With his versatile sound, smooth vocals and earnest lyrics, singer-songwriter Gun Boi Kaz is on the cusp of pop stardom. His genuine and heartfelt connection with fans through social media has translated to energetic live performances, including a headlining turn at the Street Eats and Beats Festival last month. Atlas sat down with him before the show to talk about connecting with the fans, favorite songs to perform and upcoming new music.
Atlas Artist Group: Like a lot of people, we first got to know you and your music through TikTok and you’ve built an incredible fanbase online. What does it mean to you to now bring all of that music and energy to a live audience?
Gun Boi Kaz: They’re two very different things- it’s almost like two different worlds. Interacting with people online is nice but it can only ever be very surface level. Meeting people in real life is like…you create a bond and they get to know the actual artist behind the music which is really nice. That’s the whole reason why I love performing and meeting fans and meeting people.
Atlas: You’ve also collaborated with a lot of great artists. How do you decide who to work with and do you still have a wish list of potential future collaborators?
GBK: There’s always going to be a wish list! When it comes to figuring out who I want to work with, it’s really just energy. I don’t really care if you’re super small or way bigger than me, as long as your energy’s good [and] you’re willing to be open-minded and we can vibe, that’s really the biggest thing for me. I worked with an artist recently- heyzuko!- and he’s a smaller artist but a great kid, love the guy.
Wish list though- Keshi is probably number one. Enhypen would be really cool and then Post Malone just because I love my Posty.
Atlas: Out of this festival’s lineup, who are you most excited to see?
GBK: Hevel and Hohyun- super dope, love those guys. Wolftyla is obviously going to kill it and PRYVT is probably who I’m definitely most excited for- they’re super talented.
Atlas: Which song are you most excited to perform and which song do you see the fans connecting with on a deeper level?
GBK: The one I’m most excited to perform is “23 and Up” mostly because that song just means a lot to me. I write a song every year for my birthday and that was the one that I wrote for this past year and it’s just about growing up and trying to find my way as a young adult who never went to college and does music for a living. A lot of my songs talk about love, heartbreak but this one kind of just talks about me so it means a lot to me. It’s also just a really fun song.
Probably the one most loved by people is “Tattoos”- that one always just hits for people. Everybody loves the chorus.
Atlas: After this festival, what’s coming up for you?
GBK: I guess we’ll see- I’m mostly working on this new music right now. For this past year, I didn’t really release too much. I’ve been working on honing in my sound and really finding myself outside of music and in music. Just dropping some new projects and hopefully doing some shows around the area and not in the area- just seeing where life takes me.
Atlas: Now that you’re working on new music, where are you drawing inspiration from these days?
GBK: I’ve always pulled inspiration from stories from my friends. My life is very drama-less. It’s hard to write heartbreak songs when I don’t deal with heartbreak but a lot of my friends will come to me and vent to me so I’ll just write songs about their lives. I also get inspiration from artists as well. My playlist is just full of underground artists- that’s where I pull the most inspiration from. I feel like underrated artists have the best sound these days.
Atlas: Who are you listening to that you’d recommend to others?
GBK: Tiffany Day- she is so good and another Asian artist so shout out to Tiffany Day. Annika Wells- she just did a song with JVKE but her other music is insane. Monty.pk- I think he’s based out of here (Arizona) and he’s probably one of the most talented musicians I know.
Atlas: Is there anything else you want people to know about you or is there anything you wish you could talk about more that you might not get asked?
GBK: I feel like I’m pretty open with my fans- I’m a chill guy! I think a lot of people think I’m hard to approach. A lot of times I’ll go out in public and someone will hit me up after saying “hey, I saw you and I was too scared to come say hi”. I try to be as sweet as I can- I’m a little shy so it’s hard to go up and talk to people but if you come say hi I’ll be very welcoming and friendly.
