This Is Austin, Not That Great Interview: Cartier God

Cartier God is rhapsodizing about his affinity for "elevator music" when I mention that the legendary producer/experimental rapper/angel-voiced singer is, in the majority of his catalog, the least sonically violent act to ever play This Is Austin, Not That Great. To my shock, the Georgia resident was unaware until now he'd signed up to play a punk/metal fest.

"This brings a whole new light to this. I gotta switch up my set list," he exclaims with giddy zeal. "I got so much fucking rock shit. You know? Hit 'em with that vampire punk."

Cartier God has got so much fucking shit, period. Since 2019, he's released over 20 albums, EPs, and mixtapes that leverage his signature cooing, androgynous vocals toward an astonishing meld of surreal stylings: shuttling post-punk, sensual deep house, vaporous future funk, and cloudy psychedelic trap. Though active since the mid-Aughts, there's a reason Cartier God's gone into overdrive in recent years.

"I'm just now getting off after five years of probation," he explains. "Getting out of the streets gave me time to think and humble myself down. People don't realize that when you figure out your artistic identity, that's when you get adventurous with genre."

"Humble" is key, as Cartier God's been a certified visionary since the start of the 2010s. Essential innovator behind the airy, minimalist trap style known as plugg (which came to public awareness through Playboi Carti's early singles), the mastermind behind Ocean Gang brought water lingo and hashtags into the SoundCloud rap lexicon. Not to mention, he's the only artist alive to have collaborated with all three of the most significant blips in internet rap: Soulja Boy, Lil B, and Drain Gang.

"I've been around forever, it's true. But I didn't have time to focus on myself," he says. "But now? I can take all that passion and work I gave to the culture and I can put it into myself.

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Cartier God's set for the fest takes place at Mohawk on Thursday, March 2.