Exclusive Interview With Kid Kenobi

Let’s be honest, Kid Kenobi has always been about the party! Back in the olden days (when he first started DJing) he would throw down sets of early breakbeat mixed with party hip hop, old school rave, and jungle. Though he’s journeyed near and far in search of the perfect beat, 2014 sees the Kid going back to his roots and bringing some of that early flavour back!

“I want to write the kind of music I actually like to DJ” fun, bouncy, party music! I want there to be less of a gap between my studio and my dancefloor,’ he says. With that in mind came a string of big remixes and singles including: ‘Your Love’ feat. Justin Hunter & Jamie Lee Wilson (#7 ARIA Club Chart), ‘Freak Funk’ feat. Big Nab (#15 ARIA Club Chart), ‘Bounce!’ feat. Bam of the Jungle Brothers (#19 ARIA Club Chart) plus remixes for Cr2 (UK), NEON, Bombsquad, Skint Records (UK) plus his own labels Klub Kids and Big Rekkords. It’s party time, 2014 styleee!

Finally we had the opportunity to have a informal chit chat with him, Read on to get to know Jessee aka Kid Kenobi more…

STU: Hello Jesse, thanks for taking the time to chat with us, tell us how this year is going so far for you?
Super busy as always! My fiancé and I had our second daughter Nevaya Mae in January so as to be expected there’s been a lot of re-shifting both on a business and personal level. Work wise I’ve been hard at it with my Kid Kenobi productions via various EP’s, singles, and bootlegs. I got to the end of 2014 and realised I hadn’t put anything out all year so had to give myself a little slap on the face and get focused again in the studio. Running a label can be a big distraction when you’re an artist! Oh, and I have also started work on a side project which I’m busting to get out there! I’m about 70% through my first EP! (yep just went from 0 to 200% in the studio ha ha)

STU: Maybe you’ve been asked this question a million times before but we always wondered how do you came up with the name Kid Kenobi, what is the story behind it?
Ha ha I wish I had a better story but unfortunately it was just me trying to be creative as a teenager! I always loved wizards and all that kind of stuff plus I was into hip hop as a kid so I just kinda melded the two ideas! It’s a good summary of me though, a kid on the one hand into party music but at the same time into really deep stuff also (keep an eye on the side project for the latter ha ha).

STU: You have a DJ career of more than 17 years, what has been the biggest accomplishment you had as a Dj and as a producer?
There have been a lot of ’things’ that I’ve done in my life that I’d consider accomplishments – like certain awards, tours, and gigs etc – but at this stage in my life and career I perceive my accomplishments as a lot more basic. Sometimes I just look around the house and go, ‘wow, that TV, that chair, that lounge, that pillow, that food, I managed to buy all that via DJing ad producing’ and that’s a pretty good feeling! The fact I’ve managed to survive this long and provide for my family feels like my biggest accomplishment for sure. I feel pretty lucky!

STU: Do you have a crew of artists in Australia that you work with frequently?
Yeah there’s def a crew I work with. It’s a loose arrangement – and no one is tied in – but we do have an invisible vibe connection ;)

STU: Talk to us a little bit about the music that you produce. To someone who hasn’t heard it before, how would you describe your music? Who are your influences?
I currently describe it as ‘bass house and broken beats’. I’m influenced by a lot of current bass and deep house stuff (for lack of a better word) but I inject it with steroids and make it super hype party! Kind of a contradiction in some ways ha ha. I’m also influenced by bass music and breakbeats – and used to write a lot of both – so use a lot of those production techniques in a current productions. I’ve been into dance music for 23 years now so my influences are vast and wide. At it’s core though it’s always influenced by four core elements: bass, hip hop, old rave, and dub reggae! :)

STU: You have recently released a 3 track EP entitled “Rude Boy”, the release includes 3 tracks that ranges from electro, house & breaks, what was the inspiration and production process for this EP ?
I guess that was the end result of my trying to focus on a ‘sound’. Having been popular as a DJ kinda made me feel like I had the license to experiment as a producer as that was my ‘creative outlet’. The result of that meant that I was always chopping and changing and in the end confusing people a bit. So at the end of the year I decided to stop being so eclectic and try to be more focused on a ‘sound’. It took me 6 years of solid producing to realise I was probably over thinking it and all I needed to do was just do what I do as a DJ. I’m finally writing the music that actually suits my sets and consequentially my sets – like this mix – is composed largely of my own tunes. Genre wise I’ve managed to whittle it down to bass house and broken beats. I’ve also set up a side project to help streamline stuff. That’s gonna be my ‘creative’ outlet.

STU: Tell us a bit more about your Labels Klub Kids and Big Rekkords, what is the story and difference between them?
Klub Kids is my main label and Big Rekkords is an offshoot. Klub Kids focuses on bass heavy dance music but all on a fun party tip. Big Rekkords is for the ‘bigger’ sounding records that don’t fit with the Klub Kids vibe but that I feel an urge to do something with!

STU: If you could change one thing about your journey professionally, what would you change?
I’d say I wish that my current production ability was available to me when I was at the height of my popularity as a DJ. There was a bit of a gap between the two but I can’t beat myself up too much about it, when I was at my absolute height as a DJ DJ’s were just DJ’s and didn’t really produce. There was a real separation between the two so it was a very different environment to today.

STU: What was your musical upbringing?
My Dad played drums in band so we were going with him a few times a month to gigs as kids. I never had any formal music training but music has always been a part of our life in some form or another.

STU: Who are some artists/tracks you have been really impressed with recently?
To be honest I tend to follow music trends as a whole more than artists but off the top of my head I’m really vibing Jauz. I love the fusion of genres he goes for – bass house, trap, dubstep, and breaks. I’m also super impressed with my homie Alex Preston who is quietly blowing up now that he’s really found his ‘sound’. Oh and also my younger bro Ramske who, in a very short space of time, I’ve watched blossom from a young kid who had no idea what he was doing to a young man writing tunes I’m gonna release! Track wise, everything on this mix! Ha ha.

STU: Describe the music industry and current state of “EDM” in one word.
Money!

STU: What are you doing in your free time?
I wish I had some! Ha ha. Playing with my two girls mainly, but also gardening when I can (we live amongst a lot of trees), cooking, and drinking tonnes of red wine!

STU: We know you are a family man so how do you find the balance between family and your busy music career?
Pretty hard really! Especially with two young kids four years and under! My studio is downstairs now so I get to work most days. Other than that I’m working late at night with my laptop. It’s good having the studio downstairs, it’s nice having ready access to it when I need it and the ability to be flexible!

STU: Where is your fav place in the world and why?
We recently bought a house an hour out of Sydney not too far from the water. It’s quite mellow but also amazingly beautiful. I love it here and am constantly inspired by the nature around me. So for now I’d have to say ‘home’.

STU: In a couple of years what will we see Kid Kenobi doing?
I’ve recently been doing a bit of work for TV and film so that’s def an avenue I’d like to explore more. My ideal would be to make a living off my studio so producing in any capacity really! I’d also like to be continuing with my side project, it’s a bit deeper and more soulful than my Kid Kenobi stuff so would suit me ‘maturing’.

STU: Any advice you would give to aspiring producers/DJs?
These days it would be simply to be yourself and don’t be afraid to be different, being ‘different’ is a strength not a weakness!

STU: Thank you so much for taking the time to answer some questions! We wish you much success and look forward to hearing more from you in the near future! Any last words?
No much more other than to say than thanks as always for the support! :)

Download for Free the exclusive Kid Kenobi mix for The Future Is Now Radios show.

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