VICE Spotlight: KVKA

I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: tone and expression of voice are key in making a truly, unique artist. And KVKA has that. 

You can see it in the intonation of his gravel-voiced rap, in OG tracks like “Who You,” that, since its release 8 years ago, has pushed into the millions of views on Youtube and Spotify. But it’s also clear in his most recent, whooping, high-energy release, “Buck Wild” feat. Rhys Rich, hitting you hard with every word.

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“Describing my music is difficult, my taste is eclectic so it’s difficult to pinpoint a way that describes it,” KVKA tells VICE.

“I like to tap into different styles for different audiences, and give them a sample of the different styles and influences that make up who I am as an artist.”

KVKA’s musical palate hones artists just as bold in lyricism as they are in sound and voice, mostly of the hip hop and rap persuasion. From New York rappers like Joey Badass and Pro Era, to the Underachievers and Odd Future. In more recent years, he points towards projects like Frank Ocean’s Nostalgia Ultra, MF Doom’s Mm Food and Mac Demarco’s Salad Days.

And it’s obvious that music has pulsed through KVKA’s veins since he was a kid.

From an early age, KVKA began singing in a choir, playing instruments and learning how to sing, until his sister taught him poetry which eventually, he laid over instrumentals, pushing into hip hop. 

“After realising I felt more comfortable reading my poems over an instrumental, I began exploring hip hop and it kind of grew from there,” he says.

After globetrotting from birth to adulthood – born in Zambia, growing up in the UK, with a stint in New Zealand in his late teens, KVKA finally ended up in Melbourne. 

And in the process, his career has steadily grown, attracting fans with music that is as equally brash and chaotic as it is self-examining and pensive.

“My biggest highlights are opening for GZA, releasing my music on vinyl and being able to physically hold something I’d created, performing at the Silver Scroll Music awards, and having my daughter in one of my most important music videos I’ve dropped yet on my track “Heaven”,” he says.

“I hope people can relate to my words, beyond the brash vocals and bravado. I hope people feel understood or that someone has seen them the same way I felt seen by certain artists or albums growing up.”

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