Coach Tev
Who are you?
It's Coach Tev , AKA young Greg Popovich. I'm from Irving, Texas. I'm a hip hop artist and filmmaker.
What are some challenges with being the visionary behind the music and the visuals?
I think one of my challenges is feeling like I have to do too much. We shot a short film for the EP I did two years ago, and it’s like I fell in love with my mistress and I tried to do too much. I tried to be in it, help with the camera, shoot this, edit this, direct that, spreading myself too thin. Also, when it comes to shooting music videos for other artists around the city, I struggle sometimes because I want to maintain my own style and not give up the sauce too much when I'm shooting other people's stuff.
“A lot of us lack business acumen when it comes to like running your own shit, and you’re really running your own business when you’re trying to make it as an artist.”
What kind of trials, if any, do you feel you have to overcome before you make it?
Dallas doesn't have its own solid infrastructure or direct lane to the “industry” with regard to music and the arts. We are one of the biggest metropolitan areas in the US, but it's mainly business, not the arts. We don't have a lot of national outlets, like HOT97 in New York. We got "Say Cheese," but outside of that, I don't know too many. That's something that a lot of us feel like we have to overcome. You gotta figure out how to connect, which is good.
What do you try to communicate through your art?
“Self-owned.” I do a lot of things like shooting a lot of my own videos and I'm not really trying to go the label route. I'm trying to make it independent. I'm trying to find that grind. A lot of us lack business acumen when it comes to like running your own shit, and you’re really running your own business when you’re trying to make it as an artist. So I'm trying to learn a lot more about that so I can pass it down. So, yeah. I think my message is just to find your own wave.
“Show more compassion and love for each other, because shit's going to get harder.”
Why did you dub yourself the young Grep Pop?
I love Greg Pop because he's short and to the point with it. Someone could be like, “So what do you think Tim Duncan should have done,” and he would be like, “Yeah he'll get better.” I fuck with it so much. I like Greg Pop because whatever team he had, he found a way to win. They were always in the playoffs and they were always a contender. I like the fact that you got somebody that can build with what's around you and find everybody's strengths and bring shit together. A lot of times they didn't have like a super superstar, but they found a way to work with what they had.
Any last words for the people?
Show more compassion and love for each other, because shit's going to get harder. Maybe I'm just pessimistic, but things seem to be getting worse, so we gotta bank on love for each other and whatever you believe in, whether it's God or some type of higher power, we gotta tap in more to that and stop letting like the world dictate. Stop being a man of the world. It's easier said than done, I’m still fighting it myself. But yeah.
