Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kao Wonder. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Kao , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?
This is a question I hear frequently.. .Sure there are many trails and tribulations that people don’t see. Being a self funded Independent Artist is very hard work and dedication to your craft…which is time consuming and at times emotionally/mentally draining. You have your dark times, and you have your light times…but I will say this ..There is NO feeling like being on stage delivering your heart and soul to others and resonating with them. Singing their thoughts out loud, dancing alongside with them their pain away, and for one moment …just one moment ..with all the troubles their are going thru financially, emotionally, mentally , or however..you’ve inspired them to subside their dark with your light. No “regular” job can do that for me. So the answer to the first part of this question is YES, I have JOY in my spirit being chosen to lead thru song and dance this new world we are in. I believe I wasn’t born to be a regular person so having a regular job never resonated with me. It’s like trying to fit a square peg in a circle.
Kao , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I have the normal story for us Creatives: I started singing/dancing around 4-5 years of age, back when the late GREAT Michael Jackson and his sister Janet Jackson was introduced to me by my Father. In elementary school I was always the one participating in local talent shows, plays, ANYTHING to get this creative energy out of me! When I would return home from school, I would immediately turn on the TV and watch every music video I could from the people who inspired me, and often would mock their dance movements and sing as loud as I could to the TV (Mom would often tell me to SHUT UP!!!). Also, of course each Sunday following my Nana and Pa, I would sing in the choir at our church. This followed me to junior high school, and then later in High School where I began to take dance and singing a bit more serious; taking dance classes at Broadway Dance Center, taking vocal lessons from the local friends/people that was referred to me, and eventually starting a dance company with my peers to compete/entertain at local shows. Mom thought this would subside once I graduated High School, but to her dismay I got even heaver into the Entertainment Industry thru my college years. I was a good college student by day and at night or weekends I was in someone’s studio choreographing or on someones stage performing. It was my escape from a very cruel world back in my times (I was often bullied/teased/harassed) ..it was the only time I can be someone else, because I didnt want to be myself. Keeping in mind this was a time where the LGTBQ community was still in hush mode, and any male who showcased any feminine behavior was treated worst than a roach on the floor, and because I embraced both of my sides growing up ..and Proudly came out of the closet at an early age (I dont think I was ever in tbh) as a gay man.. things were a bit rough. When I was Entertaining people though, none of that mattered…so it became my way to get people to focus on what I do, as opposed to bullying me on a part of who I was and what I identified as. Pretty soon after college, I relocated to Atlanta Ga to kick it up a notch on the dancing part and started my artistic journey there which landed me with a new found dance company (Empire) and even signed to a dance agency (DDO) ..but my heart wasn’t satisfied with just dance. I wanted more, I wanted to make the music I would dance too, I wanted to sing the words to resonate with someone just like my favorites sang the words to me, and the universe heard my requests so…I teamed up with 3 other guys who were also Gay men and we identified ourselves as Illicit Vice (IV is the Roman numeral for 4 ), and we were the “Bad Boys’ of Pop (kinda think of One Direction/Mindless Behavior) singing about being confident, loving yourself , and of course everything anti-love…you know kind of what everyone is doing NOW. Of course later in years we decided to relocate to Los Angeles to reach a better market and grab better opportunities, but unfortunately three years into living here the group disbanded due to inconceivable differences. Now I’m in a city all by myself with most of the song I’ve written and ideas not put into visuals, but I was very afraid to be a solo artist at that time. “How could I? its too much competition out there and I think I stand out enough to even fit out” ..it took some soul searching but I digged very very deep and decided to brand myself for that little guy back in Brooklyn who was afraid to be himself. So that birthed Kao Wonder: The guy who speaks confidence, love, and appreciation to the spirits of those who are afraid to be themselves, reveal their light, and compare themselves to everyone else they see around them. The guy who thrives on getting people to love themselves a little more and be gentle on themselves a little more. The guy ,who is both Mental Health Victim and Enthusiast, that just wants everyone to Be in that moment, forgetting about their sexual/gender identity, social status, race, or profession. Kao just want you to be Human, and his job is to Entertain the HUMAN part of you.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
Social Media has taking over our lives and esp for us creatives..it is now the place visited by higher executives/employers/agencies to determine our worth. Speaking not only as a creative person but as a human, I wish we would go back to place where our “worth” or value isn’t determined by a set number or followers, likes, or comments. Some of the best gems in the world and hidden in plain sight because of this.. and due to this phenomenon, some of us find it easier to falsify these factors just to get noticed, which hurts our ego/mental health in the long run, and limits others who generate organic following and continues thier path to authenticity. In plain terms, it doesnt hurt to just gives undiscovered acts a chance. Strip the numbers, likes, comments, and just give us a chance to resonate with your organically. You never know, you may hear your next best friend ;)
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My goal is to Engage and Inspire the current world we live in to be organically and authentically themselves and love it thru song, dance, and performance. In a world where self esteem /self worth is at a dangerous low, and social comparison is at a record high, with each project or performance I encounter, I really to hope to flatten this curve and make people who suffer from mental health or even just a bad day or so feel good about being in their skin. Also in a world where segregation seems to be getting more intense, I really just want to create a safe space for EVERYONE to live in, because we are all HUMAN first.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kaothebrand.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kao_wonder/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaowonder
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kao_wonder
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9-r
- Other: Spotify : https://open.spotify.com/artist/0L9Y2 Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/kao Amazon : https://www.amazon.com/music/player/a Subscribe to my Email List: https://kaothebrand.com/mailing-list
Image Credits
Cam Cashaw J. Morris Churchill Tanairy Robless