Easywriters meets KIDFORCE

Over the course of our westcoast roadtrip we were up to an after work beer on Hollywood Boulevard, LA. In fact we were tired and on our way back to the Motel. But things always seem to happen when you least expect them. Some people were waiting in line on a side road – whatever, let’s check it out…

$10 entrance fee is pretty reasonable so we were on our way inside. California’s Gin Tonic mixtures are somehow special. Ice, ice, more ice and Gin. That’s it 😉 We had no clue what kind of music they’d play nor what to expect in general. Out of nowhere some band came on stage and started rocking’ like crazy. They blew our minds away. Obviously we had to talk to these guys after the show to find out who they are …

Easywriters in an interview with KIDFORCE from Los Angeles:

Rhett, you gathered your first music business experiences playing in a hard rock band in the age of 14. What is your story behind it?
I was going through the struggles everyone probably goes through in high school, parents divorce, bullying, drinking… But when I started messing with music, it was the greatest high and escape from life I could find. So my friends and I would ditch class and go thrash out in our drummers garage while his parents were at work.

Which bands have inspired you?
I grew up listening to metal, punk, hip hop, everything from Blink 182 to my dad’s Limp Bizkit CDs, but what made me want to be a singer was Hybrid Theory by Linkin Park. I would cut and bleach my hair and draw sharpie tattoos on my arms to be like Chester Bennington.

As a 15-year-old you started recording your own tracks and playing first gigs in LA. Would you share some major impressions with us?
My first show ever was at a battle of the bands in Universal City Walk, we won first and $2500 making us the richest kids in school. That was pretty much it. Winning something by just having fun? I was hooked.

You dropped college to dedicate your life to music and KIDFORCE. Was it a hard time making that decision?
My mom literally begged me not to pursue music. Her family grew up in it so she knows how ugly and difficult it is, but I knew I loved it and couldn’t live my life without trying. I had to.

You released your EP DEATHPOP in August. How is the feedback so far?
The feedback has been great!! The new tracks have taken the live show to crazy fun new level. This release was definitely more edgy and explicit and I feel like nobody else is doing what I’m doing right now.

What are your plans for the next couple of days on tour?
We switch up the set every show and have meetings after rehearsals discussing what can we do to make it more exciting. One discussion was how can I ride a dirt bike on stage doing burnouts for my entrance without getting banned from the club. But it always comes down to the music and my live band is absolutely killing it. Matnetik running the tracks, Dakota Isaacson on drums, and fellow Acton brother Greg Berger on guitar.

Would you share your craziest, most spaced out rockstar story with us?
Haha! There are a few… but here’s one. Last Halloween I was with some friends and we had no plans. So of course, without even packing bags, we bought some outfits from a thrift store and headed to Vegas. Turns out Skrillex was playing at Mandalay Bay that night, but we were too broke for tickets. I devised a plan and we drove straight to the hotel. We got there pretty early, the crew was still setting up stage lighting and had a back door open for equipment, so we walked in with no hesitation and found the nearest restroom. There we were, hiding in the toilet stalls wearing our thrift store pimp outfits for hours waiting for the club to start. About half way through sound check we decided its been long enough, just as we walked around the corner I saw my photographer friends from New Zealand walking in with their entourage of models. It was so random and total chance but we laughed, high fived, and received all access passes. I spent the whole show hanging out with my idols, drinking beers, and having a blast. Then some college professor looking billionaire named Tim invited us all back to his two story penthouse stacked with nothing but Patron and models. We didn’t go to sleep that night.

Do you have any how-to-survive advises for young musicians out there?
My advice to every young musician is this, know yourself. Truly know who you are and exactly what you want to do. This town will chew you up and spit you out, but as long as you believe and trust in yourself, it can’t touch you. Aside from that, be prepared to work as hard as you ever worked in your life and never see a dime. Be ok with sleeping on floors, be ok with eating others leftovers, but also be prepared to do things so incredible you can’t even explain it to friends and family, go places so life changing you can never capture it in a picture, meet strangers around the world and make memories you will cherish for the rest of your life. And if you still fail, you already succeeded in life experience no school can’t teach or prepare you for. And I promise, college looks pretty damn easy after a couple years in this shit!