Kiddus: 0:00

Hi, this Kiddus Fecto and you are now listening to One Hour to Doors Boom.

Jon: 0:15

This is One Hour to Doors, a podcast about the business and soul of the festivals and events industry. I am your host, John Stone. Every episode of One Hour to Doors explores the people, issues, insights and trends impacting the enterprise of bringing people and communities together in common cause. My guest today Kiddus Fecto. Kiddus is a remarkable emerging artist, still very much on the front end of his career. Based in Seattle, Kiddus covers a lot of ground, including, but in no way limited to, hip hop, rap, R&B, soul and electronic. My path crossed with Kiddus when he came into the songwriting and performance programs at a nonprofit called Totem Star in Seattle. Totem Star is an organization that I believe in so deeply that I have been volunteering my time with them for over 10 years now. Kiddus performed at MOPOP's Sound Off Showcases in 2021 and 2022 and performed at the Thing Festival in Port Townsend in 2022 and 23. I'm excited for our conversation today. Welcome to the show, Kiddus.

Kiddus: 1:25

Thank you so much. Thank you for having me. You know what I'm saying.

Jon: 1:27

My pleasure! Kiddus, what is your origin story?

Kiddus: 1:31

I was born and raised in Seattle Washington. I grew up in Hillman City. I was just into art music at a young age. I wanted to play basketball at first, but realized that music was my passion once I started making beats and singing and also rapping too, was a part of a choir

Kiddus: 1:57

I was like six, took a hiatus from it and then joined the youth choir at this church called New Beginnings Christian Fellowship. In that choir there were a lot of people who were gifted in music too and who are also in the music business putting out music. One made a short film for what was going on around the Breonna Taylor time and stuff. Another person DJed at the Jamal Crawford Pro-Am and other club events.

Kiddus: 2:36

Another person was engineering at this studio called Mead Street. It was a good vibe knowing that I was in a community where I birthed a lot of talented individuals.

Jon: 2:51

I can't imagine that in a lot of community choirs that a real bass such as yourself walks in the door every day. Did they know what to do with you?

Kiddus: 3:03

I wouldn't just straight up be like yeah, but I feel like they did a good job. It was weird with me because I was singing bass, but I was also singing high notes too. I had a falsetto. Yeah, you've got a range I used to sing, ushers climax, and all the girls in there would be like oh look at you, you're singing climax my usher.

Kiddus: 3:33

My mom came from St Vincent in the Grenadines and she moved to New York when she was 14. When she turned 18 or 20, she moved to Seattle and stuff. I met my dad, of course, but I've been living here for my whole life. I grew up in Hillman City area, seattle. They're like Aki Kurose Middle School, but it's funny because I went to Queen Anne or I went to McClare, which is in Queen Anne area. It was kind of weird just being in one area Seattle and then going to the North End. You know what I'm saying.

Jon: 4:17

It changes a lot from area to area in Seattle. I think of that in terms of public schools. I know from prior experience that Seattle School District is what they call it a decentralized school district, which means to me what it means is that every school is kind of an island and makes a lot of their own decisions. It is responsible for a lot of their own resources. The problem with that is because you've got wealthy neighborhoods on one end of the spectrum and less prosperous neighborhoods on other ends of the spectrum and everything in between and where you move around. I think about it in terms of music education programs is what I was looking at with the Seattle School District years ago. You have some Seattle Public Schools that have literally world-class music programs, and then you can go down the street a mile and you'll have other schools that have Nothing, for lack of resources, and it's just. It's a tragedy.

Kiddus: 5:22

I was fortunate enough to have like the equipment at my high school because where I went was Franklin. They had like the. They had this piano room that had like all the keyboards and stuff, but she also had like midis and like MacBooks like lined up against the wall and stuff and everybody was just able. The teacher actually gave us like a project to make, like he gave us like an assignment to make like a little hip hop project or whatever, which was kind of funny. You know what I'm saying, and that's where I like actually learned how to make beats. But I've been high schools where, like, they don't have any of that type of stuff. So, yes, it's unfortunate, I feel like, if one person has it like, I feel like everybody should have it.

Kiddus: 6:08

You know what I'm saying? Like we all need you know what we can get to like, get to the top.

Jon: 6:13

So yeah, I'm with you 100%. I mean, it's STEM versus STEAM, right, I benefited from going to a high school myself that had I wouldn't say that world-class music programs, but I had music programs. It had something that we could explore. I think the whole STEM you know science, technology, engineering, math. I am, I'm, quite outspoken against that. I think it should be STEAM. I think the A, the arts, is what's missing. Who wants to live in a world of all technical and no arts? Yeah, it's like a part of being human. Oh, why on earth would you? It just seems so short-sighted to skip over that. But that's probably a podcast for a whole nother day. So you started making beats in school then. What brought you to Totem Star, like? What was the timeline for that?

Kiddus: 7:03

Well, I was in The Residency at first year, prior to whatever, and, like the second time I did the residency, I met a few artists who who done Totem Star, and they were mentioning how they give like free studio time, so like like youth out here, and so I was like, okay, like I'm gonna go see what it's about, and when I went, I went with this one guy I used to make music with.

Kiddus: 7:26

He only went for one day. Ever since I went, though, I just kept going. You know what I'm saying and it's been a blast, you know. I just working with the artists there, like you know, working with the artists, mentors, and getting opportunities to perform on stage, like it's just fun as hell, because I used to be a little kid like being in the house literally working on my stage presence, like grabbing a mic, like what's it called, a remote, as if it's a microphone, and like just looking in the mirror and just like going crazy, you know, like in the fact that, like they give me the platform to just do that, just like you know it's lit, you know.

Jon: 8:02

For the benefit of the listeners, describe The Residency. That's another fantastic program.

Kiddus: 8:07

Oh yeah, The Residency is like a summer hip hop program funded by Macklemore and Ben Secord stuff and they like they give you. So you sure, if you're there you show up, you have to audition and all that stuff and then like if you get picked, they have you be in either the vocal group or the production group and if you're like the whole objective is to make a song for this, like showcase at the end of the program and like after the showcase, you get like the stipend or whatever. So yeah, and through that you know you can go on like trips and everything and meet people in the industry too. That also was a great experience for me.

Jon: 8:48

And how long have you been with Totem Star? Whole told Five years, five years, a question that I asked musical artists. What is your earliest memory of music? I'm not talking about when did you first hit a key on a piano or pick up a guitar. Even just your memory Like what's the earliest memory? You have a radio or whatever it was.

Kiddus: 9:10

I remember being a kid and like my favorite things by John Coltrain, always like standing out to me.

Jon: 9:17

Yeah.

Kiddus: 9:18

I remember like being in the backseat of like my mom's car, listening to Alicia Keys. Alicia Keys is falling Like just that intro.

Jon: 9:28

I keep on falling.

Kiddus: 9:34

Like the way she just sang, that it was just crazy, it was like haunting. You know what I'm saying, but it was just like ill. That was like one of my favorites too. And Bob, my mom had this Bob Marley I think it was a documentary or just like a movie with like all his archives and stuff and like his life performances and he was doing like naughty dread and stuff. So those were like my first memories with like music, you know.

Jon: 9:57

What a fine foundation. Yeah, understanding that I've been following you in the last couple of years. You've been really active with Totem Star just in terms of listening, showcasing that kind of stuff. But recently I went to your SoundCloud, or something like that, yeah, and I found that there was some older stuff in there and I have some questions about some of that, if I could so, first of all, you have a track called Married to the Game. Yeah, and it has an infectious sample. It's kind of the melodic hook. But what is that sample and why did you choose it?

Kiddus: 10:36

I don't remember that exact sample was like years ago that I made that beat. But I was just going through like there was this playlist on YouTube. I was going through like Krate Diggers and stuff the playlist and just looking for songs like a sample. I was actually trying to look for that song. I couldn't. I don't remember it. It was like a Spanish song, I believe, but it was wicked.

Jon: 11:00

Yeah, I just got stuck in my head big time. I almost got ticked off for a while. I was like oh, man get out of my head.

Jon: 11:06

It's so good. Thank you A couple more. There's the track you have called Half man, half Amazing. Now that one grabbed my attention because I swear I can hear clearly at least four different like stylistic influences. Wow, in that I mean you're just drawing from everywhere, but you're fusing them together in a way that sounds beautiful. Thank you, and that's why you're talking about my question about, like, when did you first start listening to music? So I can hear you've got a pretty broad background to begin with stylistically.

Kiddus: 11:41

Yeah, that one Half man, Half Amazing. Oh, that one meant a whole lot to me because that song I sampled actually came from a movie I used to watch a lot at my grandma's house.

Kiddus: 11:54

I've always wanted to sample it. You ever seen Brother Bear? Like it's about this one dude who, like he like killed a lot of people. He kills this bear and then, like later on, transforms into one After and like during that scene like he. They're playing this song in the background. It's like this choir is just like crazy, from like Bulgaria or whatever, Like it'd be insane. So I chopped it up and I just felt it, you know, like I literally felt myself like standing on the chair and all that. It literally like makes you want to just get up and just do like a backflip or something like a little jump, like a skydive or something Like you know it's fantastic when I, when I started listening to that one, I actually texted another Shauna, another board member.

Jon: 12:38

I'm just like you listen to this center of the link to the back. If you listen to this like this is amazing, it's amazing. One more track to ask you about non-existent. Now on that one, to my ears you have a pretty unique vocal range. You can go pretty darn low, but you've got some upper range.

Kiddus: 12:58

Yeah.

Jon: 12:59

You are blessed that way. In non-existent, you really leverage that range to some amazing effect, but you don't like lean on it Like the overall composition is just rich, and it once again drawing from so many different styles. Where'd the idea for that track come from?

Kiddus: 13:16

Just like experiences with like certain people or that I used to kick it with. You know what I'm saying and I've always wanted to make like something slow you know what I'm saying Because it still has like a nice steady beat and stuff Thing with. That is like I just wanted to showcase my voice, like the bass. You know what?

Kiddus: 13:35

I'm saying and just really take a risk with that, because you don't really hear people singing like that nowadays, yeah, and if they do, it's like they always compare it to like Kid Cudi, because Kid Cudi he do a lot of like hums or whatever. He's like, hmm, you know like, and I get influenced from him too Like I don't really hear people like full on singing like oh, what a shame, that's like old school, it's almost operatic.

Kiddus: 14:01

Yeah, this is crazy. So, like that song, I just wanted it to be like hella powerful. I just wanted it to feel like grand and you know.

Jon: 14:13

And you said the key word. You said you wanted to take a risk and you just made me realize that is. I think what grabs me about that track is it's just, it's bold as hell and it's beautiful, thank you, thank you. I've heard you speak in some other interviews about how much you value collaboration, you and I, before we started recording. Today, we're just talking about how easy it is to just kind of do everything yourself in the box these days. That said, why do you value collaboration so much?

Kiddus: 14:41

Because, like when you collaborate with people, you could like learn new things. You could like learn a new skill, you could learn how to like, when you know that you're, you have a powerful like presence, or like a powerful like or big personality, learn how to like. Maybe step back a little bit so the other people could shine and get their light to you. Know what I'm?

Jon: 15:02

saying Share space, yeah, share space.

Kiddus: 15:05

And I had to like learn that you know this year and it was a blessing, so yeah.

Jon: 15:10

I think that's really smart. Quick, little anecdote as a musician in my earlier years I was in a number of rock bands, avant-garde bands, a weird path, it's like. From day one all I ever played was originals, even my earliest years with a guitar, so I never really learned covers. At the very end of my performing part of my career I landed in a cover band and the shtick was we only played covers of the saddest songs ever written in a genre. It was just something we were doing for fun, just a bunch of friends, but I'd say it was all covers, and I became tenfold a better musician by playing covers for two years. That I did in 10 years writing originals, because it forced me to learn how other people play, how other people think about music that way.

Kiddus: 16:05

That's crazy. You say that because right now, in this internship, thaddeus, he has us do these things where we do interpolations of people's songs and stuff. We'll listen to a song and then we'll have to hear all the elements and then remake it, so we learn how to we learn about the process and what went into the song and what we're listening to.

Jon: 16:27

Kind of reverse engineering. What are you doing for gigging these days? Are you playing out much Is most your time in the studio. Are you getting on stage? What are you doing?

Kiddus: 16:38

I would like to get on stage more, but lately I've just been working on my album and learning how to become better artists' mentor and learning how to engineer. As far as performing, I will say I would love to get on stage a little bit more.

Jon: 16:57

You liked your experiences at Sound Off and Thing Festival. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the Thing Festival must have been cool. I haven't been able to get out to that the last couple years. Like that is like the cool festival in the country right now.

Kiddus: 17:09

Yeah, it was just. I had a blast you know what I'm saying Especially getting to see Lil Yachty too last year. So for this year, that was super cool. He was literally backstage Well, yeah, backstage, but while he was on stage performing, but being that close and seeing it was crazy. And he's also podcasting too.

Jon: 17:32

Oh, yeah, yeah, I'll have to check that out. In terms of your art history, in terms of your craft, do you have firm goals? Do you have a firm vision? Do you know where you want to go, or are you just kind of? I mean, you're just starting off on the journey, which is just such a beautiful thing? That's one of the reasons I want to talk with you so much. It's just a great perspective. I'm 30 years removed from where I began.

Kiddus: 17:55

Yeah, I definitely want to. I know what I want to do and stuff. I definitely want to reach millions of people At some point and I also want to just travel the world and know what it's like to tour. I be hearing it from a lot of artists that is super stressful, but I still want to just experience it and get to go around the world and learn new cultures and stuff. So I'm sure I will that continue.

Jon: 18:24

It's a lifestyle. I can tell you that and it's not everybody's cup of tea, but it is Unlike any other experience you're gonna have. Yeah, learning how to get along with the same group of people in a bus. Yeah, for weeks and weeks and weeks, you learn a lot about yourself.

Kiddus: 18:44

Mmm, a lot whether you want to or not. I wonder what I'll be like on the tour or my tour bus would be like people just be pouring cold water on each other while they sleep.

Jon: 18:58

Like I can tell you this from my experience. Pretty quickly on, like monotony sets in. You know, there's just a whole lot of nothing going on Most hours of the day and then all of a sudden you got to work and have fun and then it's back on the road and it gets boring really quick. That being said, I was done touring like years before Cell phones even came out. Yeah right, so what we? What we did? We were I wrote postcards, I just so. I always took like a hundred postcards with me and I'd spend time just literally writing letters home and those are cool because I still have all those, sent those to my wife at the time and she kept them all, put them punched holes in them and just put them on a big binder. Those are actually super cool to look back on. Yeah, cuz it's got the date and there's usually like a geographic yeah, we're in, you know whatever kind of like souvenirs are like.

Kiddus: 19:51

Yeah, it's like a diary, I guess.

Jon: 19:53

But I digress. Have you tried getting any in any club gigs here in town?

Kiddus: 19:58

No, not quite there yet I mean I want to, you know, but what's stopping you? I'd be thinking, cuz, like some of my music. Like I be hearing what they play in the club and I be thinking, like my music like fitting for this type of setting. You know cuz, not saying that, like you know, my music isn't good enough for anything. I'm saying like, like, is it right for this type of like? You know Cuz, like a lot of my, it has layers and stuff like and a lot of club, to be like hella stripped down and just like simple. You know like I be trying to like experiments and what you know so, but I definitely want to. I definitely want to get my cuz. I have some like. I will say I have some like club bangers on my on my album. Like I got this one song called one that get back, but it's like a Jersey Club type of song. It's not really like a, you know, it's not West Coast Club type of, you know so.

Jon: 20:50

I'm just sitting here thinking, I mean I would encourage you to just get out there and try some stuff. I say that just because, first of all, everything in terms of what's deemed popular, it's all cyclic. I mean, you probably realize this by now, but it's just a big circle and it all goes around and around the circle. So what's popular today won't be popular tomorrow, and what was popular yesterday will someday be popular again. On and on and on.

Jon: 21:13

I think this is just my opinion. I think the time is right for a lot of your stuff, but the trepidation that I've sense from you, it's like is this really what people want out there? That's exactly why I think the time is right for you to start taking some steps into that water, just because it's a little different than what's going on and you said. You also said club music tends to be really stripped down right now. That's been the case for quite a long time actually, in this area, in this region, so I think it's about time for a change. So here along comes from kiddos with this layered, luscious stuff. I think it might be the right time. I'd go for it.

Kiddus: 21:52

Thank you.

Jon: 21:53

I'm gonna start getting you some gigs. Yeah, what inspires you to make your beats?

Kiddus: 22:00

just a bunch of stuff like sometimes could be like me, just frustrated at something or whatever, just I. It could be me look watching the video my favorite producer making the fire beat, like Pharrell, or something like laying down something with Chad Hugo. You know I'm saying like Justin Timberlake's justified album. You know watching like Travis Scott in the studio jumping up and just raging and going stupid. Or seeing Kanye act the fool and chop up samples, like I Get influenced by anything.

Jon: 22:34

You know, just get up and create a little reaction area or whatever it's time in the moment. Yeah, do you have, or have you had the benefit of any mentors in the business? And I would imagine you'd say both in totem star, in the residency. That's exactly what's happening.

Kiddus: 22:50

But like before them at any time.

Jon: 22:53

Currently do you have, do you have any mentors? And that's kind of what totem star is all about. Oh yeah, yeah, like.

Kiddus: 22:58

So of course, like we'll Thad, Pak, Matt, Paul, Tracy talk about the whole family.

Jon: 23:07

Yeah, yeah, and that is why I've been with the organization for so long. Yeah, it's just that, it's literally, it's a, it's a family level of support, and a lot of those guys too, man, they have so much experience in all aspects of the industry Invaluable. You know, money can't buy that kind of advice, that kind of experience. Yeah, what are you most looking forward to in 2024?

Kiddus: 23:35

Just to level up you know what I'm saying. And just put out this project. It's called the Jumping Leg Thread. I've been working on it for like years, upon years, upon years, since high school. It didn't change the name like three times. The Jumping Leg Thread is about getting over this hurdle. You know what I'm saying? The Jumping Leg Thread is a dance move, like a retro move, where you like grab your leg and you hop while you're still holding it. So it's like, in a way, it's like a hurdle or like just the obstacles. So that's what I'm looking for is who the most? And just like seeing new youth that come in the studio here you know what I'm saying. And also just to experience more stuff and learn. You know, I just want to learn like. I just want to learn and grow. That's all I care about at this point.

Jon: 24:18

My sense is that you're pretty much a sponge as far as learning goes. You just want to soak it all up. I'm the same way to a fault sometimes. What is your favorite sound?

Kiddus: 24:31

Probably birds chirping in the morning.

Jon: 24:35

You're going to get an ice cream cone and it's got two scoops. What are your two flavors?

Kiddus: 24:41

Cookies and cream and cookie dough.

Jon: 24:46

(Laughing) I see the common thread there, which one goes on top.

Kiddus: 24:52

Damn. I think the cookie dough might have to go on top. That's a surprisingly hard question, isn't it? They on top one.

Jon: 24:58

I got that from in real life. This is like 20 years ago. I was driving around in Ballard. I was going from somewhere to somewhere else and it was a really hot summer day and there was a Baskin Robbins ice cream shop right there, so I figured I was like I'm going to go in and get a cone, you know.

Jon: 25:15

So I go in and I order my cone and the guy behind the counter Kind of reminds me of an old Rockwell postcard or something like that. He was like at least 80 years old, obviously retired, semi-retired guy or whatever, but he took his job like super seriously. He was as professional as I've ever seen. He was really serious about ice cream and you know what. That's awesome. I respect a professional in anything, you know.

Jon: 25:43

So I ordered my two scoops I can't remember exactly what they were and then he just kept looking at me and I'm like what he was like, which one goes on top and man it, just it caught me off guard. I'd never thought about that, but I instantly realized it matters in the experience of eating your ice cream cone. You know, totally depending on which way you go, you're going to get two very different experiences. I guess the lesson I learned on there is like sometimes the details, the details matter. So here's a big one that a lot of people just don't know what to do with this. But who do you think you are, rockstar?

Kiddus: 26:28

If it will be like, that is the best answer in the history of this podcast, really.

Jon: 26:35

Absolutely. The audience can't see this, but I have a huge smile on my face right now. That is the best answer I've heard yet. Kiddus, it has been fantastic talking with you today. Thank you so much for making the time. Thank you for having me. Thank you for having me.