Artist to Watch: Kenneth Callier leaves NYC Speechless!

I think one of the hardest industries to break into is the music industry. With the rapid distribution of musical content happening daily, artist are always fighting to be number one! Some artist fight for a prominent spot with a label, hoping that the labels' network, distribution and promotional resources  will be the missing factor in the flourishing of their talent. Others fight the independent artist battle (producing, promoting, and moving their work without the backing of a label). In 2016 platforms like Reverb Nation, Soundcloud, Youtube and so many more make the independent artist industry possible.

NYC based, independent music artist, Kenneth Callier took NYC by storm a few weeks ago with a pre release listening event for the anticipated release of his second album, "2". The young artist introduced this project to the world with a listening/ Visual Viewing event at the Anthology Film Archives Movie Theatre in Manhattan.

We got to speak with Kenneth after the event took place, full of excitement the all around creative dished play by play how the night went down! Check this out...

LL: From the looks of this event, this wasn't just a normal listening party, your not just a normal artist though so that was expected… What went into putting together an event like this?

KC: For me, the event kicked off weeks before its actual date; given the preparation that I put into producing the music on the album, writing the verses, perfecting everything, shooting the video for the single "worth" and prepping all the aesthetics... Not to mention creating a huge invite list. So by the time the day came, I was super anxious. 

LL: Your a production powerhouse! After all of that hard work, preparation and planning… What were your feelings when you finally saw the finished product?

KC: I pulled up to the movie theater in Manhattan about 30 minutes after exporting my album at the studio in Brooklyn and my heart immediately began racing fast. I wasn't nervous or anything; it's just not everyday that 89 people buy tickets and come out to support you at the listening event for your second studio album as an independent artist. I got a rush the moment I walked in the lobby and saw half the people waiting for me. Everybody started clapping it was dope as fuck; felt like I walked on stage at an awards show for winning a category I was nominated in.

LL: I didn’t get to attend the event. But I know that your super detailed oriented, what was the event experience like for the 89 people who attended? 

KC: I’d already set it up so that the album cover was on the movie theater screen with the tracklist so that people were caught up in the art of it all as soon as they walked in. Definitely set the vibe for the night. The lights were dimmed. When everyone was seated, I chose not to give an announcement or introduction. I queued the sound engineer in the theater to turn the lights off and start the album (I'm dramatic as hell I know). People were attentive. Some were on their phones but only to be posting on snapchat. Then it was time for the visual. Theater went black again and the video started to play. 5 seconds in you head a ton of "oh shit" and *claps*... It was way more than a music video. Being that I shoot direct and edit my own videos it's important to me that they are nothing but fire; and since this was going to be on the screen in a movie theater I definitely put a ton of work into the storyline for it and the post-editing.

LL: That had to be amazing!!!!! How did you feel after all of that?

KC: I was impressed with the overall physical reaction. I could tell from facial expressions and gestures that everybody was really feeling the second album. Song by song from 1-12 there were no gaps. It played straight through and I watched from the balcony looking down at what to me as a huge accomplishment. At the completion of the album, the lights turned back on and everyone clapped loud as f***. I asked if they'd like the album... because I did want to hear it directly from the mouths of the people, and of course everyone had nothing but positive feedback. Real, "keep it 100" type of feedback.

LL: Aww that sounds amazing! Just reading this I'm so happy for you. What was some of the feedback? 

KC: Most of the feedback revolved around me having locked in my own sound as both a producer and a lyricist... which was dope; although I still got the "you're the next Kanye" comparisons... which are always dope too lol. Dopest part of the feedback for me was that everyone was in agreeance that this album did in fact out-due the first one. That was important for me because as a perfectionist and just a artist overall, it's super important that there's nothing but advancement as time progresses. Most of the feedback revolved around me having locked in my own sound as both a producer and a lyricist... which was dope; although I still got the "you're the next Kanye" comparisons... which are always dope too lol.

The event concluded with a Q&A hosted by Jamila Mustafa, BET Breaks Digital Correspondent and a college friend of Kenneth's. Attendees were also given the chance to participate in a meet and greet in the lobby of the venue. Check out some of the recap footage and photos from the event below:

Purchase some of Kenneth Callier's other projects in anticipation of the "2" Album on iTunes Here: https://itun.es/us/UOCX_ 

  Visit Kennethcallier.com to keep up with all of his creative genius!