Stewart finds his way to releasing seven-track EP
A North Connel rapper has been using his love of music to combat mental health struggles throughout lockdown and tell of his journey to find himself again.
Finding My Way is the new seven-track EP from STEWXRT, known to his friends and family as Stewart McAllister, and it has already caught the attention of singer and platinum recording artist Shereen Cutkelvin, who selected the track Sunset Dreaming to play on BBC Radio’s Introducing in Scotland at the end of November.
‘Music has always meant something to me, even before
I started making it myself, and I found a great escapism in it from a young age, whether that be from making music or listening,’ said Stewart, a former Oban High School pupil who is currently studying business through New College
Stewart McAllister’s new EP has already caught the attention of BBC Introducting in Scotland.
Lanarkshire. Now aged 20, Stewart started rapping seriously at the age of 16 after sending a track he had recorded on a very bad computer microphone to local rapper Kevin Irvine (K9 Kev) and receiving some very positive feedback.
‘This gave me the confidence and belief I could actually release music and rap in a Scottish accent,’ added Stewart, ‘something that a lot of people may not be used to.’
The youngster has now been releasing music for the past three years under the name ‘S-Mac’ but has now reinvented himself as STEWXRT having got himself through one of the worst times of his life.
‘I’ve always struggled with mild anxiety and insecurity about myself but through lockdown things got progressively worse to the point where I felt I hardly knew myself and struggled to find an identity in the alienated world we’ve all become used to,’ he explained.
‘I guess when you’re at the very bottom and feel worthless the only way is up and I learned to channel all the negative emotions I had into my music and create a positive. Hopefully it will inspire others who feel the same.
‘Music has always helped with my anxiety, giving me a platform to vent how I feel.’
Finding My Way was released on November 25 with the track subjects chosen especially to sum up how Stewart has felt during the past few months.
‘The fact is I lost myself for a while and needed to find my true self again,’ he said.
‘The tracks talk about my anxiousness and uncertainty about the future, the prejudiced opinion of people around me who think it’s strange that someone from a small town like Oban wants to be a rapper and my struggle with the developing laziness and unwillingness that occurred during lockdown.’
People can access Finding my Way on all major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes and Soundcloud under the artist name STEWXRT or by clinking the link https:// linktr.ee/STEWXRT.