Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kadiz. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Kadiz, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?
I can’t really recall how or when I learned to Sing/Rap, seems like something I’ve always done. My mother and father both loved music, and my father was a writer/poet, so I believe, unintentionally, through their love of music my talent was birthed. The Gift and the curse of being gifted is your talent will only grow if you nurture it., the more time you spend with your craft, the sharper your tool , what kept me “behind” in a sense was my confidence, which is the centerpiece for becoming successful in the music business. Being a musician is seen as more of a dream than skilled labor or a trade, so people tend to try to sway you away from it because there’s no guarantees, that to me, is the biggest obstacle. You almost need someone to believe in you, that’s what fuels you , feeds your ambition to continue, when everything seems to be against you.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
You’d think being a musician in 2022 would be easy with all the technology artist have access to. Truth of the matter is, it’s more difficult now than ever before. Being an artist takes sacrifice, commitment, and hard work. “Urban” music more specifically, hip hop is a genre of art that reflects particularly, real-life community-based struggles for a specific group of people (the have-nots.) Additionally, I’m from a city not particularly known AT ALL for contributing to the culture of hip hop, so against all odds, no real guarantees, just the love for the music, you get Kadiz, aka Fresh Wes aka “The Heart of the City.”
Born and Raised in Columbus, OH, however, attributing my name sake from the city of my late grandmother (Cadiz, Ohio.) I’ve been singing and rapping (publicly) since the tender age of seven in church and community choirs. Shortly after that, I began to perform in local talent shows, with varies groups, never winning, not even once, lol. I picked up playing the piano and other instruments at Fort Hayes (career center) around sixteen years old, which added another dimension to my gift and performance, captivating audiences ever since. I pull inspiration from virtually anywhere, However, listening to artist like Jay-Z, Tupac, Nas, Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, Dr Dre etc. Really gets the creative juices flowing. For me, the goal is always to provide heartfelt lyrics put together over a variety of soulful sounding production, a combination that I like to refer to as “Street Soul.”
The first “real’ project I released, was released through an indie based company named Deka Records, the project was called “Suitcase of Memories” it was released mid-2010, and since then I’ve been releasing music on a regular bases, notably my personal favorite released in 2020, “Pieces of my Soul” up until that point, my life had me far out in the deep, because of that, “Pieces” turned out to be my most honest piece of work to date. On the business side of things, I’ve been building both a viral and organic fanbase across all social media, through hard work and paid promotions. The thing that makes me most proud is my resilience, there’s no promises in this business so you really have to love it to keep going.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
Think about it, most people can hear a certain song and remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard it, how it made them feel. To be able to create that type of magic, yeah, that’s enough for me.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
To keep the art in the expression. So many people today are chasing the bag, they look at music as a means to and end. For me, it’s always been about the music, creating art that provokes emotion, sparks ideas.
Contact Info:
- Website: Therealkadiz.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therealkadiz/
- Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/TheRealKadiz
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRbOS_xxuDPNObPvf8M-h3g
- Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7qMffV3wqe95hDsn215kal?si=hHUwNBngTiiW26M2F_Lq-Q Apple music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/kadiz/368324074