An Interview With Apollo281  

Emma Paff 

Music Journalist Rap/Hip-Hop

I originally met Caleb, also known as Apollo281, over the summer through a mutual friend, and we would get lost in long conversations about music. When I told him I wanted to start interviewing local musicians but was a bit nervous because of my lack of experience, he immediately jumped at the idea and started reassuring and encouraging me. From there, we dove headfirst, and I was so grateful when he invited me to join in on his studio session.  

In August 2024, Caleb moved from North Houston to Austin to study audio engineering at Austin Community College. During my drive to ACC, my mind was racing with self-doubt. Doing something for the first time can be scary, but I was so excited to have the opportunity to learn about his musical journey. After meeting him in the Audio Technology and Industry building, he immediately soothed my nerves with his easy-going and welcoming presence. We laughed and joked as he graciously showed me around the studio. Everything was so foreign to me, but Caleb moved effortlessly between the live and control room. It was really cool to see him in his element. After he troubleshooted our mics and headphones, we settled down to talk.  

How do you like living in Austin?  

 

Caleb: I love working in Austin. I love the music scene. I love the people in the music scene. I love nature and everything, but I definitely don’t see myself living here for much longer. San Marcos is the next place.  

 

Where do you work?  

 

Caleb: I work at Emo’s, the music venue. It’s partnered with Scoots, so I do some Scoot shows too, but I work security there. 

 

Why did you choose the name Apollo281?  

 

Caleb: I needed a name change because my original name was Mr. C, which was like the first and last letter was “MC,” and it was really cringy because I was in eighth grade and everything I did was cringe. So I called my buddy, and he was like, “What’s like the god of music in Greek mythology?” And it was Apollo, and then I added the 281 because I was living in Houston at the time. 

 

How would you describe the music that you typically create?  

 

Caleb: If I put it in a genre, I would say alternative rap. Cause I do like a lot of poppy stuff sometimes. My most recent project was more pop stuff, but I also go into more of like grimy rap. So it’s just, it kind of depends on what’s going on in my life, but yeah, alternative rap.” 

 

When did you first realize music was a passion? 

 

Caleb: Music was always an outlet for me. I was passionate about music since I started listening to it. I would always record little songs on my MacBook in like 2009. But I realized it was going to be my career in my senior year of high school. So about like three, four years ago. It’s funny, I stopped playing soccer and I realized I wasn’t like gonna go pro or anything. I kind of just fell out of love with it. And I was making music a lot by then. It became something I was working on more than soccer and more than school and more than everything else. So I just kind of like veered into that and went into the music business. 

 

When did you start writing/producing music?  

 

Caleb: I started posting songs towards the end of 7th grade. It started off with a karaoke microphone I bought from Walmart. I was just recording acapellas, I didn’t have any beats or anything up until somebody told me I probably should have. I was like, “Oh yeah, that’s facts.” Let me do that. Yeah, it went up from there.  

 

Do you prefer rapping or singing?  

 

Caleb: I definitely prefer rapping. I mean, I chose rap because whenever I was a kid, that was a lot of what my mom listened to was like 90’s rap and 90’s R&B. So I’ve always listened to Lauryn Hill, Nas, Big L. She loved Biggie, Tupac, all the big ones. She loves Houston rappers, too, like Scarface, and R&B like Destiny’s Child. So I grew up on that.  

What is your creative process like? 

 

Caleb: I kinda throw myself at a brick wall, like, it could be days, it could be weeks, but I’m always trying to make something. Recently, I’ve been doing the production part or aspect, so it’ll start off with me making a beat. I’ll probably just make like 10 beats until one feels good, and I feel like it’s hitting me with some inspiration or something I feel like I could write to. Then that’s whenever I just lock in on writing and getting my verses down. Normally, during the time I write my verses, I find the chorus.  

 

What’s your favorite part about making music?  

 

Caleb: I think it’s the writing, because I started off with writing poetry, so I’ve always been a writer more than anything. So yeah, it’s finding those pieces to the puzzle. That’s what I love. Everything else is cool, too. I love every part of it, every aspect of this, but writing is my number one favorite.  

 

What do you like to write about? 

 

Caleb: Just what’s going on. I try to put whatever experiences I’m having into my music. So if I’m going through a bad time, I’ll write about bad times. If I’m going through a good time, I’ll write about good times. If I’m going through a mid-time, I’ll write about a mid time. So it’s just about what I’m going through. 

 

Is there a song that means a lot to you personally?  

Caleb: The first one that comes to mind is “Grief,” it’s from the legacy project, the entirety of it means a lot to me because it was around the time my great-grandma passed. She was an idol to me and my siblings, my mother, so big influence in my life and inspiration, and whenever she passed, I took it very hard. I ended up writing that project about it, and it definitely got me through a lot.   

Tell me about your past projects.  

 

Caleb: So I have the Dad EP, which was my first project, and you can definitely tell I was in 8th grade. I was just having fun. Same thing for We Be Partying, that was like my freshman year. And then I had Legacy, which is kind of whenever I started to develop, and I started getting a style and being comfortable with my voice and flow, and everything. The most recent one was So Funny, which was like, I got into that kind of like fun, just playing around, poppy vibe. And then “Spotlight” was also just for fun. 

 

If you could collaborate with any musician, who would it be?  

 

Caleb: I would definitely work with La Reezy, even if I were just in the studio working with him.  

 

What’s your current take on the music industry?  

 

Caleb: I think we’re in a very interesting time. Ever since the Soundcloud era, kinda like everybody has an opportunity to blow up. You see 14-year-olds blowing up on TikTok every day, posting tracks. You see grown men who have lived a life, and now their touring because of one video. So it’s really exciting in that regard. But I think the whole streaming thing is becoming a bubble that’s gonna be popped because there are so many independent artists now, it’s shifting from labels to independent. So if you’re an independent artist who’s not selling merch or not going on tour, the only way you can make money is off of streams, and you don’t get money from streams. So, I think that will be interesting to see what direction we go with that. I think there’s that saturation of so many new artists, and there’s just more and more music, so there’s gonna be less and less money. So it will be interesting to see how it works out; it’s exciting.  

 

What are you working on right now?  

 

Caleb: We were working on my first self-produced project. We were working on a single today because I didn’t have enough time to work on the whole thing. It pretty much all sampled hip-hop tracks. It’s kind of like a recreation of We be Partying, my old EP. It’s not really similar at all besides vibes. So, I’m trying to recreate that because I’ve been taking myself a little bit too seriously recently. 

 

What does music mean to you?  

 

Caleb: It’s everything. I know that’s corny, but whenever you love something so much, it’s your everything. I wake up in the morning, and I think about it. I’ll bump into something and I’ll be like, “Oh, I need to sample that.” I’m always thinking about it. It’s never out of my mind. Without music, my life would amount to nothing.  

 

Talking to Caleb left me feeling inspired. He is so passionate and dedicated to his craft.  His genuineness shines in conversation and in his music. Every lyric he writes feels intentional, reflecting his personal experiences and creative vision. Caleb is finalizing his first self-produced project, which will be out late October or early November. I’d definitely recommend keeping up with his journey and giving his music a listen – it’s just the beginning for Apollo281.  

 

Instagram: the._.Apollo281 

YouTube: Apollo281-Topic 

Spotify: Apollo281 

Soundcloud: Apollo281 

Apple Music: Apollo281