Rich Kidd
Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2007 | INDIE
Music
Press
http://therealfrequency.podbus.com/blog/2010/10/23/rich-kidd-interview-w-aux-tv-video/ - AUX TV
Video. - TorontoRappers.com
For Toronto-based producer Rich Kidd, his We on Some Rich Kidd Shit series of mixtapes aren't just a musical calling card, or a showcase of his beat-making skills ? they act as a showcase for everyone he works with, too. To Kidd, Rich Kidd Shit is a way for him and the MCs he works with to pull an end-run on a Canadian music industry that has a long history of being indifferent to up-and-coming domestic hip-hop artists.
"I know some of these artists can't always push their music to the fullest," said Kidd. "Whether it be their mixtape or a full album, sometimes it doesn't get the proper push, so in the places where I know that tape or that album won't get that push, I put it out there."
Dig a little deeper, though, and Kidd sounds less like a producer looking to help his fellow artists, and more like a music industry revolutionary, determined to get artists to band together and turn their backs on major labels that tend to either ignore hip-hop all together or else exploit the musicians. In addition to being a producer, Kidd has found himself acting as a sort of informal publisher, A&R, publicist and mentor.
"A lot of artists don't know that you don't need a label. You can go touring and make enough money on your own... and labels ain't going to teach you nothing. Nobody is going to teach you nothing," said Kidd. "When I get with these artists, I kind of act like a publisher, but I don't take money out of publishing. But I'm pushing joints where people couldn't otherwise see them."
Despite taking on all these unofficial roles, Kidd says he doesn't want to get formally involved in the business side of the industry at this point in his career. In fact, he worries that the music business may just be inherently corrupt.
"If it ever got to the point where I was to create my own label, I don't feel I'd be as corrupt as these people. But to break bread with these people, just to get money to operate, it feels like you almost got to be as corrupt as them," he said. "All these big multi-million dollar labels, they feed off artists. They're like parasites. They sell you dreams, and then they feed off of you and suck you dry, for fucking whatever you have to offer."
Unfortunately for record labels, artists like Kidd are using technology to circumvent the traditional record industry set-up. According to Kidd, this doesn't just let artists like him make money by cutting out the middleman, it also means that they can get feedback from listeners.
"You don't even need iTunes. There's a site called Bandcamp, you can put you album up and you pay what you want... that's a way to tell if people really like your shit. Back in the day, [you] had to go buy a whole album just to see what [you] liked and didn't like. Now, you can listen to thing and say 'I don't give a fuck, I'm keeping this shit,' or if you're a real die-hard fan, you can go buy it. That's a testament right there. If it came to that, me running a digital distributed label, with digital marketing, I wouldn't object to that kind of shit. I think I have some knowledge I could bring."
- Exclaim Magazine
Late last year, a song appeared on Busta Rhymes’s Back On My Bullshit Mixtape 2008, which is a teaser for his long-delayed Back On My B.S. album, tentatively due March 24 on Motown/Universal.
Titled Undescribable and featuring M.O.P., it’s a slow-grooving tune that finds the aging rap star more inspired than usual while energetically riffing with Billy Danze and Lil’ Fame. More notable is the fact that it uses a beat originally produced by Mississauga’s Rich Kidd.
“I’m just looking to get fair compensation for it.” Rich Kidd
How Busta Rhymes got hold of the beat is still unknown – beat discs are often passed around and duplicated without the producer’s consent. That doesn’t concern Rich Kidd as much as getting paid. Plus, there’s always a chance a mixtape song will appear on the real-deal album.
“I’m just looking to get fair compensation for it,” says Kidd. “Not a lot, just something, because I can’t use it for anything else now. It made me feel good to hear it, but I want the business taken care of.”
Not an unreasonable request. But if Busta Rhymes doesn’t ante up money and respect for the rising Toronto producer, he can add this minor violation to his list of bad karma incidents. Stay tuned... - Now Magazine
"Rich Kidd is an incredible artist" - Drake
"Rich Kidd is an acclaimed artist" - HipHopCanada
- HipHopCanada
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
Since his ascension from local underground stardom to national fame in the past couple of years, Toronto's best-kept secret Rich Kidd is now out in the open. With a landmark year that saw him spread his name all over the world, Rich has been steadily amassing praise from industry greats and music critics for his 360-degree musical vision: as a visionary artist, world-class producer, and electrifying performer. From his very first steps as a producer, Rich Kidd's name has been synonymous with quality and it didn’t take long for him to get in the studio with the country’s best like Drake, Kardinal Offishall, K-os, Shad, and Saukrates, adding underground classics, commercial hits and award-winning projects to his resume. Letting the music speak for itself, Rich Kidd’s name and signature sound traveled the globe with his compilations We On Some Rich Kidd Shit Vol. 1-7, his beat tapes Kiddstrumentals Vol. 1 & 2 and with collaborative work under his belt with rap greats like Busta Rhymes, Redman, Raekwon, DMX, and Talib Kweli, each time bringing him closer into the radar of rap royalty. Whether it comes from joy or pain, sampled-based or entirely original, the constant with Rich Kidd’s sound is the attention to bass, giving a certain feel to his music that takes the listener on an emotional ride. Lyrically, his depth of vision and perspective mirrors the production style. A comedian and a realistic, he writes music that is above all human. In the past year, Rich Kidd has cemented his reputation on every front. His collaborative album The Closers with SonReal took him on the road for months, his solo project In My Opinion delivered his biggest singles to date with "Syke" and "I'd Be Lying". In My Opinion went on to be the only independently released project in the Rap Category nominated for a JUNO in 2014. Kiddstrumentals Vol. 2 and We On Some Rich Kidd Shit Vol. 7 cemented his stature as a producer, and Naturally Born Strangers is a pioneering project with Toronto clothing line TheLegendsLeague showcased his range. Now with a debut album on the way, anticipation is sky high as there seems to be no limit to what the Kidd can do.
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