Today we’d like to introduce you to Kyle McCammon.
Hi Kyle, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’m a songwriter, producer, artist and independent label owner based out of DTLA. I got my start as a touring bass player. Then, I got more involved in the musical direction side of things by incorporating Ableton and production into live performances. From there, there was a natural progression into the studio.
Some of my songwriting and production work started landing in film/tv, on playlists, on tastemaker radio stations like KCRW and my career has been growing from there. As a member of the duo Lean, I started really getting into the label side of things by putting out our music. Lean-To Records was created to have a place to move our catalog and I’ve found that I love this aspect of music as well.
I have a passion for music and that passion never really stops evolving. Lately, I’ve been focusing on building the label, my producer project, Plus, as well as continuing to write and produce for all sorts of projects. I’m finding that I’m enjoying connecting with artists on release strategies, marketing plans or social media campaigns as much as I enjoy getting to the bottom of who they are as an artist or why it is they make art. It all feels ever-evolving and I hope that this journey never stops.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Almost nothing about my experience in the music industry has followed a linear path. Whenever I’ve made a plan or had an idea of what was going to happen, without fail, something other than what I had in mind came out of it.
Here’s a great story to illustrate what I mean. When I had just moved to LA, I went to a recording session as a bassist and it might have been one of the most disorganized days that I’ve witnessed in the studio but Stephen Johnson, who I ended up starting Lean with, was there. We have since made lots of great music together and I’m excited about our musical connection to this day.
Lean was out on a short west coast tour when venues started shutting down in March of 2020. While some things came to a halt and it hasn’t been a smooth road since then, I have been fortunate in some ways. I’ve seen some of my music get used in shows, started a project of my own under the moniker Plus and have started to understand what’s important to me in my career and my life in general.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As a songwriter and record producer, I love to find out about an artist and dive into their world, help them discover what it is they want to say and get them to where they want to go. I’m getting known for making things that are authentic and honest to themselves.
As an artist, I’m really excited and proud of what I’m doing under my moniker Plus. I’m purposefully melding genres to create something that’s edgy yet still listenable. It’s been incredibly empowering to build something that can say what I want rather than solely helping someone else express themself. But, at the same time, having that outlet frees me up to be better at doing my job as a producer.
The other aspect of what I do is being an independent label owner. I feel like that helps the other two in so many different ways. In that capacity, I’m looking at how to get music heard. I get ask myself, “what do people want to hear and where do they discover it?”
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
From young age, I’ve always marched to the beat of my own drum. I was a bright young kid but struggled in school because I didn’t fit neatly into any box. At one point, my school was even talking with my parents about sending me to a gifted program. That ultimately didn’t end up happening but what did was that I got hooked on music. I begged my parents for a guitar and finally got my hands on one at age seven. Almost everything that’s taken place in my life since has been a result of that initial spark.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.kylemccammon.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/kylemccammon
- Twitter: twitter.com/kylemccammon
- Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCw97iean1_FtQghBiRgmjIQ
- SoundCloud: https://m.soundcloud.com/pluswashere
- Other: www.leantorecords.com, Instagram.com/pluswashere, twitter.com/pluswashere, https://www.tiktok.com/@pluswashere
Image Credits
Photos by Anna Azaroff, Brandon Sheer and Davy Greenberg.
