In the world of music, it’s very hard not to find a genre that fits someone’s style. Junior Kenny Kioski found his true calling in rap music.
From working in a tabloid to becoming a rap lord, Kioski takes off on a new music career. Kioski explores the broad and vast world of rap to see if it’s well suited for him.
“I thought it was fun,” Kioski said. “When my uncle Julian came down to Kansas because of COVID, he was a poet and I was interested in writing lyrics, so he came down and we both kind of started writing stuff like to pass the time. It’s a hobby right now. If I start making bands, then I won’t complain.”
Though starting from humble beginnings, Kioski is forced to be very resourceful and has to spread his music to all music platforms.
“I use a distributor called DistroKid, Spotify, Apple Music, all of the above. It’s called CakeWalk by BandLab. I have 35 monthly listeners right now, probably “Flow Took My Toe” has the most streams,” Kioski said.
With having to make and produce his own lyrics and songs, Kioski obtains inspiration from a variety of resources, especially those that he is directly impacted by.
“So my friend who lives in Pennsylvania, when he was 11 he made this comedic rap that was called “Flow Took My Toe.” I was talking to him and I said I am going to remake your song and actually try and make it good. I wasn’t planning on putting it out anywhere I kind of just wrote it and put it out on Spotify.”
The toolkit of a rapper has to be vast with the ability to create music with others and on the spot. Collaborating with other musical artists is a big part of being a big-time rapper. Kioski recently joined Boys on Deck, a duo of upcoming rappers.
“My favorite part was how similar our styles are. [Boys on Deck] do their own thing but when it comes to hype stuff we mold really good together, the way we hand over the song to each other,” Kioski said.
To become a famous rapper, you need to have a fan base and without that, you won’t be able to make it far. Senior Earl Mueller provides his opinion about Kioski’s music.
“I know he’s an upcoming artist and just wanted to support him all the way through. My favorite song from Kenny has to be “Flow Took My Toe.” I think the bars are better and the flow is better. I can see him dropping more albums,” Mueller said.
A fanbase shouldn’t just consist of friends and family but include people far from your inner circle. Junior Brian Cunningham experiences Kioski’s music for the first time.
“I was interested in Kenny’s rap career to see how quality it is,” Cunningham said. “I like the beat to his songs. The lyrics were something I could relate to. Both beats that were in his song were pretty solid.”
Kioski has lots of work to do if he wants to succeed in the vast and expansive world of rap. Kioski pushes himself and looks to continue down his musical journey till he is on the top.
“In five years, I want 500,000 monthly listeners and two albums,” Kioski said.
