The late Master Rapper, Francis Magalona once described Aristotle Pollisco aka. Gloc-9 as “a blacksmith of words and letters, and a true Filipino poet.”
Growing up in Binangonan Rizal, Gloc-9 immersed himself in hip-hop by listening to the pioneers of Filipino hip-hop such as Francis M and Andrew E.
Other stars such as Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Daz Dillinger, and Eminem also influenced Gloc-9’s lyrical mastery that raised him from an underground rapper to television commercials and a transformation into an OPM rap icon that opened doors for collaboration with other artists and produced memorable tracks.
Gloc-9 mentioned during his previous Australian tour that his favourite venue to perform is wherever there are Filipinos who want to hear his songs. Araneta Coliseum was once a dream venue to perform in and he has already ticked that off his goals list.
In regard to his dream collaboration with other hip-hop artists at the top of his list is Eminem. Gloc-9 added, “Suntok na yun sa buwan.” However anything is possible.
Gloc-9 was accompanied by Shanti Dope, a young and talented storyteller who is making a mark in the music industry. Shanti Dope already has a strong fan base in Australia and this can be attributed to the rise of technology in which music can be streamed and clips can be watched on demand.
The shows in Sydney and Melbourne in August 2019 were well received, and based on the attendance, there is a possibility to invite other hip-hop artists from the Philippines to perform in the foreseeable future and allow the local artists to contribute and be included in the lineup.
Gloc-9 shared that at one point in his life, his previous record label dropped him and he thought that the dream was over. His parents urged him to study and finish his degree, as that was the original plan and the wishes of his parents. Gloc-9 went back to school to study Nursing. He did graduate and also earned a licence but his true calling is writing a story and delivering them over a hip-hop beat.
Some people will say that it is good to have a “Plan B”, having that degree is great in case you need something to fall back on. Gloc-9 kept the dream alive and just continued to strive towards it.
The parting message that Gloc-9 wanted to leave to his fans was to “Simply to work hard towards what you want, always chase whoever you want to be in your dreams. If you are dedicated, diligent and have self-belief, you can overcome obstacles. Your dream has to be bigger than your challenges and at the right time, you will achieve it”.
The highlight of the show was when Gloc-9 played Francis M’s classic “Kaleidoscope World”. It was a fitting message and a great homage to one of the pioneers in Filipino Hip-Hop.
