Taketwo Featuring in the Second Years Anniversary Of Eesha Magazine.
Syllables roll off his tongue laced with passion and resonate in the ears of everyone in his presence. Many describe him as the quiet boy who explodes on stage. Henry Moller, a shy young man with a cheeky chappy way about him becomes a soulful spoken word artist the moment the mic is in his hands and he transforms into his stage name Take 2. Still at school and juggling his spiritual, creative and academic lives, Henry is the epitome of many young men today except instead of leaving his love of music till after his exams, Henry balances it all and pushes further with his love and talent in music.
Being brought up in London has had a vital influence on his life. The city, its eclectic surroundings and urban soul has effected Henry both personally and creatively; 'i wouldn't exactly say that I'm a product of my environment but i feel that the city has made me see things differently and had a major effect on the way i react to things'. One of these new perspectives came when Henry first embraced Islam.
This conversion marked the beginning of a Take 2, a beginning which enabled him to distinguish himself as a muslim, a young Londoner and an artist. I was intrigued about his conversion and so probed further. Like many young converts (reverts), Henry was going through a rough patch (in summer '07) and turned to Christianity for guidance. The was still insatiable and with his firm belief in an existence of God, he began to explore other religions. 'Islam being one of them, and as time went on i met a close friend of mine who also converted to Islam, and as time went on and i educated myself about Islam i realised that it was the right choice and path to take. The islamic way of life appealed to me more than anything, and every aspect of the Qu'ran drew me closer to Islam and Allah'. Despite his family being unsure about his decision, they soon realised the positive influences Islam had on Henry and support was unconditional. And so, began the journey of a lyrical explosion and soulful traveller who's wisdom is beyond the youthful twinkle in his eyes.
His music is described as spoken word meets hip hop with roots in experimental grime. This cocktail of musical influences and his own amalgamation of it all makes Take 2 the lyrical explosion that he is. Music has always played, like any dedicated artist, a major part in Henry's life; 'its a easy way to release anger, sadness, happiness or any emotion which i want to show, I feel so blessed that i can use words to influence people and insha'Allah change things for the better'. Wise words indeed. And it is this need for Henry to make a difference through his talent that led him to perform in gigs raising awareness for issues around the world. He is a frequent and important presence in the Skool of Thought gigs in association with RestlessBeings (an organisation working with marginalised communities across the world). With conscious lyrics in a conciouse environment, Take 2 has utilised his lyrics to raise awareness about injustices and explore issues of religion, war, identity and so much more making him a truly dynamic artist.
"I will write about anything from the war in Iraq to the current rate of youth crime in London anything which i feel is bothering me or needs to be addressed i will write about" - Take2
Politics is also another inspiration in his life 'if you listen to my music you will realise that politics is one of the main influences within my lyrics, i feel that most politicians are corruption of power...politics on the other hand can be mislead in today's society as the main cause of corruption...'.
So what does the public thing of this spirited young man?
The public, of all ages and backgrounds adore Take 2 and he is now steadily growing a fan base across Europe and abroad. Response to Take2 has been nothing but positive and with his cheeky sense of humour and passionate stage presence, he has no difficulty in winning over the audience.
I wondered if there was anyone in his life who encouraged and influenced him to get to the stage he is now and how it all took off the way it did. To which he replied ' I guess the first resource was the internet, i created a myspace and that's where it all started really. As time went on i started working with more and more artists and have grown to know some very successful individuals within the Islamic music scene and also the Non-Islamic music scene but i wouldn't say just one or two individuals have influenced me, i would say each artist i have worked with have influenced me in some way or another.'
He went on to list the artists which were figures from across the board but predominantly the vastly growing muslim music and hiphop scene which is growing across the UK and America in this current climate. Some of these artists include: Spitz, Purple, Faith SFX, Julio Shanakee, Quest-Rah, Mohammed Yahya, Poetic Pilgrimage & Producers including: Goodchild, Kraze, Thought Knox, Quest-Rah, Julio Shanakee & more. Busy man it seems, and it gets busier because since Take2 has been performing, he has been an act in gigs and events in venues such as, London ExCeL, Oxford House Theatre, Rise Festival, Bloomsbury Theatre London, Inn On The Green, and Events such as 'Global Peace & Unity', 'Skool Of Thought', 'Rebel Muzik' and 'Flowconscious' amongst the many.
So what are the plans for the future for this bright star? I expected an answer that would resemble something along the lines of getting a job somewhere and maybe uni, instead, this ambitious performer gives me a well planned and busy schedule of ' I want to release my debut mixtape "The Explanation," and just to continue to perform throughout the UK, learn Arabic, keep communicating my messages of peace and love and trying to make a change'. To this he adds his last words 'I would just like to first of all thank Allah for the blessings of my existence, i would secondly like to thank my family and everyone who supports me within music, keep doing so, its appriciated trust me. Finally i would just like to thank Eesha magazine for featuring me in the second year's anniversary of the magazine. Thanks, keep supporting... Salaam alaikum :)'
And so my time with Henry ends and I leave with a positive feeling that the youth of today may just be the stars of the future. With an artist as young as Henry and with the passion, spirituality, zeal and balancing his stage life as Take 2 and his personal development, we can only ever be optimistic for the future of Muslim artists, of conscious creativity and of a love for poetry and music on many different levels despite your colour, class, religion or upbringing. I know I'll be buying tickets to the next Take 2 gig that's for sure.
Eesha Magazine / Manchester