Today, we are interviewing Mohammad Hammoud, known professionally as Near Dogg, a Swedish Rapper, and Beat Maker, who started in the music industry in 2008. He decided to start a new journey as a Swedish rapper in 2020.
Please tell us something about yourself.
I decided to start a new journey in my career as a Swedish rapper because I had to move to Sweden in 2014 because of the Syrian revolution back there.
Why then did you choose to make music in Swedish, not in your tongue language?
Many ask me this, it is because I'm the type of person who gets affected by the community where he lives. I relate to this community in my music because I live here. I'm not interested in making someone listen to my music overseas because we do not have any connection with each other in real life now.
So how did you enter to this music industry? Tell us more about how your journey started.
My big brother Odai Hammoud introduced me to this. He used to rap back since, then supported me to start as a beatmaker. I honestly never thought that I'll become a rapper, but you never know.
What inspires you in this game?
As a kid, I used to listen to American hip hop – 2Pac, Eminem, D12, and Snoop Dogg. I honestly got inspired by all those hip hop stars, so I cannot take one name. I can say that American Hip Hop, in general, inspired me.
Ok, so tell us more about your music.
I try to make tracks that are different from other artists, not on the same topic. My first single called “Taking Over” was a clear message to Swedish Hip Hop that I will take over. My second single was featuring artist D BOY from Congo based on Sweden as well. Now I'm working on my third one called “Ghettos Engineer” it should be out next week, hope everyone likes it.
What are the strategies that helped you become successful in your journey?
I believe the major thing that any artist should do is plan his career. He should know where he wants to be at the end of the day. Making a plan for your career is very essential, at least for me. The second move is to find support from your people; as my mix & master Engineer DJX and my Director Waael Alhamada, I had to give a shout out to them.
Which social media channels work best for promoting your work?
I use Instagram because I feel it's more connected to people. For example, people nowadays react to pictures and videos more than only posts on Facebook. So Instagram is what I use to promote any single I drop.
How can people be in touch with you?
As I said before, Instagram is the best for me, as well check out my website for more information about me. Do not forget to check the Youtube channel as well.
