Scott Griffiths, better known by the stage name Optamus, is one of the MCs of the

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

-based Australian

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

group

Downsyde Downsyde is an Australian hip hop group from Perth, Western Australia. The group is composed of three members, Optamus, Dazastah and Dyna-Mikes. The group has performed alongside groups including Jurassic 5, Cypress Hill, Grandmaster Flash, T ...

and member of WA's Syllabolix Crew. Optamus is also the name of Griffiths' solo project.

Music career

Downsyde

Griffiths with fellow Craigie Senior High School classmate Shahbaz Rind (Dyna-mikes ) founded

in 1996. It was the following year that they released a demo cassette ''Behind the Bucket'' which topped the independent charts within a week of its release. Optamus and Dyna-mikes met their third and last MC and producer, Darren Reutens Dazastah at Leederville

TAFE Technical and further education or simply TAFE () is the common name in Australia for vocational education, as a subset of tertiary education. TAFE institutions provide a wide range of predominantly vocational courses. Colloquially also known ...

. The group further expanded adding Damien Allia (DJ Armee), Mathew Cheetham (Cheeky) on bass guitar and keyboard together with Salvatore Pizzata (Salvatore) on drums to form Downsyde. In 2000 they released their debut album, ''

Epinonimous ''Epinonimous'' is the debut album released by the Australian Hip Hop group Downsyde. Although Downsyde are now quite well known throughout Australia, this album is hard to get hold of. It was released in September 2000. Track listing All songs ...

'', this was followed by ''

Land of the Giants ''Land of the Giants'' is a one-hour American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for two seasons, beginning on September 22, 1968, and ending on March 22, 1970. The show was created and produced by Irwin Allen. ''Land of the G ...

'' in 2003 and ''

When the Dust Settles ''When the Dust Settles'' is the third full-length album from Australian hip hop group, Downsyde and was released in December 2004 through Obese Records. It was produced by band members Optamus, Dazastah, Cheeky and Armee. All tracks were rec ...

'' in 2005. The group went into hiatus for three years before releasing '' All City'' in 2008.

2010 onwards

As well as being a skilled MC, Griffiths is a producer. As well as working on beats for Downsyde, he has produced for many Australian acts, including

Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...

Drapht Paul Reid, formerly Paul Gary James Ridge, (born 4 September 1982), better known by the stage name Drapht, is an Australian hip hop artist from Perth. Drapht is a member of the Syllabolix (SBX) crew, a collective that includes fellow Perth-base ...

and Bias B. As of 2010 he was running his own local independent label, Opt Shop Records. Optamus released his debut solo album ''Forever & A Day'' on 12 June 2010. Optamus is also the name of his group, a trio with keyboardist Chris 'Imposter' Foster and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Jongsma (Moondog). The album includes a number of guest artists including Hunter, Trials (

Funkoars The Funkoars are an Australian hip hop act from Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The group is part of the Certified Wise crew of hip hop artists from South Australia (including the Hilltop Hoods, and Vents), who also collaborated on variou ...

, Hau (

Koolism ''Koolism'' is an Australian hip hop duo originating from Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The members are lyricist Hau Latukefu (born Langomi-e-Hau Latukefu, 1976, Queanbeyan, Australia) and producer/DJ/musician Danielsan Ichiban (born ...

), Downsyde and

MC Layla Layla Rose Hanbury (born 5 October 1982), known mononymously as Layla, is an Australian hip hop singer-songwriter and MC from Perth. In January 2005 she released her debut solo album, ''Heretik'', on Obese Records. She is a member of Syllabolix ...

. Optamus previewed the album to a sold-out home crowd (Rosemount Hotel W.A) and a tour through the southwest in June 2010. ''Forever and A Day'' went on to sell 3500 copies from his website. "Lookaround" became a

Triple J Triple J is an Australian government-funded national radio station founded in 1975 as a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It aims to appeal to young listeners of alternative music, and plays far more Australian conten ...

single and they toured Australia extensively. A second album, ''A Hero's Concerto'', was released on 20 September 2019. In November 2022, Optamus collaborated with other First Nations artists

Emma Donovan Emma Donovan (born 1981) is an Aboriginal Australian singer and songwriter. She is a member of the renowned musical Donovan family. She started her singing career at age seven with her uncle's band, the The Donovans, Donovans. In 2000, she became ...

Emily Wurramara Emily Wurramara is an Indigenous Australian singer and songwriter. At the 2024 ARIA Music Awards, she won the ARIA Award for Best Adult Contemporary Album, making her the first Indigenous woman to ever win in this category. Early life Emily W ...

, Drmngnow, and DOBBY to create a song in memory of

Cassius Turvey Cassius Turvey was a 15-year-old Aboriginal Australian boy who was assaulted on 13 October 2022 in Perth, Western Australia, and died ten days later of his injuries. His death sparked vigils and rallies across Australia and internationally. Four ...

, a

Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian people who live in the South West, Western Australia, south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton, Western Aus ...

Yamatji Yamatji (or Yamaji) is a Wajarri word that has at least two different meanings: * a member of the Wajarri people * any Aboriginal Australian from the Murchison region of Western Australia. Yamatji peoples were involved in a large native tit ...

boy who had died at the age of 15 the result of an assault by a random attacker when walking home from school in

, Western Australia. The song, titled "Forever 15", was played at Turvey's funeral on 18 November 2022 funeral and released three days later on 21 November 2022.

Other activities

Griffiths also conducts workshops for African immigrants and Aboriginal youth.

Discography

Downsyde

* ''Behind the Bucket'' – Independent (1997) demo cassette * ''

'' – Syllaboliks (September 2000) * ''

'' – Hydrofunk/

Virgin Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereof ...

(HF 30) (March 2003) * ''

'' –

Obese Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classified as obese when ...

(OBR026) (December 2004) * '' All City'' – Illusive Records (ILL014CD) (4 October 2008) * '' ClassicILL'' MGM / Shakedown Records 2018

Optamus

* ''Forever and a Day'' – Opt Shop (SBX023) (12 June 2010) * ''A Hero's Concerto'' – Opt Shop (SBX028) (12 Oct 2019)

Production

;Downsyde * ''Behind The Bucket'' – Yirra Yaakin (1997), whole album * ''Epinonimous'' – Syllabolix MGM (2000), tracks 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10 When The Dust Settles * ''All City'' – Illusive (2009), tracks 1, 2, 5, 9, 10, 11, 13 ;Clandestien * ''Clandestien'' – Syllabolix (2001), track 4 ;

* ''Done DL'' – Syllabolix (2002), tracks 11, 16, 18 * ''Culture of Kings II'' –

(2002), disc 1, track 2 ("Jam Roll") ; Matty B * ''The Courageous LP'' –

(2002), track 7 * ''Culture of Kings III'' – Obese (2003), track 1 ; Bias B * ''In Bed With Bias'' – Wordburner (2004), tracks C1, D3 * ''Been There Done That'' – Obese Records (2007), track 9 ;

* ''Culture of Kings III'' – Obese (2004), disc 1, track 1 ("Misunderstood") ;Fdel * ''Audiofdelity'' – Invada Records (2005), track 8 ;Hunter * ''Going Back to Yokine'' – Obese Records (2006), track 15 ;Omni * ''Batterie'' – NatAural High Records (2007), tracks B1-B3

Awards

* 2003 Australian Dance Music Awards – Nominee – Best Hip-Hop act2003 DMA Nominations
/ref> * 2003 Australian Dance Music Awards – Winner – Best Debut Artist * 2003 Australian Dance Music Awards – Nominee – Best Album – ''Land of the Giants'' * 2003 Australian Dance Music Awards – Nominee – Best Single – "Gifted Life" * 2003 Australian Dance Music Awards – Nominee – Best Australian Hip Hop Act * 2003 WAMi Awards – Winner – Most Popular Local Original Urban Music Act2003 West Australian Music Industry Award Winners
* 2003 WAMi Awards – Winner – Most Popular Local Original Music Video – "El Questro" * 2003 WAMi Awards – Winner – Most Popular Original Local Album – ''Land of the Giants'' * 2005 WAMi Awards – Winner – Best Live Electronic Act
* 2005 WAMi Awards – Winner – Best Urban Music Act * 2006 WAMi Awards – Winner – Best Urban Music Act * 2007 WAMi Awards – Winner – Best Urban Music / Hip Hop Act * 2008 WAMi Awards – Winner – Best Urban Music / Hip Hop Act
*2016 WAM Song Of The Year - Buridya Mob - produced and facilitated by Optamus *2017 WAM World Category - Akolkol Dastan Gesa produced and facilitated by Optamus *2019 WAM Song Of The Year Runner Up- Kya Kyana - Lyrics by Flewnt and Graham Dixon produced by Optamus and Inspired by Robert and Selina Eggington (Dumbartung) *2019 WAM Indigenous Category- Kya Kyana - Lyrics by Flewnt and Graham Dixon produced by Optamus and Inspired by Robert and Selina Eggington (Dumbartung) *2019 WAM Hiphop/Urban Category- Kya Kyana - Lyrics by Flewnt and Graham Dixon produced by Optamus and Inspired by Robert and Selina Eggington (Dumbartung)

Guest appearances

* 2001: "Lord of the Flies" (from Clandestien album, ''Clandestien'') * 2002: "Have a Drink With Us" (from Hunter album, ''Done DL'') * 2002: "Co-Conspiriters" (from Hunter album, ''Done DL'') * 2002: "Jam Roll" (from ''Culture of Kings II'', Hunter track) * 2005: "Dusty Fingers" (from Fdel album, ''Audiofdelity'')

References

External links

Official WebsiteOptamus Myspace PageOptamus Discogs Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Optamus Living people Australian hip-hop musicians Obese Records artists Rappers from Perth, Western Australia Year of birth missing (living people)