Kurst is a Canadian based hip hop artist who illustrates his mood and his thoughts through his music. Kurst defines himself as a storytelling rapper, not only telling his own story through his music, but also painting a vivid picture of the world around us, controversial or not. Viewing music as the ultimate form of expression, you can feel the raw emotions through the music. You will hear tales about of his childhood, mental health, addiction school shootings, parenting, relationships, love, heartbreak, betrayal, fake friends, and much more. Kurst is also praised in several blogs for his theme rap.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Hello Kurst. What first got you into music?
When I was ten years old, my mom would buy me those “Now” CDs that contained all the most popular songs at the time. She also got me the LL Cool J “Mama Said Knock You Out” album. I would sit and listen to them on repeat. That Christmas, she got me a cheap karaoke microphone, so I would sit there and sing all my favourite songs. I remember being glued to the TV before and after school just mesmerized by all the music videos on MTV and BET. I wrote my first song at Age 11 called “My Weird Dream”. It was a storytelling song, which is actually still my specialty these days.
What do you think your role is in this world?
I’ve always leaned more on the empathetic side of human nature. I tend to absorb people’s energy around me. This makes me want to help the people around me. I have to remind myself to be careful though, because it can be draining when you’re helping the wrong people. When I first began releasing my music, I wrote down my 5 W’s and my H (who, what, when, where, why, how) to give myself some direction on my music journey. My WHY is to inspire people by providing them with relatable music. I don’t just want to give them a song, I want to give them a feeling or experience. Music has always been a powerful form of therapy for me, so giving that back to others is a priority of mine. Since releasing my music, I’ve had several people DM me thanking me for giving them something real and relatable, so I think it might be working.
Your latest track is 'The Oracle'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
This was probably my favourite moment ever in the history of writing music. I had the instrumental on repeat for a couple days. I remember thinking of the opening line “they bout to witness greatness, I’m bout to give em Lasik”, and I kept going for another hour completely zoned in with the instrumental on repeat. Then I received a text from my brother, who has always been one of my biggest supporters. He texted me a rhyme using Disney characters, so I viewed it as a challenge to come back with something even better. So it began “It’s a promise, they cannot defeat me, stronger then MUFASA, wiser than RAFIKI, like a grown SIMBA, with respect is how they’ll treat me and my feet is where they’ll greet me”. I told my brother stop texting me, I have to go work on this. I got this light bulb moment to see how many Disney bars I can create in one song while telling a story and tying it all into my life. Lion King turned into Aladdin, which turned into Snow White and all 7 Dwarves, then Pinochio, Finding Nemo, 101 Dalmations, Bambi, Lady and the Tramp, Beauty and the Beast, Dumbo, Sleeping Beauty, Toy Story, Little Mermaid, Frozen and more. Something magical was happening in my brain that night, it felt like my brain opened up and the universe was on my side. Since then, I have created other theme type tracks with marvel movies, action movies, and horror movies.
What is one message you would give to your fans?
First, I would express my gratitude because it’s so crazy to think that I even have fans these days. Secondly, I would tell them that you are not your past, or your mistakes. Embrace all of that stuff, because there is a lesson in everything. Life’s too short to dwell on it. The only direction you can move is forward, so live the rest of your days with a smile on your face doing the things you love with the people you care about the most.
How do you spend your time?
I’m a homebody these days. I work a full-time job and I live with my girlfriend and my kids. When I’m not at work, the gym, or making music, I’m usually at home having a movie night with them eating snacks. One of my favourite things to do is watch my son play basketball, he has a passion for it the way I do with music, and he dominates out there. It’s rewarding to watch him grow as an athlete. I also enjoy camping and being outdoors when the weather’s nice.
What are you most proud of?
My mother. She’s an amazing woman. She gave birth to me at the age of 20 and did her absolute best to raise me and my younger brother as a single mother. I learned a lot of things about life watching her struggle. She got married to a seemingly perfect man when I was grade 7. He turned out to be an abusive alcoholic. She divorced him when I was around 19 and had to start over. She decided to put herself through school and become a nurse at the age of 39. I remember this woman waking up at 3AM to have extra time to study. Her work ethic was crazy given what she was going through. She succeeded in those endeavours. Recently, my grandmother got sick, so my mom took her in and cared for her as she steadily declined. She sacrificed her entire life to take full time care of her. This past year was the worst of it. She passed away last week and wanted to do it comfortably at home. My mother intuitively knew it was coming, so she slept in the same bed with her and held her hand for two nights in a row, and on the third night, she passed away peacefully next to my mother.
If you could go open a show for any artist who would it be?
Eminem. He’s one of my biggest influences growing up. Even to this day, when I need some inspiration, I go back revisit his discography. Opening up for a legend like him would be a dream come true.
What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop as an artist?
My mind is constantly studying. I have studied all genres of music since I was a kid. But when I was 17, I decided to really dive into the roots, I studied everything from Big Pun, LL Cool J, Pac, Biggie up until today’s popular artists like Lil Baby, Jack Harlow, J.Cole, and everything in between. I study everything from the cadence, the rhyme schemes, the subjects, the metaphors, vocal tonalities, and more. I’ve always been a die-hard fan and student of the game, and always will be. Something I do after every track I record is listen to it on repeat. Study what worked, what didn’t work, how I can improve it, and focus on every tiny detail, so I can make the next one even better. I have also been putting my music on several music review shows and paying close attention to the feedback. I love criticism, and I see it as a challenge to improve when it comes my way.
Do you think that technology is improving lives?
This is a tough question, because I feel there are certain medical technologies that can be great in improving lives in terms of physical health. But, on the other side of things, we have cell phones, social media, and other devices that are having a major impact on mental health. Depression and anxiety rates are at an all time high. I’ve heard Simon Sinek talk about how when you receive a notification, it does something in the brain chemically that’s very similar to a hit of drugs or alcohol. It provides you with an artificial high that people are constantly chasing. People also have shorter attention spans and are less present. If I had it my way, I would have grew up in the 70’s, where I didn’t have to worry about seeing what Johnny had for lunch, Karen’s 5th selfie of the day on her quest for more likes. However, it’s essential these days for building a business or brand, and it would be much harder to build a fanbase without it, so it’s a double-edged sword.
What are your plans for the future?
I have recently built myself a team that includes a producer, engineer, and a videographer. Currently, I’m focused on creating some epic music videos and some good visuals for my music to help me grow on other platforms like TikTok and YouTube. I have two videos of my “Movie Night” theme tracks coming out soon. I also have a very controversial story telling song about a school shooter that I want to release with a cinematic video telling the story. I also have some big collaborations with some well known independent artists in the works. I am also working on a E-book for independent artists to use as a guide. So it’s going to be a busy year, but a successful one at that.