Take a dash of Kanye, a sprinkle of Jay-Z, a dollop of Lupe, and a whole lot of Chuck D – and you’ve got Jonathan ‘Mosѐ’ Mohan.

“Mosѐ is an amalgamation of a rapper just wanting to have ‘more say’. Add some French flavour to it and the first two letters of my surname, and you got Mosѐ,” he explains.

What this rapper has to say is not exactly of the same calibre of his radio-friendly counterparts. For instance, there’s not as much mention of hoes and apple-bottom jeans in his lyrics.

“Well I feel like I should not only challenge listeners ears, but I should challenge my own mind too,” he says.

Hailing from the northern suburbs of Melbourne, Mosѐ began to seriously pursue hip hop in his late teens. Even in his earliest offerings, Mosѐ’s lyrics are designed to intrigue and engage the listener rather than resort to cheap hooks.

“My writing has a deep connection in spirituality, for sure. A big foundation of my writing is looking for some sort of an answer, or even just questioning. One big game of Jeopardy, really. I like storytelling a lot, and I try to incorporate intricate stories in my writing as well,” he says.

“At the end of the day, whether it be rhymes, flows and poetry, it’s wholesome stuff.”

In his latest EP “Palace” featuring the single “Kosher”, Mosѐ continues to explore themes with deep sentiment.

“It travels on themes of my come-up, people around me, love, drugs in relationships, and just encouraging people to be the best, and not take life so tough even though it can be. Palace was really about conveying our sound and cementing it as dope on the forefront of ‘Oz’ music,” he says.

“Our sound” refers to his band Mosѐ + The FMLY (pronounced ‘family’),  which is comprised of a number of dedicated Melbourne musicians. The band is driven by Loyal Tuariki on drums, Matt Brewer on keyboard, Tash Fernando on backing vocals, Constant Voglis on bass guitar and Mose`’s partner in crime and music producer  Droopy, who also contributes sampler and guitar as part of Mose`+The FMLY.

Together, The FMLY help inject a sense of freshness into Mose`’s live shows, unlike the usual rapper and DJ combination that’s seen on the live hip hop circuit.

Along with songwriting and producing, Mosѐ also plays drums, keys and bass guitar. With such a natural inclination towards music, it’s surprising to learn that the musician doesn’t come from a particularly musical background.

“My immediate family aren’t really the most musical of people, apart from dad singing early on a Saturday morning or my mum pumping some old Indian music on a Sunday morning. What a weekend,” he reflects.

“My relatives are fairly talented playing some classic Indian instruments, but I guess I was bestowed with the most musical talent in my family.”

At only 22 years old, Mosѐ has had quite the ride already. Along with The FMLY, he has supported international heavyweights such as Naughty by Nature and Lloyd, and has also worked with musicians such as T!NO, Marcus, Markia, Brother Nature, A’Liosha, Seven Six, GMC, P.R., Sarah DeHaan, 1928 and SCNDL.

His own music has had some acclaim too. ‘Palace’, his sixth EP, was released to a host of great reviews.

The most memorable achievement was Mosѐ +The FMLY’s first US tour in late 2012.

“I felt like it was a small introduction to a huge opportunity,” he says.

“We’ve played a whole lot of sold-out shows too, which rarely happens and I guess we just keep conquering battles and moving on up.”

It’s plainly evident that what Mosѐ + The FMLY have on offer can help fill a huge gap in the hip hop market: to resurrect the genre back to its true poetic heyday.

So what does he envision for his future?

“Definitely to alter, break and create culture. There are too many blurred lines and not enough black and white. I make music for humanity, inspired by something divine,” he says.

“People need to get their emotions out of the way and just listen. Too many trivial things cloud minds, it shouldn’t be an issue.”

On that topic, it’s interesting to hear his take on a touchy issue for many rap-enthusiasts: Australian artists who rap with American accents.

“There are way too many hip-hop purists who believe nationality should define your accent or the way you act. I believe that however an artist is comfortable, or whatever sounds good, should be the ultimate winner,” he says.

“Sometimes it won’t work, and sometimes it never works, that’s when you should learn to call it a day and focus on other goals and dreams.”

“Accent debates they don’t even really matter,

We got bigger fish to fry,

Barramundi or snapper.”

He just can’t help himself.

Bess Zewdie is a Bachelor of Arts student at Monash University. You can follow Bess on Twitter: @BessMariaZ.

Check out Mosѐ+The FMLY on Triple J Unearthed: http://www.triplejunearthed.com.au/Mos or here on YouTube.