Badda Skat Interview: Inspiring Roots Reggae

Last Updated on December 6, 2023

Aaron Ugosmith, publicly known as Badda Skat, is one of St. Petersburg, Florida’s reggae sensations, among an already growing music scene statewide.

Badda Skat’s roots reggae style brings an inspiring message of spiritual consciousness that’ll stay with you beyond the time he leaves the stage. To know him, is to love him. His music and his out of the box way of thinking will challenge you in the most positive ways.

Badda Skat recently took the time to chat with our team about his life and upcoming plans. Here’s what he has to say:

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: For those who haven’t yet heard of you, can you please tell is a little about yourself, your musical style and any other fun facts?

Badda Skat: Greetings in the name of the Most High! My name is Badda Skat, and I was born and raised in Tampa, Florida. I produce and perform original, conscious, reggae music. But really, I’d say my musical style is always growing, and I do all different styles of music, so I focus on the music just being conscious and providing a positive message for the people.

I also DJ, and represent a sound system called Dub Shot Hi Fi, based out of St. Petersburg. Lately, I’ve really been into producing new music, and produced all of the music on my latest EP, Mi Jacaranda. I’m a new dad, have two dogs, and cook about 90 percent of the food we eat. I enjoy gardening, carpentry, cycling, camping, and pretty much anything having to do with the outdoors, or spiritual advancement…in a nutshell.

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: Was music a part of your life growing up?

Badda Skat: I have always been attracted to music, but I do not come from a musical family. No one else in my family plays any instruments or performs any music professionally. It’s always been a part of my life though. I’ve always been into lyrics, deep bass, and heavy drums. I played the alto saxophone in 6th grade. Taught myself guitar in high school, and bought my first electric bass when I was 19. In 2000 I started producing tracks.

I wrote my first song in 2001. In 2006 I wrote, recorded, and released my first album (Grass Roots) and performed my first live shows, both in Florida and out of state. I continued to perform solo or with backing bands until I formed my own band in 2014. We’ve been traveling and performing since! Give thanks!

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What’s your writing process like?

Badda Skat: It’s usually pretty fast. I draw inspiration from everything, so I usually have something that I want to talk about already when I sit down to write. It’s not always planned though, sometimes something will come to me and I’ll need to write it down on anything I can find, or as a last resort, put it into my phone. Even if I do start lyrics on my phone, I will still write them out when it comes time to record.

I always like to have that connection between physically writing what I intend to put out verbally. I like to have the track for a little while before I write to it, and feel the energy that it has within it as well. Many times that will direct the content of the song. I feel many of the songs write themselves, and I am just here to deliver them. I’m really just an instrument here to do conscious, positive works.

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: How do you decide which songs go into your compilations and which don’t?

Badda Skat: Whatever feels best will end up on the album. All songs have a message within them, and that message is not always the easiest to decipher. Those songs may not be as quick to end up on the album. I want people to walk away from a performance, or from listening to an album, and know that they have received something with positive intentions. The more you see a live show, or the more you listen to the album, the more you will hear within it.

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What have been your most unusual/strangest experiences while on tour or during a show?

Badda Skat: Ha. We once performed after a Rod Stewart cover band. He killed it, and his fans loved him. They were dancing on the tables and everything. Once we started, the place cleared out faster than I’ve ever seen! We also had a high speed chase zoom past us while on the road.

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What do you miss the most when you’re on tour?

Badda Skat: Home cooked food. Good food is important, and you can only find so much at gas stations and rest stops.

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AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What personal hobbies do you enjoy when you’re home or off the stage?

Badda Skat: I try to grow as much of my own food as possible. Since my son has been born, that’s been a little more difficult to do, but I’m still trying. I also enjoy cycling and host a monthly casual ride here in St. Pete called Casual Thursday. I like to build things, and create other forms of art as well.

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What advice would you give up and coming artists?

Badda Skat: NEVER GIVE UP! If what you want to do is be a professional musician, then nothing will stop you. Nothing. You only fail when you decide to quit trying.

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What is the greatest advice you’ve ever received that has helped you in your career?

Badda Skat: Well, I believe that any advice can be good advice, depending on how you apply it to your life. I was once told that to become a successful musician was a “one in a million chance.” I used that as motivation to push me so that I could prove them wrong, and I’m still here making music today!

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: What’s in store for the near future?

Badda Skat: I’m always working on new projects! I’m not even sure where to start. We are building our live show and have added some brand new songs to the set. Be sure to catch us at an upcoming festival and hold a vibe! I’m working on incorporating more live production into my DJ sets to expand the reggae DJ realm. There are a lot of things in the works. Stay tuned!

AltWire [Omayra Lopez]: Is there a message you would like to send to your fans and our readers?

Badda Skat: We are in a very exciting time! The consciousness of humanity is shifting and opening up to the realization that we are all connected in this thing called creation. We are all versions of the Creator here to experience itself. Once we are all conscious of our true nature, we begin to live our lives to their greatest potential.

This is true for everyone, regardless of your race, religion, nationality, etc. We have the ability to manifest our reality before us, and the more we can do so to help others, the more we are actually helping ourselves. All of the answers to all of the questions in the universe are within you! Give thanks and praise!