[FEATURE] VIPER PRESENTS: KWN

East London singer KWN is set for a big career following the release of ‘No Cinderella’, get familiar with this VIPER interview…

What five words define your sound?

Raw, genre-less, unapologetic, refreshing, timeless. 

Tell me something unique about your creative process

People sometimes find it unique that I record with autotune on, also I never start any idea the same, I don’t have a fixed process to make music it’s whatever feels right.

Which song of yours would you like people to hear first?

All of my music that I want out isn’t yet, so I’d say ‘No Cinderella’. 

What inspired you to make that song?

It’s about a girl I was speaking to at the time that didn’t wanna pursue anything further so I was just deeping that nothing is really as fairytale as they make it out to be. 

What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music? 

I think writing with other people, because everything comes from my story or experiences in life I find it hard to express that around people even if it is just a session and we’re writing. 

What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage?

I haven’t performed like that except for back in college and a lot of that was shambolic to be honest [laughs]. 

What is your favourite song to perform?

I guess I can say I can’t wait to perform ‘No Cinderella’ but there’s so many songs I have unreleased that are made to be played live.  

Which artist/song/album made you want to make music?

I think anything Michael Jackson inspired me when I was younger, I was so in awe of everything he could do; he’s the goat for real. But then when I heard artists like Ty Dolla Sign and PARTYNEXTDOOR, it kinda changed my sound and the way I approached writing. 

What’s the meaning behind your name?

There’s no meaning to it to be honest, it used to be just k1 and then I mixed my initials together to make it kwn instead. 

If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing instead?

I have no idea I used to play football and I turned down a scholarship to pursue music. But my last job was a junior pastry chef and I proper enjoyed it so I feel like i would’ve kept that going for a while.

What’s success to you?

Taking care of my family first and foremost but also just having people hear my art, hearing them sing my songs back to me, performing it all over the world.

What moment in your life/career forced you to change direction?

I always say college really put life into perspective for me, I changed the company I kept close. It allowed me to be who I wanted but also taught me a lot about myself. That and I think lockdown made me a much stronger person with a lot more understanding about what I want in life.

Where can people keep in touch with you?

It’s @kwnway across all socials, music platforms it’s just kwn!