Melbourne based music enthusiast and producer, Kid Vicious, has had a long-time infatuation and love for music ever since he was a kid. Over the last year or so, he had spent a lot of time teaching himself the art of music production and forging his own unique blends.
Last year, as part of his day job, Youth Support Worker, Kid Vicious played a leading role in a music program alongside some Australian veteran producers to produce hip hop for ‘at risk’ teens of Melbourne, eventually resulting in The St Kilda PCYC Mixtape Vol.1.
Recently, Kid Vicious has taken a step out from the dark corner of his bedroom, where he often hides on his laptop. This step has seen him reach out to artists to feature on his work. Kid Vicious’ s first debut E.P ‘The Pullout Method’ is only months away from release.
‘The Pullout Method’ is an eclectic mix of genres and styles of hip hop, a true testament to versatility and a celebration of the current hip hop scene.
Humbled to be doing something with passion and sharing this venture with others, Kid Vicious aims to continue learning and to grow as a promising hip hop producer and young talent.
Interview by Tim Brown
Where are you from?
I grew up in New Zealand, but I been living Australia for the last 10 years. I am currently based in Melbourne.
When and why did you start producing?
I have always played and enjoyed music since I was child messing around with my father’s record collection. Anything that made noise was fascinating to me! I began playing bass at school and played in punk bands for a while, but I always had a thing for hip hop so over the years I reverted back to that and have not looked back since.
Which famous musicians do you admire? Why?
For hip hop specifically I really admire El-P from Run the Jewels. He is a crazy producer, a true genius of the craft and can hold his own when it comes to throwing down some bars! If we are talking all music in general, then Robert Smith from The Cure.
Were you influenced by old records & tapes? Which ones?
I take influence from all genres of music when I am composing a beat. I delve into old vinyls from thrift shops and see if something strikes a chord with me often it is soul, blues and jazz. The last record I sampled was Loretta Lynn, country no doubt.
What was the first full length record you ever purchased?
I saved my pocket money up as a kid and got myself Enter the 36 Chambers by Wu Tang Clan and I still have and love that record.
Why did you choose to play this kind of music?
It feels natural to me, like second nature.
How did you choose your artist name?
It took me a while to settle on a name for myself, as I am sure it does for anyone else creating an alias. I chose Kid Vicious as I was heavily influenced by the Sex Pistols as a teenager and I wanted something that paid homage to an important era of my life.
Let’s Talk about your music style.
Sure! the music I create is Hip Hop fusing the elements of the new age that we all know and love and sprinkling it with boom bap spice. I try to think outside the box when I compose a beat. Sometimes I like to challenge myself to make a sequence that ‘shouldn’t work’ and I spend time just piecing it together like Tetris. I would not categorise myself into one style of Hip Hop I just do what feels best at the time – whatever puts a smile on my face.
Let’s talk about your current project.
I just finished up my debut producer EP ‘The Pull Out Method’ it is an eclectic and precisely crafted piece of material that features MC’s from my area as I felt it was necessary to work within my own community. The Pull Out Method is set to be released across all platforms on June 1st, 2020. Check it out!
What are the plans for the future?
I want to continue to grow and learn and master my craft and expand my reach to other MC’s across the globe. I just love making music and I will continue to do this for the rest of my life, and I am really looking forward to future projects and collaborations.
M.T.V.rock 