Gladiator Profile

“Dark prince of light…”

Those first words from the title track of his first mixtape release probably best describes Aiman Bin Mohd Misri, better known as Dafrosty, a 22-year old lyricist from Seremban, Malaysia. Claiming to write lyrics “like nobody’s business”, Dafrosty skillfully delivers a range of topics from personal to social, bombarding the audience with an array of wordplays and puns complimented by a good ear for dark,industrial,and sometimes emo beats coupled with commanding vocals.

The first listens might confuse you, but with such a mastery of rhythmic delivery, you’re bound to be pleased by sheer sound of his raps, while the depth of what he’s actually saying promises multiple levels of appreciation. Lyrically influenced by wordsmiths like Nas, Sage Francis, Slug of Atmosphere, Canibus, Mos Def, and Myka 9, Dafrosty executes his topical songs with a perspective that sees the bigger picture through the little things in life, keeping in touch with witty battle threat themes just as impressively clever.

Raised in a pretty conservative Muslim environment, he discovered poetry as a means of escape from pressure of trying to fit in during his years in boarding school and was introduced into rap lyricism by a fellow rap fan (who would later become known as The Rhymeweaver) he met in an internet chat room. Years later, with a growing passion for music and recording, he left his failing childhood dream of becoming a chemical engineer and left for Singapore to pursue  a Diploma in Audio Engineering instead, and is currently undertaking a B.A. in Recording Arts, maturing into Hip Hop at the same time.

The undying albeit small support in the Singapore Hip Hop scene, and the hopeful eyes of newcomers eager to learn made him feel that his years as merely an enthusiast and observer were over and it was time for him to participate in the action. Inspired by the writings of M.K. Assante Jr. and Adam Bradley, he stunned open mic audiences with an epic display of heart and talent, naturally recognized and was later invited to perform at several gigs in both KL and Singapore.

The Rap Gladiator Mixtape is his first full length compilation project, loosely inspired by the arena battles in the movie Gladiator where the slave-turned-warriors were cheered for merely trying to stay alive. The track list boasts 12 songs out of 15 tracks, which consist of self-produced originals, production contributions by Shazet (Rogue Squadron beatboxer) and Sazz The Villain (Singapore), jacked beats ranging from DJ Krush to MF Doom and everything in between, and remakes with re-written lyrics of a song by Ratatat and another by The Cranberries. Features insist of close lyrical colleagues Saphuan(Malaysia), El Genio(Malaysia), and Kwizyne (Singapore), while the chorus of The Cranberries cover was done in screamo by the loud and talented singer/photographer Lina Halim.

Already working on material for bigger upcoming projects, certainly there is much to expect from this independent artist. With such passion and seemingly unstoppable drive, there’s no telling how close to legendary status he could achieve before a divine force stops his progress.

The Rap Gladiator Mixtape is available for free download at https://dafrosty.wordpress.com while physical copies are sold by hand for RM5.