Today we’d like to introduce you to Kid Kern.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
A year and a half ago, I left my hometown Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania and boarded a train that would take me all the way across the country to Los Angeles. I had just finished an associates program in Audio Engineering, and during that program I found the Los Angeles Film School where I knew I could continue my education as well as further pursue my career as an artist. In two months I will receive my bachelor’s Degree in Entertainment Business from The Film School which I am greatly looking forward to.
Aside from my interests in educating myself on this business, I had been making music with the intent of living in LA since I was 14 years old. Countless Myspace and YouTube song releases (Which no you can’t find on the internet anymore) led me on a path of trial and error that developed my skill as an artist to this day.
Back then, I received so much negative feedback and criticism on my work that it drove me with a passion to prove all my “haters” wrong one day. In my mind, the only way I’d be able to do that, would be to move to LA. One thing people from a small town never believe anyone can do; is move to a big city to succeed, especially if it’s LA. So, since the age of 14 I have been putting out content and building an audience little by little. By little by little, I mean playing shows for sometimes a crowd of 2 people, driving hours to different cities to hand out CD copies of my mixtape, and doing whatever it took to get the least bit of exposure.
Years of hustling made me become more business and tech savvy which are two traits any artist desperately needs in this industry to gain an upper hand on the competition. One thing I have realized throughout this entire journey is that no matter how much you plan and prepare to do something, the key to making it anywhere in life is to stop talking and start doing! I’ve released hundreds if not thousands of songs since I started my career, and statistically speaking, there had to be at least a few songs in that catalog that people would like. Thankfully that was the case, as now I have a much larger audience who supports me.
I owe a lot of credit to my former camera man, Joshua Pearce, who taught me the importance of branding. If you’re an artist, you must think of yourself as an entire brand and not just an artist. Another important aspect of the music industry that I’ve learned, is that it’s a business, not a show and tell performance. Aside from just making music, visual content whether it be music videos or even throwing photos on Instagram are key elements to success in this business.
Aside from working in the music industry, I’ve also been working full time at different restaurants throughout this process, which is another passion of mine, I’m currently helping manage a restaurant in Hollywood while preparing for 2018 to be my craziest year yet. I plan to release more music and play more shows in this year than I have in any other years I’ve been doing this. I still have a very long way to go, but little by little everything will fall into place.
Has it been a smooth road?
Once I got to LA, I moved into an apartment with 3 people whom I had never met or ever even seen before. (It was the cheapest option) Using the law of attraction to my advantage, one of my roommates happened to be someone who I started working with immediately. Shortly after I met my roommate, AleXandersWrld, I met another friend Andrew Bensley and soon enough, us three formed a trio and started touring across the country. We completed two successful nationwide headlining tours within 5 months.
I’d be lying if I said it was a smooth road the whole way. However, one thing I learned from it all was how to properly manage time. Working a full-time day job, while going to school, making and mixing music, playing other shows, while booking dates for the next tour was hectic especially when you don’t have a quiet headspace to go home to.
So, after the last tour we did in April, I moved into my own spot where I have been reflecting on mistakes I made during the last couple tours and going forward how to correct those mistakes and appeal to an even bigger audience. Some time away from the flashing lights to focus on work in the studio has been very beneficial for me.
I’ve been living alone for almost a year now and this month I will be moving into a new apartment with my girlfriend as I prepare for upcoming work I will partake in this year.
So, let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Kid Kern story. Tell us more about the business.
I am a Pop/Hip-Hop Artist. I write, record, and engineer my music as well as perform it. I also have a mixing business where I am an audio engineer for a large cliental of talented artists.
I feel a lot of people ignore the science of audio engineering and how important the sonics of any song are. Therefore, I am proud to be a mixing engineer, because to me that’s just as important as the writing process.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I see myself doing exactly what I’m doing now except on a much larger scale. I’d love to have multiple songs that generate over 10,000,000 streams, including songs I engineer for other artists, within the next 5 years as well as the ability to headline my own tours as I please.
Within the next 10 years, I’d like to be 100% financially free and easily be able to provide for my family off music alone. I’d also love to open a restaurant of my own within that time frame.
Pricing:
- Mixing 1 song: $25
- 16 bar verse feature on 1 song: $200
- Instagram Influencing/Promo: Email [email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kidkern.com/
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekidkern/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thekidkern
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kid_Kern
- Yelp: https://www.youtube.com/c/kidkern
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/70XTYR9oWnzqDavaWdxzBx
Image Credit:
Michael Webb, Joshua Pearce, Mikee Lansangan
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