“The future has become the present”: Réjizz steps into 'The Era'

For Réjizz, the future is no longer something waiting around the corner. On his five-track EP The Era, the Bangkok-born rapper, singer, and producer steps fully into the world he first imagined on its predecessor, The New Era. The project captures who he is now—more visible, more assured, and increasingly aware of the pressures that arrive alongside success.

Moving through jazz-infused hip-hop, darker cinematic production, and dance-driven rhythms, The Era places Réjizz’s Thai-Funk sound in several distinct emotional worlds. Across tracks such as 'I've Been Around', 'JRIZ', 'Uncomfortable Situations', 'Long Disco Relationship', and 'In My Position', he reflects on life away from home, modern dating, industry artificiality, long-distance love, and learning to trust his own direction.

In this interview with Bandwagon, Réjizz opens up about creating his most vulnerable project yet, choosing clarity over old vices, and the artistic freedom he hopes to reach in the next phase of his journey.

The Era follows The New Era, which represented the future you were working towards. When did you realise that future had become your present?

Since I started The New Era, I wanted to touch on different styles of music. It was always part of the long-term plan to introduce the audience to a new sound I was working on, and then I cemented the idea with The Era. Now that the EP has been released, it feels like the future has become the present.

You have described The Era as your most vulnerable and “realest” project yet. What were you ready to reveal here that you could not have expressed on your earlier releases?

I was stuck in a situation where my flow state and creativity were suppressed for a long time, and my quality of life suffered because of it. This EP gave me a space to finally express those feelings.

When I was younger, I usually dealt with this by giving in to my vices. This time, I decided to go straight-edge, which gave me clarity and made my writing more vivid than ever before. I wasn’t rushing to write. I carefully chose each word and used different rhyming techniques to express my truest feelings.

 

 

 

 

 

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Each track occupies a different sonic and emotional world. What is the thread that connects all five songs and makes them part of the same era?

I’ve always touched on different sounds and universes throughout my projects, but the connecting part is who I am in that project. Réjizz is the connecting thread.

I’m no longer an underground artist trying to prove myself. It’s cool to win an award and be the first Thai artist to sign to Marshall Records, but success comes with new problems, and this project addresses that.

One thing that has been consistent throughout my projects is love. I always find a track or a verse to address that.

On 'I've Been Around', you explore the tension between pursuing the life you worked for and missing home. Has success changed what “home” means to you?

When I’m away, calling my mom or my lady gives me a sense of home for a little while. But it will always feel good to actually be back home.

Last year, I moved back to my childhood home, and that house really feels like home. So “home” to me still means going back and seeing my mom.

'JRIZ' is the EP’s only Thai-language track. Why did this story about modern dating feel most natural to tell in Thai?

A lot of Thai songs are about love anyway. I chose this track to be the most easy-listening one for a mass audience, so I wrote a love song with a slight twist.

'JRIZ' moves between male and female perspectives. How did you write from both sides while keeping each voice honest and nuanced?

At my age, my single friends are moving through the dating world fast. They rant about it to me all the time, so I wanted to use that as the premise of the song and write a verse from both the guy’s and the girl’s perspectives.

Each voice is honest because they are actual lines from friends around me.

'Uncomfortable Situations' transforms the guests at an industry party into aliens and monsters. Was that imagery inspired by a specific experience, or by feelings that built up over time?

The imagery was inspired by a real-life event where a lot of wealthy individuals came to this party to “network”, and a lot of talents were looking to be hired. Everyone connects on a surface level early in the night, but after a few drinks, their true colours start to show.

They say, “You can be famous if you just…” and by the time they finish their thought, it’s like they want you to change your whole identity, like you’re going to lose your soul. I believe a lot of talents change themselves to become famous.

So my analogy for these encounters is aliens and monsters that try to make you become one of them. I still encounter these situations to this day. Every time it happens, this song plays in my head.

In 'Long Disco Relationship', you compare long-distance love to two people trying to stay in step as the music shifts. In real life, what does it take to keep that connection alive?

Communication is the most important thing because it is the only thing you can do when you’re far away. Like on the dance floor, you must stick to the same rhythm to remain connected to each other.

'In My Position' addresses the different voices trying to influence your direction. How have you learned to distinguish meaningful advice from distraction?

Who the advice comes from is always crucial. If they share the same values as me and they’ve accomplished what I strive for, it makes the advice much more credible.

The ones who are a distraction are the ones who don’t align with my values. Usually, they’re trying to steer me into something I’m not.

At the end of the day, my instinct and gut feeling always tell me which one to trust. It’s like my Spidey-sense.

The Era documents who you are in the present. After completing it, what part of yourself are you most curious to explore next?

I am looking forward to the day when I reach my prime—when my working system is stable, I trust the people who work with me, and I have consistent tours. I want enough to make a living, but not so many that they drain my soul. I’ll constantly be in a flow state.

That’s when I’ll be carefree, and my music will be free to become whatever it wants.

I might want to make a trashy trap song one day, then an eloquent jazz-infused Mo Lam song the next. I’ll master English and Thai, seamlessly mixing them in my music. The ideas are unlimited.

That day is when I’ll truly take ownership of my own craft. I’ll probably name it Réjizz Mania or DOIN’ MY THANG. I don’t know—that stage is still to be explored.