Douglas College student follows his own beat
By Cheryl Minns, Arts Editor
Hip hop artist Teemus Supreme recently took his game to the next level when he performed in concert with several BC musicians at Venue in Vancouver. The live show was recorded and made available through Pay Per View on Rosner Management Services’ website. But at Douglas College, Teemus Supreme is known as computer science student Sumeet Jassal.
Pursuing a music career while attending college courses is no easy task, but Teemus Supreme manages to balance both while also fitting in a bit of acting on the side.
“Music is a passion of mine, so it never feels like work when I have to sit and write a song or go into the studio and record a song,” he said. “The only hard part is when exams or finals come around, then finding the time to study becomes overwhelming.”
Teemus Supreme discovered his love of hip hop music through his cousin when he was in high school.
“I was sitting in my cousin’s car and he was driving us back home. He put in a CD and played this song. When I heard it, it was music to my ears,” he said, explaining that the song was “Runnin’ (Dying to Live)” by 2Pac and the Notorious B.I.G. “Ever since then I’ve been trying to establish myself in this genre.”
Two of his favourite musical artists are 2Pac and the Notorious B.I.G., whose music has influenced his style in a variety of ways. From 2Pac’s music, he learned that every single word needs to count, and that it’s important to speak from the heart. From the Notorious B.I.G.’s music, he learned about flow and the necessity of having rhythm.
Teemus Supreme’s performance at Venue has been a big step up for his career from playing smaller gigs like open mic nights.
“Many people showed up and there were lots of performances by other artists,” he said about the concert. “I met a lot of new people, which will result in new collaborations in the near future.”
His decision to take the Computing Science and Information Systems Diploma Program at Douglas College came from his interest in writing code, building programs, and designing websites. While his education doesn’t specifically relate to his music career, it has helped his music in certain ways, such as his songwriting.
“When I had to take English classes as my electives early on, it helped me because one of those English classes was a poetry class and it made me appreciate poetry more,” he said.
Teemus Supreme is currently working on releasing his first album, attracting sponsors for his Canadian tour planned for this spring, and discussing a possible tour in India.
To learn more about Teemus Supreme, check out his official website at TeemusSupreme.com
