360
Back in June, the electrifying Australian rapper, 360 made his long-awaited return by dipping his toes into live performance. Now that he has proven to himself that he can balance performing on stage with a healthy lifestyle off it 360 is ready to head out on a more extensive tour of regional areas.
In an interview with Pario ahead of his Back To Life tour 360 spoke about many topics. These topics ranged from his long struggle with addiction, how music helped him overcome said addiction, the importance of a balanced lifestyle & of course his excitement for the upcoming tour.
As we began our conversation with 360 the biggest elephant in the room was the 6-year hiatus from live touring. Without shying away from the topic 360 explained, "I've had a pretty grim history with drug & alcohol addiction... I had to go to rehab at the start of the pandemic & was in there for about 4 months."
That stint in rehab had been a long time coming with 360 having battled addiction for the last decade. Smartly after completing his time in rehab 360 didn't immediately return to live touring. Instead, he took a couple of years to change his lifestyle to ensure he had a solid foundation & could withstand life on the road again without falling back into old habits. During this post-rehab period, music & creativity helped pull 360 out of perhaps one of the darkest times in his life.
"Once I'd come home & I'd gotten through the really dark phase of it all, it was like the colour was slowly coming back into my life," he recalled. "That's when I found this urge to write down everything I was going through & just talk about it all. That process really helped me get through it all... music became my vice. I was in a really really bizarre place & I didn't quite know how I was going to get through it, but writing through it was really the thing that brought me all the way."
Easing back into life on the road
With his burning passion for music now back & a plethora of new music in his arsenal, it was only a matter of time before 360 would hit the road again. However, knowing how it had impacted his life in the past he didn't want to immediately dive in head first. So instead, he eased himself into it with a brief run of shows in the capital cities.
"It was good to come back & just go slowly to start," 360 explained. "I just wanted to try it to see how I would go & get a feel for being back on the stage."
With that run of shows proving to be a success, both professionally & personally, 360 knew he would "eventually dial it back up to tour quite extensively". However, he also realised the importance of "putting physical & mental health first".
Balancing these 2 aspects of life with career aspirations is now something 360 pleads for younger artists to put more emphasis on.
"I know it's difficult, because if you want to try to be the best you've got to put in the work & really go hard. So it's very easy to put your health to the side & ignore it, but if you do that it's just asking for trouble & can end really badly."
These days life on the road for 360 has taken on a very different complexion.
"Back in the day, it used to just be all about partying & drinking," recalled 360. "Now it's drinking teas before the show, warming up my vocals, meditating & praying, which I never did before. So life has changed drastically!"
Success also comes with a different connotation for 360 today. These days, simply receiving messages from fans who are connecting with his music defines success from 360.
"To be honest with you, that kind of thing happens every single day & it's really humbling. It's mind-blowing to see how people connect with the music... That's my favourite thing about it all now, for me that defines success when people are connecting with the music so much that it helps them through similar experiences."
Coming 'Back To Life'
Looking ahead to his regional Back To Life tour 360 is reinvigorated, reenergised & full of excitement. Perhaps the biggest factor contributing to his excitement is the appreciative nature of the regional audience to live music.
"Regional audiences are so much fun to play to," 360 told Pario. "I feel like there's a bit more appreciation from regional shows because they don't get that many compared to major cities... I'm especially looking forward to getting back to Wollongong. I've always enjoyed playing there because the shows have always gone crazy at Waves."
Follow 360’s Creative Journey on social media at: @3ree6ixty
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