe because we’ve got some exciting things planned over the next few months. Let’s go! ✌🏻✨ 0:00 Welcome 3:16 The End of Omegle Bars 9:16 Question 1: How are you Harry? 18:22 Question 2: If I couldn’t rap, what would I do? 21:45 Question 3: What are the mental challenges of touring? 29:22 My Achilles’ Heel 33:19 Question 4: What can I improve on skillwise? 43:12 Question 5: How do you achieve Flow State? 52:08 Question 6: How does the journey compare to expectation? 1:02:34 Freestyle Submission - Erik 1:10:21 Closing Freestyle