FRZY PERFORMS AT HEINZ HALL, NOV. 8. (PHOTOS BY J.L. MARTELLO)
No way it could happen. No way a rapper could perform with a symphony orchestra, especially not in Pittsburgh.
But on Nov. 8, 2023, it did happen. Pittsburgh born-and-raised Frzy, real name Harvey Daniels, showed everyone what “success” really looks like.
“The Glorious Succession of Frzy” was held at Heinz Hall, Downtown, an almost unimaginable collaboration between Frzy and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. For one night, the songs on Frzy’s new album, “Success,” were turned into a 90-minute orchestral arrangement with the PSO, by Pittsburgh composer/writer Christian Kriegeskotte. They had been working on it since early 2023.
Frzy performed each of the songs with his usual flair, to a diverse audience that was both young and seasoned.
“Because Heinz Hall is not known to be a Black space, it was important to kind of open that up and diversify the crowd and bring in a different culture, and also to show them (the classical world) what success is within the Black culture,” Frzy told the New Pittsburgh Courier in an exclusive interview, Dec. 12.
MYLASIA SHERRELL, FRZY, ALAYIA LOGAN
On social media, there’s this debate as to what’s more important, or what people want more—popularity, or success. Frzy decided to drop two albums at the same time; one named “Popularity” and the other, “Success.”
For Frzy, it’s all about success.
“In a line I had,” he told the Courier, “I put, ‘popularity is poppin’ bands, success is having a symphony.’”
JOY BROWN, FRZY, KATY COTTON, DELANA FLOWERS
Frzy, an Emmy Award winner, recalled watching Jay-Z performing at the Royal Albert Hall in London, complete with a full orchestra. That was in 2006, just a few years after Frzy graduated from the former Career Connections Charter High School, in Lawrenceville, in 2003.
“To me that was really a level of success; I had never seen an artist with a symphony before,” Frzy said. “And in my mind, you had to be a certain level of success to even have the conversation, especially with the Pittsburgh Symphony.”
But for Frzy, 17 years later, what Jay-Z did is what Frzy did.
“So to be able to do it and for it to be such a successful night, and fun, and Black kids dancing with White kids, old ladies dancing with boys with fitted (caps) on, it was successful for everyone,” Frzy told the Courier.
Even for Frzy, he said he had never been to a symphony performance until a few years ago. He was happy that he could expose a place like Heinz Hall to the younger crowd that attended his show.
Frzy, who also spent time in high school at Schenley and Peabody, celebrated his 38th birthday on Nov. 1, 2023. Both of his new albums, “Popularity” and “Success,” were released on his birthday.
“Popularity” is described as the showoff, the partying bottle-popper, the artist driven by views and likes, clicks and Tik Tok trends with songs one can play at the club. But “Success” describes Frzy the emcee, the writer, the poet striving for legacy and G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All-Time) status.
“With music being a universal language, I thought it was important to make sure these two albums spoke to the relevance of the music industry today, because currently people seem to think it’s better to be mentioned than defined,” Frzy said in a news release. “And last I checked, 15 minutes of fame is less than 31 hours. These albums are years in the making, and I am proud to give you my very best work. Both albums will give you a different me.”
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