KillJoy Shares His “Self Made” Story & Gives Details On Creative Process

Intro:

UK artist KillJoy is a young upcoming star who started making music roughly 2 years ago. Hailing from Reading, KillJoy grew up in a very diverse household with a mix of cultural backgrounds between both his parents. His new “Self Made” project features 4 quality songs that showcase elite songwriting & execution. Songs like “Capricorn” & “Fantasy” are great examples of his unique approach to well-known UK sound dominating Hip-Hop worldwide today. Before reading our full conversation prior to the EP release & learning more about KillJoy below, you should check out more of him online @Killemkilljoy today!

Meet: KillJoy

Me: What made you want to get involved in the world of music at the beginning of your journey?

KillJoy: I met this girl who's a singer. She took me to this underground local event called Artist Link Up. And where I'm from Rap music isn’t too common. The only time you'd really hear inspiring rappers is when you're with bredrin and you two start freestyling. You'd more times hear a lot of Rock/Metal at clubs and bars. I remember feeling the event inspired and wanting to make my own music.

That’s a very dope background! Live music can be so inspiring. How would you describe your style of music?

My sound is ever-evolving. At the moment it's different variations of UK drill, but I wouldn't call it drill. I'm not rapping bout drilling. I'm rapping about my own life experiences. At the moment, I'm experimenting with analog sounds similar to Kendrick Lamar.

That makes sense! From there, how did you come up with your current stage name?

My ex called me a KillJoy at a motive once. I thought the name was hard.

Who are some of your favorite artists/producers/engineers you’d maybe even want to work with one day?

I mentioned earlier Kendrick Lamar, but my favorite artist is JID. His album The Forever Story really resonated with me. Especially Better Days, that song brought me to tears. I don't really have a favourite engineer but I would love to work with Sean Donoghue, who worked on Central Cee's 23 Mixtape. His mixes sound loud and almost 3D. He also works fast. If I had to choose a producer it would be Lil Tecca. He produces a lot of his music and it's tough

That’s a solid group of names right there! Do you remember the first song you ever made? If so, what was it like?

My first song isn't out. For good reason, Me and my boy Y. went to our bredrins yard where I recorded my first song. The song is horrible I wasn't good at rhyming, flows and I didn't even know how to rap on beat.

I’m sure that’s pretty relatable too for many artists starting off. What does a perfect studio session look like for you?

The perfect studio session would just be me. I can produce, mix and master so I wouldn't need an engineer. I need zero distractions. A need a studio that blocks out phone calls so I don't get called during the session.

That’s real haha! And outside of music, do you have any other hobbies or talents that many don’t know about?

I'm pretty good at basketball, and back in school, I was good at badminton in PE class. I like to believe i’m pretty good with Adobe Photoshop and After Effects. A lot of the assets you see in my posts or my cover art have been made by me. Which is something I take pride in.

What's been the most difficult aspect of your music career during your journey?

I think getting over my voice. My voice is a mix between high-pitched and low-pitched. And I've always wanted a deep voice, even in my earliest music you can hear me trying to deepen my voice. I've kinda gotten used to it and accepted my voice and you can hear it in the EP that I'm more confident in my vocal range.

With that being said, is there any advice you would give to someone else considering getting into music these days?

Develop your sound and discography. I wish I had taken the time to develop my artistry before I released my first song.

And finally, do you have any upcoming plans you're comfortable sharing with the readers? Fans have been loving the Self Made EP so far!

I mentioned earlier my sound is ever-changing. My next single will be drastically different from my other releases and the Self Made EP.