FROM A$AP MoB TO TUMBLR, THERE’S NO ESCAPING THIS GUy. BUT WHO IS IAN CONNOR?
Words by Lily Mercer
A lot of people have been asking “Who is Ian Connor?” How does that question affect you?
I don’t know, I just brush it off really. Do you ever give a fake job title?
Yeah all the time! It’s funny because I find stimulation in other people’s brains. So when someone asks what I do I just tell them I work for a plumbing company, mad random shit. See how they react cause they be like “I saw you do this.” Alright, if you seen me do that then that’s what I do. Do your research and put together the pieces of the puzzle yourself. Don’t ask how the puzzle is put together, do it yourself.
Does it annoy you that people want to ask that question when they’re often the people that made you famous?
Fuck no, that’s just how shit is. These people boost me up and ask what is it that you do. Don’t put me on a high pedestal then ask what it is that I do. You’re feeding into the unknown. That sucks. But, I don’t get mad. That’s just how shit is and I accept that.
Do you think people are obsessed with people they find ‘cool’, regardless of what they do?
Yeah I guess, I find shit cool so I make that a big deal. It’s just that I don’t find the norm cool or average things cool. So that’s kinda what separates me.
Do you have an icon yourself?
To be honest, for some reason I find serial killers cool. I find them really amusing and interesting. I couldn’t say a specific serial killer cause there are pros and cons for each. Serial killers and people behind the scenes. You’ve got your rap artists but at the same time you have the people with the brains that work with the artists, mentally training them. Those are the people I look up to. I wouldn’t namedrop them because I like them to remain low-key.
Do people tend to think you’re a rapper?
Yeah all the time. Producers are always hitting me up with DMs [offering beats] and then they hit me up in the open and everyone [that sees the tweet] is like “Yo!” Yeah and based on the fact that I do a lot of work with rappers, they think I rap too.
Do you ever feel to just put out a terrible song with their beats?
No, I feel like if I’d put out one song, I’d legit have a record deal the next day, because of course there’s a lot of attention in me and on me at this point in time.
What did you want to be when you were younger?
At one point in time I wanted to be a psychiatrist, then I was like ‘Fuck college, I don’t see myself doing that’. Then I wanted to be a killer for hire, like I wanted to get paid to kill people – just based on the fact that the way that I think about it is like, people die, when it’s- your time [to go] it’s your time. So if you get killed, you get killed. I wanted to see people’s reactions and have a serious talk with them before I killed them just to see how they react. That was another form of mental stimulation for me I’d say. And of course I’ve always been into fashion, so [something] in that field has always interested me, from styling to a personal shopper, whatever. All of that amuses me.
Do you plan to follow a path in design?
I would design something but I wouldn’t want to be classified as a designer or have my own line. If I did do that, it would just be something just for fun on spare time shit. But me being a ‘designer’, I design various things from lifestyles to clothing to set ups for stages and videos. But again I don’t want to be classified as a ‘designer’.
So you’d want to be a creative director?
Yeah, that’s the secret. It’s out.
How did the Wil Fry shirt come about?
Wil Fry is a fucking weirdo. The difference between me and him is, I’m awkward and he’s awkward but he’s the type of awkward that doesn’t want to be seen at all. He’d rather just troll and play all day. He’s serious and very smart but he’d rather just play. I guess he saw that in me then we just started discussing from there. And then I was like ‘Yo Wil, let’s design something’. But we didn’t know how serious it would get. We knew we were both well looked upon, but we didn’t know it would actually get to where it got. We really didn’t give that shit to nobody but friends. It was like, pay for it if you want it. It was just about time for me to do something, I was with it.
Do you have plans of what you want to do or are you just enjoying what comes day by day?
Now I take shit more seriously. But I still just do whatever the fuck I want, like I’m still going to continue to do what I want. Like contracts are on the table, but I’m just doing this other stuff for stimulation to be honest.
Do you feel like the ‘It Boy’ tag is something you want to shed?
Fuck yeah, I really don’t care for that. Like my idols [are] the people who are behind the scenes, behind the cool people. Those are the people I respect because they’re the brains, they’re the cool people. That shit you find so cool that the rapper’s wearing, that’s the ultimate brain. They have a small fan base, and that’s kids like me and the select few I chose to associate myself with because they’re in the know. That’s what I’m gonna be. I am that guy right now, but the other thing I have is that ‘It’ title. I have the attention on me.
People love the unknown.
A lot of people are obsessed with what they don’t know. They see that it’s there and they know it’s more. It’s that secret. If you know, you lose the ‘It’ factor. If you know how it’s done, you could do it yourself. It’s just like magic tricks, I’m just performing a shit load of magic tricks right now, it’s like “How the fuck is it done?” I’m like, “Nah, you’re not gonna know.” However they can assume or put bits and pieces together but you’re not gonna exactly know. Just like a lot of people are over it once they meet their idols.
Do people run up to you expecting you to be a certain way?
Yeah, they expect me to be tall sometimes. They expect me to have a deep, hood man’s voice. They expect me to be very confident and arrogant. But I’m awkward and shit. I don’t know how to react to people. Like I can read people, but when it comes to actually talking to someone or if I’m in a mood, I don’t know how to be. So I just smoke a cigarette or what comes into my mind, even if it throws them off.
Originally published in Viper Magazine’s Spring 2014 issue.
