Kayzo’s humble beginnings as a scholar of Icon Collective in Southern California appear to be a lifetime in the past, now that he’s simply introduced his Unleashed XL tour for 2023, ending with a headlining efficiency on the iconic Discussion board in Los Angeles. Since he began the undertaking in 2012, he’s hit each marker of progress and has steadily grown as an artist and individual, resulting in this really monumental event.
The Unleashed XL tour is on sale now. We caught up with Kayzo over the cellphone this week to speak about his greatest headline present to-date, reigniting the Unleashed tour after COVID, and what it took make this all occur.
So I’ve identified you for I take into consideration seven years now, since that first interview within the pizza store in North Hollywood.
Oh, my God, dude. Yeah, that’s such a throwback. I forgot all about that setting till now.
I used to be at your first Doghouse takeover at Avalon in 2016. I believe I used to be at your first EDC too whenever you went again to again with Protohype and Lookas in 2015.
Oh, yeah, the bassPOD, we opened it up at doorways.
Now you’re headlining one of the iconic venues in Los Angeles, The Discussion board. When that provide got here via, what was going via your head, particularly wanting again at the place you’ve come from?
You mentioned it greatest. It’s one of the iconic venues in Los Angeles and one of the iconic historic venues round simply judging by its historical past. It’s been 5 years, occurring six subsequent 12 months, from my final headline play in LA which was on the Palladium.
Was it actually that lengthy?
Yeah, dude, isn’t that loopy? Yeah, it was like 2017 once I did the Palladium. And so, clearly, with COVID our plans that we had at the moment bought pushed again, so it’s been 5 years because the final LA present, you understand, LA being type of sentimental for me. It’s essential to me as a result of it’s the place every part began musically for me again in 2012 so ensuring that we placed on the largest, greatest Kayzo present that we are able to presumably do in Los Angeles is type of like prime precedence, proper? It’s type of like, you set the tone with it. It’s like a mile marker and type of efficiency in Los Angeles, at all times for me. So after we had been type of determining the place we needed to play, what our goal was, and what our aim was for the present, The Discussion board at all times caught out to me as a result of, you understand, I’ve been to different reveals on the Discussion board. Non-dance music reveals particularly. And I keep in mind the final rock present I noticed there. It was Convey Me The Horizon in 2019, and I noticed Fever 333, and I forgot who performed within the center. Nevertheless it was the primary steel and rock present that I noticed at The Discussion board. And there’s simply an vitality in there that was –
That present was with Thrice. [laughs]
Yeah. Okay. It was with Thrice. Yeah, present was unimaginable. And, for me, it’s simply, you understand, rising up, listening to you understand all kinds of completely different rock, steel, pop punk, different, type of hardcore stuff, submit hardcore, and likewise coming from a sports activities background, via hockey, that kind of sports activities/enviornment type venue, these kinds of venues generally, I at all times type of gravitate in direction of as a result of it’s a superb illustration of my life with sports activities and my life with music now, since they usually home these kinds of occasions. So, the vitality in these kinds of arenas, particularly The Discussion board, like once I noticed that present, I type of knew proper then and there that was like– I keep in mind, I used to be with my supervisor at that present. I used to be like, “Dude, we’ll play this venue sooner or later. We have to play right here,” like there’s one thing about this place that simply units it other than some other venue that I’ve been to in LA for music at the moment. And so when that provide got here in, it was type of surreal as a result of I knew it was attainable to do The Discussion board. I simply didn’t know when, and I simply didn’t understand how it could come about. And so when that possibility grew to become obtainable, it was tremendous full circle for me. I began to recollect all of the reveals I’ve been to there and simply having that dialog with my supervisor like, “We’re going to do a present there.”
I’m so excited for the present and it’s been one thing that we’ve been engaged on for months, and we’re nonetheless engaged on, by way of making it excellent for everyone by the point Could rolls round.
So that you’re now the third EDM artist prior to now 12 months to announce or play on the Discussion board. , Subtronics and RL Grime. And also you talked about that you just haven’t seen any EDM acts there. The one ones I’ve seen prior to now 5 years had been Armin van Buuren and The Chainsmokers. What do you assume is occurring that artists, significantly, it appears, bass artists, at the moment are enjoying The Discussion board? Are they opening as much as it or is bass attending to that crossover space the place The Discussion board is now like, “Yeah, we are able to do that.”
Proper. It’s a superb query, I believe just a little little bit of each. I believe sure acts such as you talked about at the very least within the final couple of months, and I used to be on the RL Grime present too, which was nice, actually, actually dope present. It’s a venue the place an artist that actually takes delight within the imaginative and prescient and the storytelling behind the model and the showmanship of the present, it’s a superb place to point out off that story exterior of the everyday membership and even regular venue. It’s only a greater stage, and it’s a unique kind of viewing expertise than different venues which you could go see. So I believe The Discussion board, clearly they’re coming round to see extra dance music in there. Dance music is at a superb place for these like giant scale reveals. The reveals that they placed on there, whether or not they’re digital particular music, or with myself who does a mix of rock and digital that’ll convey, like with out making a gift of an excessive amount of of who we have now and what we’re doing, like we’re bringing a complete reside expertise exterior of simply DJing to this present and to the tour that I simply introduced even exterior of LA for my set. That type of resembles what I did in 2019 with Unleashed however on a bigger scale in a unique format, and likewise, you understand, there’s going to be help bands and completely different reside components to the present that type of convey it full circle, make it really feel not much less like a rave, but it surely brings the the storytelling and the backstory of the place I come from musically, what I get pleasure from exterior of dance music to the desk.
I believe they see this as a superb alternative for artists to take greater dangers. And check out various things out that aren’t simply the conventional, normal, massive LA present. So I believe The Discussion board offers us a platform to take greater dangers. And I believe they’re enthusiastic about showcasing that with the newer technology and the newer types of music like digital music and never simply being so band-centric and you understand, “We solely do bands, we do reside music,” they’re now type of shifting and diverting in direction of additionally having extra digital music in there. So it’s type of simply coming with the occasions. Similar to some other main metropolis venue, competition. We’ve been seeing it for the final 10+ years, the illustration of dance music artists or phases at main crossover festivals are just about normal at this level. So I believe you’re beginning to see that bleed over into the exhausting ticket touring facet of issues with artists, you understand, digital music doesn’t have to only essentially be in a membership or a venue that homes simply digital music. Now you possibly can take it to The Discussion board or, you understand, you see acts play at SoFi Stadium or Allegiant in Vegas like with Illenium. If there’s a narrative to be instructed, and there’s an viewers for it, I believe these venues are far more welcoming to it now.
Completely yeah. You form of already touched on my subsequent two questions just a little bit, however I’ll simply hold it shifting. Beforehand, you talked about the RL Grime present on the Discussion board, and I keep in mind seeing you there the night time earlier than Escape. And I type of talked about to you want, “Oh, you’ve bought an enormous announcement at Escape, huh?” I clearly had no thought it was going to be in regards to the Discussion board on the time. I don’t know when you keep in mind this.
Yeah we had been on the bar speaking about it.
Have been you making an attempt to, like, disguise a smirk the entire time, such as you knew?
Yeah. I imply, it was simply type of like I used to be making an attempt to maintain it beneath wraps simply solely as a result of like, not that I used to be afraid of anybody saying something. I simply was excited; we had already filmed this actually, actually, actually cool promo video that I premiered at Escape to tender announce the present to everybody in LA that was at my Escape set. So I simply needed like that to be like, exterior of the promoters that booked the present and my managers, I needed even like associates and people who I be in contact with within the business to be fully shocked and likewise blown up, like, let that be an enormous second, so I used to be making an attempt actually exhausting to only hold it beneath wraps till that second occurred at Escape. what I imply? However I used to be positively excited to be there for that present and type of simply get a superb perception of like, what’s to return and what the capabilities are from a manufacturing and showmanship standpoint at a venue like that, and it was actually, actually thrilling to see what will be completed in that venue.
We had been additionally speaking about your Unleashed tour. I used to be wanting up earlier than this, you understand, for the in your final album, you introduced that tour. I believe it was like January or February, 2020. And that was like simply a few months earlier than the pandemic, and now you’re doing the Unleashed XL, even greater than earlier than. So, I imply, such as you’ve come out of the pandemic, you understand, completely leveled up. How does it really feel to, for lack of a greater phrase, overcome that adversity and are available out the opposite aspect on a a lot greater stage?
Yeah, that was type of a bummer again then. I keep in mind asserting the Unleashed tour that we had been speculated to do. We introduced initially of 2020 after which, like, actually, like two months later, like a month after asserting or no matter it was, needed to pull all of it down. I simply had such massive aspirations for that tour as a result of I had simply bought completed doing the Unleashed, massive one-off solely reveals in San Francisco and Chicago and New York, Houston, the place we had been testing the concept as a result of we had been enjoying Coachella in 2019. So we needed to convey a reside facet to Coachella, and that’s what sort of sparked the concept of Unleashed to start with, with a number of the reveals. So, we introduced that massive tour. We had been so excited coming off Coachella and people reveals after which the pandemic occurs. And, you understand, I by no means knew if I used to be going to get one other alternative to do the Unleashed present or one thing prefer it. what I imply? Didn’t know what got here out was what was going to return out the opposite aspect throughout the entire expertise with COVID.
After which popping out of it after which getting the alternatives to proceed to grind and work exhausting on my craft, and proceed to push this sound and this narrative that I’m doing with my music with rock and digital, getting the possibility to, convey again Unleashed and do Unleashed XL as a result of you understand greater, higher manufacturing and type of a unique story. I’m identical to tremendous, tremendous lucky and grateful for it. As a result of that authentic tour thought was such an essential piece to my storytelling and I didn’t know if I used to be ever going to inform it. And now I get to convey it again to life in a unique, progressive manner for 2023. It’s like full circle, and it comes with a number of different progress, private progress, artistic progress, progress in my relationships and you understand my girlfriend, household, and every part from the pandemic. I want I might have been capable of do the tour again then. However I’m nearly happier that I’ve been capable of type of undergo much more private and inventive progress and I believe I’ve been capable of type of put myself in a significantly better and completely different headspace that I believe will solely profit the tour and the present and all my followers that come to those reveals. I’m excited that we lastly get to inform it and we get to convey it throughout the US and Canada after which finish it off in LA on the Discussion board.
The lineup for the tour simply bought introduced as properly. It’s actually superb to see who’s gonna be supporting and enjoying with you on this run. The Discussion board help continues to be TBA. However you understand, you already type of touched on this, with a number of your LA reveals we are able to anticipate one thing actually particular. I do know you possibly can’t actually get into too many specifics, however is there something you possibly can perhaps, like, tease?
For certain. We have now one date nonetheless to announce within the tour that’s like type of spray painted out proper now, after which we have now these TBA helps, not as a result of we don’t know what we’re doing, however as a result of we’re type of identical to ready to announce these at a later date, as a result of, yeah, they’re they’re going to be greater than a traditional present. Clearly, venues like The Discussion board are big, proper? So we need to actually come out the gate swinging and convey one thing particular. And in addition like I alluded to earlier, reveals just like the Discussion board and a few of these greater reveals like we’re bringing a reside facet to them. So like we have now bands, and bands as in plural, on these reveals, So, I don’t need to give away an excessive amount of of like, who and what, just like the specifics as a result of we’ve bought a while till then, however like I’ll say there’s going to be an enormous reside facet to that present particularly that can separate it from something that I’ve completed in LA and likewise something that I’ve completed prior to now to date with some other Unleashed present. Keep tuned for that one. It’s going to have some issues that individuals have been asking for out of doors of the band. I get hit up on social media on a regular basis, and a few of these requests are lastly going to return to fruition on the Discussion board so I believe individuals will likely be pleasantly shocked and excited for what we have now deliberate.
