ARTIST SPOTLIGHT ~ KIDD SNOOZE

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Artist Spotlight is a segment that we started to introduce our listeners to some deserving up and coming artists/ bands. They have made an impact on us for all of the right reasons. We think they kick ass and we hope you do too! Today, we’d like to shine the spotlight on Kidd Snooze!

Finding Kidd Snooze was a total accident. I was getting ready for bed, scrolling through Tiktok like I do every night when I accidentally clicked into the live feeds.
Maybe I’m too old for the app, but I’d never really been been interested in the live streams. They had always seemed to be filled with either incredibly entitled-acting, wannabe influencers OR regular people being incredibly boring and doing everyday things. Either way, both types of chat seemed to be all about how much money and/or gifts the star of the stream could harvest without actually caring about the people gifting them. And as a viewer, I didn’t see the appeal.

However, I stuck around the feed. I was bored and maybe someone would prove me wrong. So I randomly stopped on a streamer, and put my phone down so I could listen to something while I brushed my teeth. But before I knew it, I was listening to a guy’s voice that somehow sounded chill and energetic at the same time. He was funny and deep. Young and intelligent. Confident and yet also seemed very sincere in what hesaid. Also, a bonus! He had some really great music in the background I had never heard before. So, I decided to stick with the entertaining kid. And funny enough, his screenname was Kidd. Kidd Snooze. What started as a random stop soon turned into me being really invested in this cool, 22-year-old streamer. I found out that the interestingly higher (yet raspy) voice and vibey lo-fi indie/ rock meets grunge/rap music in the background was actually his, which was awesome enough. But the artist’s aura was the cherry on top. Unlike other make me viral” bedroom-popstars that the pandemic had created, this dude didn’t ignore his viewers and expect them to pay him for the honor of viewing his mundaneness. He was interested in fans’ opinions on his songs, their ideas for song names, and getting to know them. He had hundreds of viewers (and thousands of followers on all social media platforms), but the young man seemed determined to answer each and every one of his commentators (including me when I asked about his music and writing)! And not only answer, but answer with a smile or small laugh to let them know he was happy to be chatting with all of them. That was it. This kid seemed like the real deal and had a personality to boot. I decided to shoot my writer’s shot and comment, asking about an interview. It took a minute for him to see the request due to the number of comments he had, but he eventually smiled and agreed to give me a one-on-one. Yay me! So through a series of genuinely nice and still-energetic Instagram messages (ex: his messages: “Awesome!! Super excited, and I appreciate you!!”), and becoming a fan of his on Spotify, I got to know Kidd, and the story behind all that is Snooze. Let me say, I’ve never been happier to have randomly watched a live feed ever since.

We’re superhero nerds here at I’m Music Magazine. Every superhero or villain has an origin, and a band is no different (minus the radioactive spiders and secret government experiments). What is the origin of the power behind Kidd Snooze?

The origin of Kidd Snooze begins when I was younger, writing music in school just to pass the time. It always was a distraction for me, even at a young age, but it helped me escape. I lost my father at age 11, due to a brain aneurysm. It was completely random, no one saw it coming. He was my best friend, and that definitely took a huge toll on me as a kid. It pretty much launched me into this depression, and I didn’t have a dad when I needed one the most. At that age, I feel like every boy needs a father figure. My mom raised my sister and me as a single mom after that. That is probably one of the reasons I found music. It was one of the only things I had that would take my mind off it (the depression). I bought a microphone for the first time at 19 years old, and started to teach myself how to produce, and engineer my music. I am completely self-taught, so every song I release has been engineered, written, and produced by me. Best 90$ I ever spent in my life. Eventually, I graduated school and started working a normal 9-5 job at a grocery store. I worked there for about a year and a half, and I hated every minute of it. I remember looking at co-workers who had worked there for over 20 years, and I couldn’t fathom how they did it. I decided I was going to push my music out there. So, I posted a couple of Tik Toks of me performing my music, and some of them went viral. With this newfound success, I was able to scrap up just enough money to quit my day job and focus on my music full-time. I have never made a better decision in my life. Today I’m blessed to be able to have a career, and a platform, with something that I originally started doing as an escape from my depression.

I used to just record music in my bedroom with a sock covering a 90% mic, I’ve upgraded now, but it’s crazy to think that, you don’t need much to be creative and successful. You just need to have a solid mindset that comes down to believing in yourself.

Artist names names can have a meaning or they could just be a name pulled out of a hat. So, what’s the story behind “Kidd Snooze”?

The story behind the name “Kidd Snooze” is quite interesting, actually. I was 16 when I came up with this name. “Kidd” stands for “Killing. Inner. Demons. Daily.” I played around with the meaning a lot. I eventually chose this name because I came to the realization that we all battle demons on a daily basis, and what helps me kill mine is creating music. So “Kidd” is more of a mindset about overcoming your inner demons. As for “Snooze”, everyone my whole life has called me that.

If you can tell us, without giving away too much, what are you currently working on?

I’m currently working on an up-and-coming project (EP) called I’M NOT scheduled for release in late December. It’s about my struggles with mental health, and how I overcame them. I’m also releasing a new indie pop record on Halloween.

We have to know, as an artist yourself, what are your five favorite albums?

My top five favorite albums are-

1. Xxxtentaction – 17

2. Queen – A Night at the Opera

3. Kanye West – College Dropout

4. Green Day – Insomniac

5. Linkin Park – Hybrid Theory

Almost everyone remembers their first. So, we’re curious… what was the first cd/ album that you bought?

The first cd/ album I ever purchased was probably “The Eminem Show” (if I can remember that right). I used to love his music as a kid. It always made me feel empowered. I feel like he was my first real look into emotions and music.

I’m Music Magazine Contributing Writer Bianca Rutledge