Planet Giza's Blueprint for the Next 100 Years
In a fusion of hip-hop, jazz, funk and soul, Montréal natives Planet Giza close out their three-part EP series with The Sky Is Recording Me: 100 Years Later, Vol. 3, setting this era of their legacy in stone.
Planet Giza in 2025. Left to right: Doom X, Tony Stone and Rami B. Image property of Aime-Elle and IGAL.
Like any group of friends, Tony Stone, Rami B and Doom X enjoy the simple things in life. They play basketball and video games together. They like to visit their favourite restaurants in Montréal, especially Restaurant Hà ("I kind of baptised that spot as our spot," Tony makes sure to tell me). They reminisce about their favourite places to go out for a good night—Fly Ladies and Apt200 in Montréal and Jumbi Peckham or Shoreditch when they visit London. Overall, Tony, Rami and Doom are pretty regular guys.
However, at the centre of the food, basketball and video games is their shared passion for music. This is what has truly built the bond of brotherhood between the trio. As a result, we are graced with the genre-blending music of Planet Giza.
The group's upward trajectory stemmed from a decade of musical collaboration. Their unique talent of creating music rooted in the influences of the Soulquarian era and the hip-hop heavyweights of the 2000s has laid a foundation for songs that incorporate the past and present with the future in mind.
Since their first drop on SoundCloud in 2013 with "Old School Convertible" and their 2019 debut project, Added Sugar, Planet Giza has been fixated on building a legacy that lasts forever. With the latest and final installation of their trilogy, The Sky Is Recording Me: 100 Years Later, the trio has laid the perfect stage to introduce the next phase of their musical journey.
Over the course of a year, Planet Giza's musical triptych has dropped in succession, keeping their audience rapt and attentive to what comes next. But as Tony makes clear in his opening monologue of Volume 1's "At Mine", the group are conscious of how their present actions are paving the way for their futures.
The Culture Crypt sits down with Planet Giza over Zoom to discuss London, legacy, their new project and all that is yet to come.
The Culture Crypt: How would you describe your relationship with London in comparison to the US?
Doom: "It's like a second home. We started coming to London when Brexit wasn't a thing, so it was easier for us to build more of a presence there compared to the US. It's really similar except for the currency exchange—every time we go to London, it digs a hole in the pocket!
But besides that, London is really sick. People are really cool and welcoming. The fact that it's a big melting pot reminds me a lot of Montréal. And it's just fun! I feel like the nightlife is just like Montréal, but on steroids. We got better food in Montréal, though, but that's about it.
It's crazy because the first time we came, I hated London—I didn't want to stay there, it was too grey. But once you get past that, it's an amazing city."
Are you guys tapped into the music scene in London as well? Do you have any favourites?
Tony: "Y'all got some talent out there, I'll tell you. Venna, obviously. Kojey Radical, Rags Originale, BenjiFlow, Oscar #Worldpeace, Nippa, Knucks."
How did you come up with the EP's title?
Tony: "The title came from just me being obsessed with legacy, being remembered, wanting Planet Giza to have a long-lasting impact. I just had this conversation with the guys where I was like, 'Yo, like a hundred years from now, this is going to be our movie. And everything we do, we have to be mindful. The sky is recording us, someone's watching us.' So that conversation stemmed into that title."
What was the thought process behind releasing the EP in three parts as a trilogy?
Rami: "It goes back to the way that people consume music. I feel like they just consume it in a week and move on. For us, we're still up-and-coming artists, we're still grinding, so we didn't think releasing a full album was the smart thing to do. At first, we were supposed to do four EPs, but we ended up combining the third and fourth into one. We were like, 'Let's just put it out piece by piece.' That was the whole strategy behind it.
We're going to release the vinyl, and it's going to be the three volumes together, so it's going to be like a full album. Everything's going to mesh well together."
Have you evolved as artists from Volume 1 to now?
Rami: "100%. It's been more than a year since Vol. 1, because we released it in September [2024]. I guess the subject matters, the sound, the vibe, everything is more mature in the third release. It's just more mature than the other two, I think."
Doom: "The subject matter got a little bit deeper. Even when it comes down to production, it was very intentional. And at the same time, it was a transition where even as people we're growing. I feel like for Vol. 3, we had to really sit down and think of how we wanted the project to be perceived. Not that we didn't do that with the other two volumes, but it got a little more serious towards the end."
Tony—as the rapper, do you feel like your bars have to speak about your collective experiences as a group, or are they more representative of your personal stories?
Tony: "The bars initially come from a personal place, but when we're in the studio together, there's just a different synergy that's created where there's a mutual understanding. They might allow me to talk about what I want to talk about, but they'll never shy away from telling me, 'Well, maybe not this line, maybe not that.'
That trust creates an energy where I'm talking from a personal space, but I'm talking for the whole group, and the whole group is standing behind what I'm saying because it's our voice. When the final product is done, it's not just me rapping; it's all of our contributions, all of our voices in one.
We've never seen a group like this before. We have three producers and one vocalist, and it just meshes so perfectly. We can all make beats, but our individual beats won't sound like a Planet Giza beat if we don't have all of our collective input into it."
“It’s been a long journey for us because we want to last for a lifetime. We want to last forever. ”
What influences you guys outside of music?
Doom: "For me, my influences are in a lot of visuals. I'm somebody who gets inspired by seeing things. So anything that has to do with movies, series, even going outside and just looking at things, I get inspired. I'm a very visual person. And also, I don't get influenced by people, but I like to hear about people's stories and just how they live and pick their brains."
Tony: "Pretty much the same thing, but mainly the living life part. When we travel, when we talk to people, we just gain experience that we get to pour back into the music. Like with movies and reading books as well. But yeah, mainly living life. I just read a book on essentialism [Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown]. I really liked that. And I also really enjoyed reading All About Love by bell hooks."
Rami: "For me, it's mostly art, painting, stuff like that. I don't really watch movies that much—I need to get on that. As far as TV shows, I have my favourite series that I always watch, like The Sopranos and The Wire. They're always about gangsters for some reason.
Honestly, I get inspiration from artists and reviews, from talking with friends and living life in general. My favourite artist right now is Jahlil Nzinga. He actually used to be in The Pack, [they were] a group with Lil B back in the day, and he's become an artist now. He does paintings and sculptures. Jahlil has been an inspiration for me so far, but most of the time I go on Pinterest and just scroll."
Rami—you mentioned that you love art. Who created the covers for the EPs?
Rami: "Nick Dillon. We found him on Pinterest and sent him a message. We told him that we like his work and asked if he's down to do the covers for us. We just sent him a picture we thought could be cool. He painted it, and like a week later, sent it back. It was really straightforward—he's really easy to work with. It fits together perfectly.
I was thinking that if I go to the store to buy a vinyl CD, I need the cover to attract my eyes. So that's how I think about our covers. Like, if I put this in a store, will people take it and look at it, or will they pass on?"
Now that you've come to the end of your trilogy, how do you feel this EP has set you up for the next phase of your music?
Doom: "It's the perfect transition because the next phase for Planet Giza will be an unrecognisable one—I feel like it's going to be our best phase yet. Don't expect anything but great music, a great message and music made with good intentions. We're about to lock in and start thinking of ideas."
Do you have a message that you want to put out there for the people?
Rami: "I don't think there's any misconceptions about us. I feel like right now in the game, people are trying to chase validity and stats and trying to do what's hype. My message is—just keep doing what you really like even if it's not the popular thing right now. You'll get good at it and maybe some day it's going to be the hype thing, and you'll be the first in line to push that."
Doom: "And especially when we live in times where everybody wants to go viral. Just do what you want to do. Just do what you love doing and bet on yourself. Stop looking at what people are doing. Just focus on yourself, focus on the craft, focus on making good music.
I think anybody could go viral if that's what they're looking for. But it's been a long journey for us because we want it to last for a lifetime. We want to last forever. We don't want to just last for a couple of months and then have people forget about us. That's not what we do it for."
Rami: "It's harder, but it's. But it's more worth it in the end."
Tony: "The guys pretty much said everything, but just to remind people that we're extremely good at what we do because we put in the time and effort to perfect our skills. So that's one thing I want to be known for. Second thing is, do not gatekeep. Stop gatekeeping us.
Say our name out loud, as much as you can. Share us with a friend, a sister or a brother—all of that. That's all I have to say."
Stream The Sky Is Recording Me: 100 Years Later, Vol. 3 below: