I first met Wojciech ‘Lozo’ Lozowski during Season XI World Poker Tour (WPT) Prague. A random Polish player approached me and told me that it was incredible that I had not put his name into the chip counts because he was a star.
I didn’t have the heart to tell him that the reason I didn’t put him in the chip counts was the fact that I couldn’t spell his name, but the issue was forced upon me when Lozowski found his way into the business end of the game, eventually subsiding in 18th place for a $21,229 score.
Lozowski took that confidence into WPT Baden where he won a side event for $16,876 and is now a regular fixture on the European WPT circuit. During that first meeting I was told he was a ‘Polish rap sensation’ and that’s how I introduced him in the interview…a conversational starter that had him laughing.
“I’m not a rap sensation. I didn’t start off as a rapper…I am a singer. I do rap in my band – me and my co-singer – but I do a lot more than rap.”
Lozowski is the co-singer for the Polish hip-hop band Afromental. So where did it all start?
“It started nine years ago during college, a place I thought ws just wasting my time. It wasn’t what I wanted to do. It wasn’t me. I am an artist and have soul. So I dropped out of college and ever since I was a kid I have wanted to entertain people in both acting and singing.
“So I focused on starting a band and got to meet Afromental’s other singer Thomas “Tomson’ Lach. We met in college and sang and played guitar. So we tried it out and played in a bar and people loved it. That extended to playing all over college campus and we won qualifications to play at festivals and stuff. So we decided to try and form a band to play at these festivals, and we did and people loved it, so we decided to keep on rocking.”
When did their big break occur?
“We played – just for beer – for about a year, before being spotted by EMI Poland. We didn’t even have a demo, but they loved the way we performed in our live events. So we signed our deal with EMI, which was huge for us, and since then we have released three albums and performed in over 250 shows all over Poland.”
What type of musical influences underpins the soul of Afromental?
“Live Hip Hops bands. There was this Jay Z MTV Unplugged concert we loved when he played with The Roots. We loved the way they played live hip-hop so that’s where we got our inspiration. We mixed hip-hop with the RNB genre, which is fresh in Poland because we don’t have RNB in our roots. We also had musical influence from the US, which was new to Poland a decade ago. I came back from graduating High School in the US, so I brought some fresh musical ideas back with me.
“Now we mix it up with a rock n roll vibe. We have had plenty of phases. We started as a hip hop band, then got into pop, and now back into hip hop mixed with rock…plenty of energy, and I think the new album will rock the shit out of everyone.”
Lozowski is not just a singer. He is a born entertainer, starring on Dancing With the Stars, as an MTV Host and also as a judge on the talent show Must be the Music.
“I used to be a host on MTV. It ran parallel with my Afromental career. I went for an audition for an MTV host position and won it. It was really cool because my English was good after being in the States for so long so I got the opportunity to work at the MTV music awards where I talked to the likes of 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes, Depeche Mode and Justin Timberlake – they were super exciting times and totally loved it.”
“I am currently a judge on a TV talent show. The show is called Must Be The Music and it’s like the X Factor. It’s a great show and you can see how people’s lives are changing in front of your eyes. We have bands – not just singers – so the range of performers is very wide and I love that. It’s cool and fun and we have done six seasons of the show, and are starting a seventh season at the beginning of Jan. I was shocked how many very talented Polish performers we have, and there is a whole Eastern European vibe going on as well.”
So what next for Lozowski and Afromental?
“We are working on a new album and are trying to release a live DVD we performed a year ago. We are currently trying to sort out the release because we do a few covers, so it’s complicated. It was a show in front of 40,000 people and it’s going to be great when it comes out.”
