In a candid conversation at Star Studios, GaTa, the breakout star of FX’s “DAVE” and recent Catalina Film Festival Best Actor Award winner, opens up about his multifaceted career and partnership with iconic brand Zig-Zag.
Known for his compelling performances in “Anyone But You” and the upcoming “Rick and Morty” season 9, GaTa has seamlessly transitioned from music to acting while maintaining his authenticity as both a performer and mental health advocate. His connection to the Zig-Zag brand represents his commitment to longevity and cultural significance, values he cherishes in his own career trajectory.
His recent success includes roles in “Poker Face” season 2 alongside Natasha Lyonne and the feature film “Skinemax” with Paris Jackson, all while embracing his roots.
What does it mean to you to be part of the Zig-Zag campaign and how does it connect with your own legacy?
To be honest, it means everything to me. Zig-Zag, as I sit here with my papers right now, it’s about longevity. They’ve been around forever, and that’s what I’m trying to do. As a brand, I’m trying to be a staple in the culture, staple of my community, in the music world, TV film. It’s dope. That’s how I feel about Zig-Zag.
I want to be around forever. I remember seeing my uncles with the papers back in the day, always seeing the orange ones, and it’s just dope to be a part of it when brands of mine.
What role does authenticity play in your lifestyle and music?
I just like to be my truest form. Just be true to myself. Always show my character and my music. Whether I’m being vulnerable, whether I’m having fun having a great time, but being authentic is everything. It’s like getting an NBA Jersey, either got the real deal.
What was it like shooting the campaign with your childhood friends? How important are long-term connections in your career?
Long term connections is everything. Shooting on the block at my mom’s house where I grew up was everything, being able to have my friends be a part of my career and share a moment with them, and my neighborhood is dope showing them like, I’m not forgetting where I came from.
I’m bringing a brand here that we grew up on, that we love, that we cherish together, because way before I even got to this level, I was already going to the corner store with the homies, getting Zig-Zags and all that. To be able to bring them to my mom’s house and bring my homies together, it was dope. It’s something I’ll never forget. It’s gonna be something that I talk about for many years to come.
Your sound blends energy, lyricism, and raw emotion. What defines your signature style and how has it evolved over time?
My signature style is just bringing energy and being uplifting. Over time it has evolved because my cadence changed, my voice changed, and success comes into my life, different moments and milestones happen, whether it’s good or bad.
My style is always changing. That’s why I feel like I was able to and still able to keep on going, and last throughout the generations, because I’ve been doing my thing for a long time. My style is always changing. I’m always able to adapt. Got to be an octopus out here, hands in everything.
Name three emerging artists who you think are pushing music in exciting new directions.
I gotta give it up for the West Coast. I think Being Overdo is a dope artist from my neighborhood who’s doing dope things. He’s about to put out another collaborative album that he did with Nipsey Hussle. As far as other artists, it’s a lot of dope artists out here. I think Lil Uzi is always pushing the envelope, doing a lot of different things.
Every time I hear him, he sounds like a new artist. Douche is doing some great things. She’s letting people know that you could be a storyteller as a rapper, as a female. They outfit and boy problems, and all of that type of stuff.
What makes a song timeless in your opinion?
I feel like timeless music is something that you could play at the backyard buggy with your aunties, and then with many years to come, you could play it with your homeboys sitting drinking some brews chilling. Music has to have a connection with your spirit. It’s not about the beat. It’s about more so the lyrics and the connection. Like Phil Collins, “I Can Feel It in the Air Tonight” is a very timeless record.
Those words are powerful. It gives you that make your hair stand up on your arms. Timeless music is just something that really connects with your soul and your spirit, like Bob Marley, BB King, certain timeless records. Michael Jackson, Prince, it’s legendary. That’s one thing that’s hard about being an artist, is the longevity of being timeless. Timeless is just more so your vulnerability.
How vulnerable you get with your audience. I think that’s what makes music forever! How vulnerable you get like the Tupac, the “Dear Mama,” the “Brenda’s Got a Baby.” The content matter is what makes it timeless, like what you’re really talking about. It’s not so much about the things that you’re done and the accomplishments about what you’re really saying.
I think that’s why Kendrick Lamar is doing so great right now, because he’s saying a lot of crazy things. He’s getting vulnerable with the audience. He’s not just bragging.
How do you read a crowd’s energy and adjust your performance accordingly?
I always do a mood check. I start off with how y’all feeling out there. What’s good, we doing a mood check if you feeling good, say yeah. First of all, I want to know if you happy to be here because me being on stage is my dream. So that’s the first thing I’m ever gonna do. Are you happy to be here? Are you happy that you got a position in the crowd? My job as a mic controller or MC or rapper artist, I’m gonna check your temperature way before I even keep going into my set.
I’m gonna make sure you feeling good. I’m gonna make sure you doing well out there. So that’s what I do to read the crowd. I check on them first before I check on me, because I know I’m turn. I know I’m happy. That’s my dream.
What’s a musical experience that completely transformed the way you approached performing?
Collaborating and being on tour for many years with Wayne. I got songs with stuff through my friend Tiger. I got the opportunity to be on tour with him for like 3 and a half years. Lil Wayne just being around him every day, being in the studio, being around when he was dropping a record of Millie and selling a million records in a day, and him waking me up off the couch at 5 in the morning like, “Hey, blood! You got to get on this song. Everybody else sleep right now.” I’m like, all right, like I know, it’s Wayne.
I’m gonna get up and rap. Like those moments in that moment right there changed my life forever to the way I work. Because I’m thinking, like I’m with Wheezy right now, we on his tour bus, he taking us to Bell Harbor, shopping like this, one of the greatest rappers in the world. So for him to wake me up at 5 in the morning to wake me up off the couch and ask me if I want to get on the song.
I’m like, this dude working hard. He just want to do a song with anybody. That’s how much he want to rap, because I was a nobody. But to him he’s looking at me like it’s a young guy trying to get it. It was tight, man, he definitely changed my perspective. Shout out Wheezy.
Who are three producers that you feel have changed music and rap?
That’s easy for me, Dr. Dre, Timbaland, and Pharrell. Like three goats. I can’t say nothing less. If you want me to do it more on a different type of perspective, I could give you the dealers, DJ Paul with Three 6 Mafia and all that. It’s a lot of producers. But that first three, they’re my top three because I aim for the biggest and be inspired by the biggest stuff. So Dr. Dre, Timbaland, and Pharrell, they’re my three producers.
What do you think is the most iconic remix that you’ve heard?
If you want me to give you my honest answer, still, it’s gonna be crazy to say, but I feel like any remix from 2006 to 2009 that Wayne jumped on. He got a remix out right now with the Melo ball, the tweaking song. He slid on that. Like when Wayne hops on a remix, it’s completely changed the song. The kids are calling glazing. But playing is really still top tier to me, like something to aspire to be when you could last generation after generation, and you still sound timeless, and you still keeping up. That’s dope.
The perfect blend happens when…
Two different cultures get together. Shout out to my Salvadorian girl I love. Get together, and they like to share knowledge, and gain and grow. I like that.
Music transcends boundaries through…
Emotions and vibrations, and the moment that you’re living in. You could be sad, hear a song to uplift your spirit. So emotions and vibrations.
My creative process involves…
Being free, and not being trapped in my stresses of my career, like just thinking about better days and the grind. That’s when my music transpires. That’s my process right there, just being free.
The future of hip hop culture is…
Rising. I’m always saying rising. People say that it’s crashing due to all the stuff that’s going on with the streams and all this stuff. But and it’s oversaturated with too many artists. But I’m an artist, and I’m always say it’s rising because music is my passion that led me to the path that I’m on.
A great performance requires…
A great performance requires passion, persistence, and pain. I think if you get through some pain, you gonna have a great performance, like cause your joy is gonna come out. That’s why I love Buster Rhymes as a live performer, love DMX as a live performer. People that have been through stuff, that passion, that pain. You can see it on stage. It comes out the joy.
What are your top three Lil Uzi Vert songs?
Right now I’m feeling that Chill Bay going crazy right now. I like that. He got one Romeo and Ramona. I love that one, and I love Clock in My Purse. I love hitting my shoulder too. Hey, Uzi being Uzi.
