Backed by a handful of original releases and projects that consistently adhere to a smooth yet stylish creative identity, ACTHEKiDFROMSPACE blends passion and professionalism in modern music, and as such has amassed tens of thousands of streams across his releases.
We were gifted the chance to interview AC to dig into his creative journey so far and his plans for the future. Here’s the conversation in full.
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Hi AC – great to chat with you, thanks for the opportunity! You’re an artist and sound engineer, so what’s a day in the life like; mostly personal creative stuff or collaborative projects?
Thanks for having me. The majority of my projects revolve around my own music as that’s my main priority. However, I do have some clients that I mix music for weekly or bi-weekly.
A normal day in the life usually depends on how inspired I’m feeling for that day. If I feel a sense of inspiration, it usually begins with writing out my lyrics and recording my vocals. I like to prioritize the creation aspect of music, cause that’s what I enjoy the most.
If there is music that I’m looking to drop in the near future, my day will revolve around mix and mastering the songs and making any changes I feel necessary for it to be ready for the perfect release.
What did 2021’s album The Sky Is Falling represent for you as a creative building a name?
The release of my album The Sky Is Falling was a couple years in the making. I wanted to show the smooth side of my art and try to build a project that would represent just that. After the drop, a part of me still wasn’t satisfied completely with it. But I feel as an artist, most of us are perfectionists who are working towards allowing imperfection to shine, as its nearly impossible to have a perfect song or perfect album.
After the release, my focus shifted a bit towards making singles instead of albums.
“The attention span in this day & age has definitely dropped & most people won’t take the time to listen thoroughly to the entire album. Which is a shame.”
However, if I drop singles, it allows me to show case my cross genre ability and ensure that I am getting the most from my listeners.
You maintain a blissfully mellow vibe yet with crisp and catchy inflections across an extensive repertoire. Which song from your collection would you recommend to new listeners first, and why?
Thank you for that. I do enjoy working in a range of different genres, while still maintaining the “AC” sound.
If you were a new listener, I do believe there is something in my catalogue for everyone. If you enjoy R&B, I’d recommend listening to songs such as Not My Type or Be Ok. If you’re someone who prefers Pop, I’d recommend songs like Wifey or Bring You To Life to give you the emotions and upbeat vibe your searching for.
But if you’re someone who enjoys lyricism or just hype rap, songs like $ Turn Me On (Freestyle) and Bitter Sweet should do the trick. Its hard for me to narrow down just one song, but as I mentioned, I do believe there is something there for just about any listener.
You describe your intention as being to make smooth midnight songs that evoke the same feelings and memories you experienced during composition – to me this refers to authenticity in the artistic approach, delving in whole-heartedly and not simply with a formulaic aim. On that note, what was one of the very first songs to impact you as a music fan, and what was it about that song that connected?
Love that description of what you said. There is definitely no formula. My goal is truly to connect to my audience on a soul to soul based level.
One song that I connected to in particular was MOMMA by Russ. I loved the meaning behind it and it touched my heart due to the success behind his story as an artist.
My goal is truly to be able to give my parents the life they deserve and the fact that Russ was able to do just that, inspired me. Whether it’d be the lyrics or the overall feeling the sound gives you, that’s my goal when I’m making music. To truly connect.
Bring You To Life is brilliant, the reggae rhythm and the fast yet quiet vocal flow brings a catchy and alternative aspect. Then there’s the smooth tone of Wifey, similarly hypnotic but taking hints of genre from various realms. How do you decide which direction to take a new song in?
Thank you for the kind words. I love making music with Pupa Tee. His Nigerian influenced sound and my smooth pop-esque tend to work very well together. He is a great artist and a great friend as well. Damien Knight and I are very close friends as well, so no matter when we make music together, it always turns out amazing.
Most of the directions that I choose to take towards a new song comes from the feelings I am currently feeling while creating. If I’m in a more upbeat feeling, I definitely choose the more party themed songs. If I have things to get off of my chest, I’ll go towards the lyrical route and try to connect more to the audience through a smooth more emotional vibe and lyrics.
It all comes from real life situations and the rest of the creating process just sort of flows on its own. Most of my stuff is freestyled, so when I’m singing I end up talking about things that are truly on my mind. I find myself expressing better that way.
“I don’t believe in making music based off a formula because if its not real to me, I can’t expect my audience to connect & feel inspired by it either.”
Tell me about the new single Dying To Win – things get gritty, higher-octane and heavy yet still offering that late-night aspect; motivational in its sense of drive and possibility. What inspired you to write this, and what do you hope people take away from it?
Dying To Win was a very quick project to complete. I remember as soon as the beat came on, I just started singing the chorus and it just stuck. I wanted to feature Swizzy because he carries such an energetic feeling whenever he raps. I needed the audience to feel a sense of hype and I think we were able to capture just that.
I wanted to motivate my listeners with this one, to go out and chase their dreams. I remember growing up listening heavily into Meek Mill and always felt inspired after. He was just able to get in my head and push me to chase my goals. That’s where I get the inspiration towards my “hype rap” type songs.
How do you choose artists to work with, what’s an appealing quality and what’s something that really turns you away from someone’s music or approach?
Honestly something I stand by is keeping everything real within my music, including the people I choose to work with. I usually find that if I’m able to build a true friendship with the other artist before recording a song, the song usually comes out easier and better.
I’d prefer to actually connect with the other artist because I feel it will give the listener the sensation of there being a true dynamic between the two or three artists on the song, hence making the song easier to listen to and flow more naturally.
What’s next for you?
When I look at my future, I truly just want to be financially stable off purely my music. I want to be able to do it all myself.
“When deciding to build my own studio and learn how to sound engineer it was because I saw the importance of independence & not having to rely on anyone to do what I can do myself.”
The next step towards that is learning how to produce instrumentals so I can truly do it all myself. My goal is to add “producer” to my resume by early next year.
Is there anything else we need to know?
Thanks for taking the time to talk. I truly hope my music can be enjoyed and listened to for many many more years to come.
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Check out ACTHEKiDFROMSPACE on Instagram.
