With a smile just as bright and encouraging as her lyrics, Kay Young dove deep into the feeling of ‘middleness’ that inspired her debut EP and her journey as a recent signee to Roc Nation.
‘Middle matters’ was released in August of this year as an ode to where Young currently mentally resides. “[It’s] basically me saying, I’m not where I used to be but I’m not where I want to be either; I’m in the middle…It’s where you do the most growth”, she reflects. Featuring ‘Giving thanks’ and ‘Going through’, the EP is a marriage of musicality and raw honesty allowing Young to explore topics like loss. When speaking on ‘going through’ she reveals, “It came from an adventurous place but at the same time I was kind of reflecting. It’s about my grandma. [But] at the time I wasn’t looking at it like – this is going to be a letter – it was more like I just needed to get it off my chest”
Speaking from her home studio, Young also reflects on how creating has been a comfort during these difficult times. She is surrounded by pictures of some of the most influential musicians of the last century, including Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley whom she reveres as a “poet” with his “energy when performing” and ability to “bring people together through his music – politicians, you name it”.
Young has similar aspirational goals. She speaks on being inspired by the backing of the “heavy-weights” at her label, Roc Nation, rather than feeling the pressure.
“I’ve got big people behind me I just have to live up to that now. Whenever I create, I think to myself yeah Jay Z is going to think this is dope, Jay Electronica is going to think this is dope. Not pressuring myself in anyway, it’s more of, people are watching you…And I want to live up to that. It’s humbling as well, black girl from South London, Brockley. It’s mad but it can happen, and it has happened.”
With Hip Hop greats by her side, she intends to reach “the masses” but do so “organically”. As a South London native, she speaks on a new tide in the U.K music scene where musicians are realising “there’s more power if we come together” so are uplifting each other. Coupled with this she expresses excitement for music to come from the new year looming ahead. As she explains, “I feel like musically, there’s going to be a lot stuff coming out that’s very honest and genuine because of what’s happened this year. I think music is going to be amazing. Things are always birthed out of pain”
Radiating positivity with gems on growth and gratitude throughout, watch the full interview with Kay Young on @ studentmusicuk on Instagram.
