Artist, producer and singer Husse says his clothing and music brand Suga Wota was inspired by his mother.
“When my mother was younger, they were poor so they couldn’t afford fruit juice, so they would mimic fruit juice by mixing sugar and water,” Husse said. “So the philosophy or the idea behind Sugar Water, is that me and Machel don’t come from well off, either, but we’re trying to show that we can experience the same sweetness, or the same joy even without resource.”
Husse’s Suga Wota partner, Machel, recently graduated from fashion school, and the duo dropped their first pieces at the end of 2024. The ethos behind Suga Wota is to create an aesthetic focused on artisanal making, he said.
“Traditional making and traditional consumerism is the punk-rock of modern capitalism, to stray away from modern buying or fast fashion which is a net negative to anything that matters,” he said.
Everything Husse wore growing up was considered “safe,” he said, whether that was a Nike sweatshirt or sweatpants. He began making his own money and buying clothes to express himself, and quickly realized a lot of expression that is out there is through fast fashion.
“That’s really not even a way to express,” Husse said. “That gives you like, four options to express. There are four looks, feelings. I just wanted to find something good, where the impact of everything is good.”
Growing up, Husse played bass in his church; his junior year of high school, he began recording and making beats. During his senior year, he would go home during off periods and sing because nobody was at the house.
Before graduating, he befriended fellow creative Amari, whose stage name is Saint Deon. Husse mastered Amari’s album, “Nobody in Heaven,” and helped with the title track.
“I’ve always just wanted to serve something, in this perspective it was serving dreams or art, or whatever you want to call it,” Husse said. “I wanted to make good things. I knew that I had a talent for making things that could be good — they’re usually not good — but they could be.”
Husse went to Fairbanks to attend college, but would spend all day making songs instead of doing his schoolwork. He dropped out in 2021 to pursue music, and says he’s still working with friends on producing their projects or making songs — including Zane Penny and Cariño — who Husse traveled the pacific northwest with last summer for their “A KID FROM ALASKA” tour. He also recently produced Ashley Young’s EP.
“I like messaging,” Husse said. “I like irony. Just my personality, I’m not very direct, and I think that’s because of my upbringing. I was an immigrant, my parents — so I didn’t know how to be direct. Once I learned the language and learned the culture and everything, that made me still go back to how I always would as a child, just nondirect.”
I think that’s why I love art,” Husse continued. “Instead of having to say or express myself in a normal way, I can do whatever I want and put it into the music.”
Husse’s music can be streamed on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music and Amazon Music.
Sam Davenport is a writer residing in Anchorage. She's a leo and a plant-person, and loves spending quality time with her dog, Aspen. She is a Real Housewives fan and has been called a Bravo historian.
