As 2015 winds down, so does the career of Wil Wright’s rapper persona, LiL iFFy, which began as a Harry Potter-themed hip-hop project in 2011 but has long since graduated from Hogwarts. Wright has announced that he’s hanging up his wand at the end of this year; he has two more local shows, including one at the Concourse on Friday, Oct. 30. We caught up with him to discuss the end of iFFy and what comes next.
How many more LiL iFFy shows are left?
There are three shows left, starting with this Friday at the Concourse to raise money for WUTK. After that, we’ll go to Nashville for the Spoken Nerd EP release. Then one last show. There were so many more great markets we wanted to hit one more time, but it just wasn’t in the cards.
When will the last show be held?
The final show will be on New Year’s Eve.
How much can you say about the last show?
Can’t say too much yet, but Chyna [Brackeen, LiL iFFy’s manager] is working hard to make it an unforgettable experience.
Why are you hanging up the LiL iFFy name, and what’s next?
The main reason, honestly, is that it feels complete to me. In five years, we put out three Harry Potter-focused albums, an album-length collection of B-sides, a non-wizard full-length, several loose singles, toured many times, were on MTV News, won all these local awards, were twice chosen for Daytrotter’s Songs of the Year list, were the subject of a successful short documentary, and played Bonnaroo. I don’t feel like we’re leaving any bullets in the chamber here.
As for next, I’m going to refocus my energy on Senryu, who have been incredibly supportive and patient. We’ve already recorded a new album for spring 2016. [LiL iFFy producer] Tom [Ato] and I are also moving into a new project called Nuit Nuit, which is hard to describe, but a fair amount of it is what I would call experimental, satanic pop music. We’ve already recorded a full-length debut album for that group and are working on a grandiose, interactive live experience.
Anything special about this next show, besides the fact that it’s the next-to-last one in town?
It is special, because we’re doing it to help out WUTK and Benny Smith. They’ve pushed my ideas for most of two decades. I love using iFFy to pump them up in return.
Is there anything that would convince you to keep up the LiL iFFy persona?
I’ve asked myself that a lot since I announced my plan almost a year ago. And the answer is a “yes, but.” It would have to be something so massive that, if it were coming, I would know already. I have adored this project and my friends and I have poured our life into it. Giving it the respect to a decent end, while it still feels so good, is important to me. I want to punctuate it and remember that it stopped in an exciting, intentional light.
Senior Editor Matthew Everett manages the Knoxville Mercury's arts & entertainment section, including the comprehensive calendar section—Knoxville’s go-to guide for everything worth doing in the area. You can reach Matthew at matthew@knoxmercury.com.
Share this Post