Unveiling the Future: An Exclusive Interview with Rising Star Keoni on His Journey, Vision, and Upcoming Creations!
By. Alicia Zamora
A Conversation with Keoni Usi
In an exclusive interview conducted by Alicia's Studio, I had the privilege of talking with the incredibly talented and up-and-coming artist Keoni. During our conversation, Keoni shared profound insights about the inspiration behind his music. He expressed how his music is a deeply personal reflection of his experiences and emotions, which he hoped would resonate with his audience. Keoni's sincerity and passion for his craft were palpable, and it was evident that his music was a heartfelt expression of his artistry.
Moreover, Keoni articulated the profound impact that music holds on him. He emphasized how music serves as a powerful medium for self-expression and connection, both for the artist and the listener. Keoni's thoughtful perspective shed light on the transformative nature of music, highlighting its ability to evoke emotions and unite people across diverse backgrounds. His genuine enthusiasm for creating music that resonates on a deeper level was truly inspiring.
Looking ahead, Keoni offered a glimpse into what's to come, hinting at exciting new projects and creative visions he has for himself. His enthusiasm for exploring different musical styles and pushing boundaries was evident, hinting at a promising future filled with innovation and artistic growth. As Keoni continues to carve his path in the music industry, it's clear that his unwavering dedication and authentic approach will continue to captivate audiences and establish him as a talented artist in the music world.
Diving In
Alicia: Welcome back to Alicia’s Studio; we have our fifteenth special guest!
Keoni: I’m Keoni Usi… hi! I kind of do music, I write, and I sing.
Alicia: Okay, let's dive into the first question. What inspired you to pursue music, and how did that journey begin for you?
Keoni: What inspired me… I’ll be honest. I never thought I’d do music. My little brother got me into it, so he forced me to do an open mic. Then I liked performing. Then I actually ran into my now-manager and older brother figure Rini at a taco shop, and then from there, the rest is history. But yeah, it’s been a short three months, but a lot has happened.
Alicia: Yeah, it hasn’t been long, right?
Keoni: No, literally, I started this three months ago. Actually, today is the anniversary of when I dropped my first song. So it’s been very, very quick.
Alicia: How would you say personal experiences influence your songwriting?
Keoni: It really depends. I think one of the projects I’ve worked on was a therapy project for me but that’s not out yet. But certain songs are written to tell stories in the way I’ve seen things occur in my life, and then other songs that I drop every now and then are just fun experiences I’ve had with friends. So we get together and make some fun stuff. Typically, we don’t plan anything, but good stuff comes out when we're just having a good time.
Alicia: What emotions do you typically experience when writing a new song?
Keoni: Oo, that one’s a mixture. It depends on what I’m writing for. I think some projects I do to tell a story completely, so if I’m really in it, sometimes sad songs will make it, and it’s exactly what I feel. But with other songs, too, if I’m just trying to have fun, then I make things that are catchy or sound good. But yeah, I'm just enjoying myself, energetic, enthusiastic, and yeah!
Alicia: Oo, okay. What themes do you find yourself drawn to in your music, and why? What are you aiming for, like music genre-wise?
Keoni: I like music from every genre, but I think as my own artist, I’d like to do a lot more alternative R&B or like old R&B. A lot of the artists that I look up to are in those genres, so I’m very much pulled to that type of music.
Alicia: Can you walk us through your songwriting or composing process? Do you start with lyrics, melody, or another element?
Keoni: That one’s interesting too. Actually, I typically write like a story so I guess it does depend on what project I’m on. The first project I actually finished was a short film idea I had. I planned it to be a movie so when I’m in that mind space, I kind of create a whole entire universe and environment where it’s like one main character in a story from beginning to end. That's typically my more meaningful, lengthier projects. Some of the other stuff that I just recently dropped and that I’ll be dropping soon are things that I literally just do for fun.
Keoni: So I’ll wake up in the morning and just have something in my head, and I’m like, okay, that's a song, so I’ll write that. When I’ve worked with my buddy Rini, it’s like I’m crashing at his house, and then it’s like 11 p.m. and we're bored, so we just throw something together, and it ends up sounding decent or really good. But yeah, it really just depends, but my writing process depends on how much I want to go into the project.
Alicia: So you wouldn’t say that you feel pressure to release things or are overwhelmed when working on music? Is it something natural for you?
Keoni: Yeah, I think it’s more natural. Initially, I actually wanted to be a writer more than anything. But yeah, my friends will ask me all the time, how do you do it? And it’s like, I can’t really explain it because it just happens. I’m lucky it happens that way, but yeah my writing process is something I can’t really explain. It’s like I hear it in my head, and then it’s just there no guitar first or melody first. It’s just whatever happens well happens. Like I’ll record stuff in my voice memos in the car and then it turns into like a full song.
Alicia: Since you’ve started, what has been one of your biggest challenges as an artist?
Keoni: Sometimes I lose track of how soon I actually just started this. Like, I have a lot of friends that have been doing this for years and they’re years ahead of me, but in my head, I’m pretty competitive like I assume that I should be there but then I’m like, I’ve only been doing this for three months. So it’s okay for me not to know what I’m doing yet. I think the biggest challenge so far has been not rushing myself and just allowing the journey to take it’s course.
Alicia: So is it more like you find yourself comparing yourself to other artists?
Keoni: Yeah, it’s not like I need to be better than them, but I look up to them so much that I feel like because they’ve done it, I can do it overnight, which in reality, the artist I look up to is Dijon and them, and it took them years to find their sound. But yeah I definitely shouldn’t be thinking I need to do it overnight but that’s where my mind automatically goes. So yeah, that’s probably the most challenging thing.
Alicia: Now, going into your most recent release for you single ‘Air It Out’ what's the story or inspiration behind that single? What do you hope listeners take away from this single?
Keoni: That song came from my friend and me just messing around in his living room. The story behind it is that we were talking about the complications we sometimes have with friends or partners like assuming things and arguments happening. I think both of us have a personality where it’s like “yo can we just chill and not argue?”. Like can we just enjoy what were doing. So a lot of that song’s actually to explain like hey I know your mad at me but can we just talk; talk about everything but what you’re mad about and just try to pretend like nothing happened.
Alicia: So it’s like avoiding it?
Keoni: Kind of, yeah. I just don’t take things too seriously and I think that’s what I meant by that song, where it’s kind of like at the end of the day, it’s really not that serious. So that’s what that song is trying to portray. But we made that for fun, which is how it should be, and it came out the way we wanted it to.
Alicia: What is a song you’ve written that feels the most personal to you, and what’s the story behind it?
Keoni: Convenience for sure! I only have three songs out but convenience is definitely a part of a project that means a lot and it’s part of a chapter of the film. But that one is probably the most meaningful because it’s a portion of my life where I kind of felt like I was a burden to people. So the song Convenience might not be the catchiest song and it might not be the most radio-friendly. Still, I definitely do think a lot of people can resonate with the feeling of sometimes feeling like they’re too much for people or that no matter what they do it’s not right for the other people in your life. So convenience is definitely the most vulnerable one out so far.
Alicia: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned about yourself through your music career?
Keoni: Honestly, always be a good person, have good intentions, and surround yourself with good people. Just in general, not even just in music but I think by doing that, good stuff just tends to happen. So yeah that’s the biggest lesson. Just don’t forget why you started and why you’re doing it. Then, surround yourself with people who are also on a similar journey because sometimes you forget, and there’s always someone there to remind you. But that’s definitely a good lesson I’ve learned.
Alicia: I know you only started three months ago but what has been your greatest achievement so far and what do you want to achieve in the future?
Keoni: My greatest achievement… At the end of the day I know music about numbers but I think my biggest achievement was in a weird way, seeing my dad cry when I was performing. Just because I don’t think my dad ever imagined me doing this. Like he knew we would do good things, but he didn’t think I would be doing it this way. So I think my biggest achievement was seeing the toughest guy in my eyes cry over my music which I was like okay he sees what I don’t tell him to his face through my performing he can feel what I actually think in my head so that’s probably the biggest achievement so far.
Keoni: Things I want to achieve… I know I’m only three months in, but I do want to perform a couple of times and definitely want to go on a tour. I’m working on that, and I will make it happen. I just did the Wish Bus, which was pretty sick.
Alicia: I saw it yesterday, right?
Keoni: Yeah, that was crazy. I was like, what the heck this is dope. But yeah I’m really just down to do whatever. Three months in is like I don’t want my head to get too big.
Alicia: For three months you’re doing really good like it’s insane!
Keoni: I appreciate it. It’s going way better than I thought. I’m just having fun, and I think that's paying off.
Alicia: How do you use music to express emotions or experiences that are difficult to put into words?
Keoni: I’m naturally like an unserious person. I always tell my friends the more jokes I make in person, the more I’m not that happy in my head. That’s just naturally how I’ve been growing up. I’ve always been a class clown, but there was a lot of stuff that was going on at home that people didn’t know about. So, I think music is another outlet for me to not drag my feet in public, but I can let the people who will listen to my stuff know how I actually feel. Hearing their stories and having them tell me they relate to the song. But also, I’ve gotten big paragraphs where people tell me how they perceive the song and their perspective and it makes me feel like yeah, that’s not what I wrote it about but to see them get vulnerable with me is like oh I’m not the only person going through stuff in my own head.
Alicia: It’s just nice to see people get what you’re trying to say
Keoni: Yeah, like all I want to do with this music stuff is meet good people, understand myself through other people and it’s working so far. Like every time I meet somebody and they’re telling me about my music or how it made them feel, I’m like that’s all I want from it, you know. All I want is for other people to feel comfortable talking to me.
Alicia: If you could change one thing about the music industry or the way music is created, what would it be and why?
Keoni: I’m terrible with social media. I’m really bad with it. Growing up, I wasn’t allowed to use social media, so my friends were always way better at it than I was and more comfortable on camera. So I think if I can disappear from social media and still be present in music, I wouldn’t mind social media not being important. But I know that is so I think the only thing I don’t like about the music industry is the reliance on people always needing to see what you’re doing to be relevant in a way.
Alicia: Like being in the public eye
Keoni: Yeah, in the best universe I can just put music out and be fine. But I think there’s a lot more pieces that need to be moved for that to work. So yeah it’s just part of it.
Alicia: What are your goals or aspirations for the future, both personally and professionally?
Keoni: Goals? Man… I don’t know. Honestly I feel like this is the first time I’m actually doing something I wanted to be doing. I didn’t know I wanted to do music my whole life. But now that I’m doing it, it feels right. So I don’t really have too much of like crazy goals for myself as a person other than just becoming a better person and then when I get the resources to share with other people that I care about, do that. I definitely don’t need much to survive so I’m like whatever I can help friends with, like I’d love to just be able to do that. So that’s a personal goal. To be able to take care of the people I care about.
Keoni: Career-wise, I want to have a good collection of music for myself and also write for a lot of really good artists. When I’m done putting out music for myself, I’d love to know that my names are on the credits of a lot of artists that I like. Yeah, that’s a big personal goal as an artist and creator.
Alicia: Can you share a story about a moment when you felt completely outside of your comfort zone when creating music?
Keoni: So Kyle and Gabe, I hope they watch this. My friends up North and I met for the first time when we created the album. But I remember in the studio in their shed they told me, “yo why are you not sining” and I was like what the heck I’ve been singing this whole time and they’re like nah you’re trying to sound too good like there’s no emotion in it and for like a couple of minutes we all just started yelling. Like yelling into the mic voice cracking, just trying to get super comfortable and that was a super vulnerable moment for me because I always thought that to be a good performer you just have to sound good but there is value in hearing emotions through your music and in that moment I was like why am I doing this with a whole bunch of dudes I just met? Like why am I screaming into a mic? Why is my voice cracking when I think I need to sound good in my mind? But yeah, super vulnerable, but it was a valuable lesson to me.
Alicia: What’s a musical idea or concept that you’ve always wanted to explore but haven’t had the chance to yet?
Keoni: Ooo, musical concept. I really like the idea of creating crazy universes and making people feel like they’re in them. So I want to work with a whole bunch of… okay, this might sound crazy, but I want to work with a whole bunch of producers who are crazy talented but dislike each other and put them all in the same project where they all have to appreciate what they do.
Keoni: I don’t know. I just don’t take things seriously. I think anyone who meets me through this journey will realize that I just want people to get along. There’s no reason for anyone to be upset with each other. But yeah, I just want to work with a whole bunch of different and talented people and make them appreciate each other. But yeah, I don’t know, I’ve never really thought about that. That's a good question.
Alicia: Where do you see yourself and your music career in the next few years?
Keoni: Hmm, that's a good question. I definitely want to be an iconic figure in my culture. I don’t think there are too many artists who are getting recognition for being as talented as they are. I’ve gotten really lucky with the people I’ve met, but I know a lot of crazy Filipino artists who are trying to pursue the same thing. So, I want to get to the position where I’m a gateway to a lot of artists who are similar to me.
Alicia: Oo, okay so like helping them out.
Keoni: Yeah that’s all I want. I don’t have any crazy visions of like ahh I’m going to be in a huge mansion or selling out every arena. That’ll happen if I make good stuff in general and if I’m a decent person. But I do want to be someone important to my culture. It is not just Filipino culture but also Asian and introverted culture. Any weird kids that felt like they were always trying to be something they weren’t. I want them to be able to be themselves and, yeah, just do some cool stuff.
Alicia: I know you only have three tracks released, but which best describes you as an artist? It could also be some that you haven’t released yet.
Keoni: I think all three is a mixture just because, as I said, when I’m serious, I could probably make some really good stuff but 99% of my life, I’m very unserious. So, I’d say some of the songs that come out that people like the most are the ones I made for fun. My most listened-to song now was made in my buddy’s sister's dorm and we were just joking around. We didn’t think people would listen to it. My friends were like only ten people will listen to this song, and then I kept checking my phone and it went up like 20,000, and it’s like, who's listening to this? So I don’t know I think a combination of all three kind of just show that when I want to take things seriously, I definitely can and I can tell a really good story. But I can also do that when I want to have a good time and make some easy listening fun stuff.
Keoni: So yeah, I don’t know if I can choose a specific one. As an artist, though, convenience is part of a big project that I care about so if they want to know what I’m really going for as an artist it would be that because I want to tell stories like that.
Alicia: What lessons have you learned about yourself through the process of creating and sharing your music?
Keoni: I think I’ve realized that nobody in the world knows what they’re doing. Nobody. That’s like my catchphrase. I actually posted on my Instagram yesterday where it was like “to all my friends that think I’m living the life and everything seems to be working out for me. Just know it’s working because I admit I don’t know what I’m doing.” So, like through this process, I’ve realized even some successful artists that I thought were like chilling also don’t know what they’re doing and they’re just hoping everything works out. But yeah, nobody knows what they're doing.
Keoni: If you look at life like that, and everybody around you kind of looks at it like that and takes things less seriously, then you could enjoy people more and experiences a lot more because you only get them so many times.
Alicia: That's such a good mindset to have, actually
Keoni: Thank you!
Alicia: What’s a dream project or collaboration that you would love to see happen in your career?
Keoni: Okay, I have a couple. One super unrealistic one is Frank Ocean. That’s every… anyone who's done alternative hopes to be in a room with Frank Ocean. It’d be so sick. Will it happen? Most likely not, but that’d be really cool.
Keoni: I think one of my role models growing up was Rini, another big Filipino artist. I worked with him already; he’s like my brother, so I just wanted to do more stuff with him. Bruno Mars, of course, is not my genre, but he would still be cool even if I had to write something for him. Dominic Fike would be really sick, and the last two would be Mk.gee and Dijon. I don’t know if you know who they are.
Alicia: So many people say those artists. I had an interview on Saturday with Seph, and he said the same artist
Keoni: So Mk. gee, musicality, that guy’s crazy. I’d love to be in a room and learn how he hears things. But Dijon was one of the writers who encouraged how I approach my stories. So if I can be on a project with him and just be full circle, that’d be really cool. Those are the artists so far that I’d love to work with.
Keoni: I have a couple of friends, too, who do music and are super dope, and I love to just be in their environment. All Filipino kids and yeah just working with friends who love doing music. The idols I’d like to work with would be Frank Ocean, Dominic Fike, Dijon, and Mk.gee.
Alicia: Have there been any moments of self-doubt in your career so far, and if so, how did you overcome them?
Keoni: Yes, there’s been alot. I think in anybody’s life there’s a lot of self-doubt. No matter how good it’s going it’s like can I be doing this? So yeah, there’s been a lot of self-doubt because I was very competitive in sports growing up so I always thought in a way… in sports at least for me, I thought overnight you can kind of force yourself to be where you want to be. If you’re not good, that's your fault in a way. But I think in music it’s not like that.
Keoni: Music is the journey. The reason it’s good is because you have a story to tell. So I think the reason I overcame that or I’m trying to overcome it, I haven’t yet. I have moments where I’m like yo I’m three months in… why am I so in my own head? Why am I losing myself? Why am I thinking I need to be winning a Grammy when I don’t even know how to log into some of my accounts because I don’t know my passwords so it’s like being realistic. Yeah be realistic with where you are so now I’m more like go with the flow. Work hard but allow things to happen how they’re supposed to. Don’t force them. Now it's starting to work out for me.
Alicia: Are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you're excited about?
Keoni: Yeah, I have a couple of singles coming out. I just did the last one ‘Air It Out, ’ with Rinni, but I also wrote another one with him that’s called ‘Daddy’s Girl.’ That one I did on the bus and it was done for fun with him. That’s like a wedding song, actually. I was crashing at his place, and that’s another project coming out. There are a couple of songs that I’ve just done for fun that are sitting that we might put out soon. I’m excited for those. I’m always excited to put out new music and just meet new people. That's the coolest part. Grand scheme though I have the album that I finished. Musically, that thing has been done for a while. That album was finished three days after I dropped that first song.
Alicia: Woah so you have a whole album coming out?
Keoni: Yeah I have an album coming out. But I think in my mind I’m a little bit too new to have the resources to create the universe I want to at its fullest. So I just want to allow myself to put out music kind of to push myself into the best possible spot where I can put out this album really well. Like I said earlier I wrote this album to be a film. It was a film first and an album after. So I’m creating the world I want for this album to come out the right way and for it to make the most sense to anybody who wants to know who I am and why I write music in the first place.
Alicia: Okay so the film is still being released?
Keoni: Yeah, I’m not putting the album out until the films done. It wouldn’t make as much sense unless the film is out.
Alicia: As an artist, what would you like people to think when they hear the name “Keoni”?
Keoni: I’m just a normal dude. I’m a normal guy. Just as lucky as I got, I can be just as unlucky. Anybody that hears my name I just want them to know that you never know who you’re going to meet or when you're going to meet them or what it can turn into. So just be a good person at heart and just have good intentions. Even if you don’t know what you’re doing, have good intentions because it’ll pay off. So when people hear my name, I just want them to be like oh that’s the cool kid that was talking to me because I was by myself or That was the guy picking up trash because people were leaving trash on the floor at a party. I just want to be a decent person in every environment I’m in.
Alicia: What emotions do you want people to feel when they hear your future work?
Keoni: I just want people to feel like I hear them just as much as they’re hearing what I’m saying. I mean, that’s why people attach themselves so much to music. It makes them feel the way they want to feel in the moment, and yeah, I just want people to hear my music and be like, Man, I can call Keoni right now. He’ll have a full conversation with me and know exactly what I’m saying. Even if somehow I get to millions of streams, I won’t be able to answer every phone call, but I want people to feel like they do. So when I see them at my shows, they can come up and talk to me like, yeah, I heard this song, which is what I felt about it. Hell yeah, that’s exactly why I do it.
Alicia: How do you envision your music impacting the world or your community in the years to come?
Keoni: I see it encouraging people just to take risks. Like, my little brother alone got me to do music but since I’ve started this he’s been like on top of it. He's starting to do it now. Shout out to my brother, his name is Kekoa Usi. He’s new to music too, and I will say that he is very young and had a lot of new things to learn, but even watching him tell me he’s inspired by what I’m doing and him trying to pursue music and trying to get friends together in high school that weren’t together before, that’s all I want. I hope to encourage people to understand each other more and be open to being vulnerable in any setting. But yeah, I'm not afraid to be the odd one out.
Alicia: If you could advise your younger self, what would it be?
Keoni: Let it all happen, honestly. If you guys had met me six months ago, I would have been different. I was always like, Man, I wish this didn’t happen, I wish I didn’t go here, or I wish I would have gone to college, or I wish I would have done this. But I would tell myself like, hey, everything happens the way it’s supposed to happen. But I wouldn’t be enjoying what I’m doing now if I told my younger self anything different. So yeah, just let it all happen. I probably wouldn’t talk to my younger self. I’ll just walk by him and, yeah, dab him up and keep going.
Alicia: What's the best advice you can give someone trying to go down the path of being an artist?
Keoni: Be yourself at all times! There will always be somebody who feels what you’re feeling, not trying to be offensive, but nobody’s as special as they think, in a good way. Everybody has felt the same emotions at different times. If you’re trying to be a musician, if you’re trying to be a photographer, any type of art, even if you’re not doing art and you want to express yourself, allow yourself to be as open and vulnerable as you can—that where you meet good people and there nothing better than just being true to yourself. Yeah, so just completely be yourself, and if there are times when you’re not yourself, just know there are ways to incorporate yourself into environments you are not used to.
Alicia: Ending the interview off, I wanted to say thank you so much for giving me the opportunity and is there any message you want to say to your listeners?
Keoni: Yeah thank you guys for having me on this podcast interview! This is sick. Please subscribe to their videos. But before I leave, I want to shout out to any new artist trying to come up right now. I have a lot of friends who have asked me how I did it. How did you do it? I’m telling you, there’s no way to do it. Literally, just do what you love, and somebody will find it, as long as you stick to it. Over time, somebody will find it.
Keoni: Any new artist, any of my friends or family that watch this interview, just know that at the end of the day, if you’re doing what you love doing, it’ll work out. But yeah, thanks for listening to my music! My name is Keoni Usi. Were on this fire podcast interview, yeah, and five years from now I’ll probably be in the same room with Frank Ocean.
