Filipino rapper Gloc-9, whose real name is Aristotle Polistico, just dropped his newest album, Sari-Sari Story, on all available streaming platforms.

Consisting of ten songs which highlights different stories that the ordinary people can relate to and visualize themselves into, the talented rapper shared what drove him to write the songs.

“To begin, ako ay chismoso talaga. Nilalatag ko lang through artistry (iyong kuwento). Totoo iyon na mahilig ako sa mga kuwento, depende sa narinig ko, napanood ko, nabalitaan ko or pwede sa experiences ko rin,” Gloc-9 said when asked what were his inspirations for writing his new album.

During the intimate media conference on Thursday, June 20 at Tower Doom in Quezon City, the rapper, together with his producer Raymund Marasigan of OPM band Sandwich, let the media listen to the album ahead of its release date.

Starting off with songs about dreams and hard work, Gloc-9 gave a slower tempo and relatable stories for listeners to enjoy. In the middle part of the track list, the rapper explained in more detail about his songs “Sagip” and “Tinda Ni Linda.”

“Mas interesting. Kapag medyo you tried to look for an interesting topic to write about, ganoon na ako kadesperado,” Gloc-9 said.

Gloc-9 also expressed that the title of his new album also helped him fill in all the other stories-turned-to-songs on the list.

“Ang inspirasyon ko sa album ay parang title na rin. Pinilit namin ni Kuya Rayms na ma-identify yung title ng album… Mas naging madali for me paano ko siya nalatag ng ganoon,” he said.

He added: “Mas madali for me to write songs under the umbrella of Sari-Sari Story, na mas mag-isip ng iba't ibang kuwento so parang may mas uniformity na sa pagpili namin ng topic.”

Gloc-9 also expressed his amusement on the last song, “Idol”, which features other rappers such as G Clown, Ramdiss, and Hero.

As per the veteran rapper, he collaborated with the other artists to write their verses for the song and the song was actually about themselves.

“Yung Idol, isa sa favorite ko iyan na medyo prinessure ko sina Hero, Ramdiss, tsaka G-Clown to perform pagdating sa pagsusulat. Sobrang gagaling ng mga (ito),” Gloc-9 expressed.

“I’m very proud na nakasama niyo ako sa kanta, na makita ko yung pag-evolve niyo as writers. Magagaling na rapper talaga (iyang mga iyan) pero gusto kong ma-practice nila yung pagsusulat,” he said.

Meanwhile, Gloc-9 also shared how happy he is to be still working with Raymund even after many years. He also revealed that it just took them six weeks to complete the album before he flew to Australia for a tour.

READ: Rapper Gloc-9 says ‘Sirena’ is a very personal song for his gay son

“Walang mahirap kasi. Kaya naappreciate ko si Kuya Raymund kasi very honest siya sa directions na gusto kong puntahan ko para sa mga songs. Lagi niya akong sinasabihan kapag may naisip siya na lalo ko na-appreciate, Gloc-9 said.

He went on: “Ang tagal ko nang hindi nagsusulat ng kanta na mayroon parang yung feeling na may respected teacher na kasama… Mayroon kang exam sa teacher mo na nirerespeto mo so kailangan mo galingan. Ang tagal ko nang sumuslat ng taon na, siguro halos sampung taon na rin na sumusulat ako ng kanta na ako lang sumusunod. (Kaya) mas naappreciate ko yung feeling na para akong estudyante ulit.”

With such a wide impact in the music industry even after several years, Gloc-9 shared that his only goal now is to write songs that he would love and share with others.

“I think kapag umabot ka na above 45, hindi mo na iniisip iyon, medyo may stable ka na, mas sa iyo yung artistry. Kahit naman noon, although noon mas mahigpit ako sa sarili ko. Ngayon ang goal is to write songs that I love, that we love na kapag okay sa amin, anything after that bonus na lang. Iyon lagi ang goal. Makasulat kami, makaproduce kami ng output, kanta na trip namin para kaya naming ilako,” he remarked.