Kyle Wants You to Know That ‘It’s Not So Bad’ With New Independent Project

Kyle is known as a lot of things — a rapper, singer, actor, gamer. But with his new album, It’s Not So Bad, he wants to make clear that first and foremost, he is a lover.

Today (Jan. 28), the California native, a.k.a. SuperDuperKyle, released his fifth project and first as a newly independent artist. The 11-song record is “R&B Kyle” on full display as he is finally back to making music that he thinks is cool. “R&B Kyle was activated because I needed to write about the most important topic of all topics in the world – and that’s love and what comes with it,” he says over Zoom from his nook in L.A.

Born Kyle Thomas Harvey, the affable artist reached mainstream success with his Lil Yachty-assisted 2017 hit “iSpy.” Peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, he signed with Atlantic Records shortly after, and the song – along with his major label debut, 2018’s Light of Mine – underscored Kyle as one of hip-hop’s handful of more happy-go-lucky rappers.

“If you think about what hip-hop is, my whole career has been niche – I’m over here singing about butterflies and Pokémon and s–t like that,” the 28-year-old expresses. “I think a misconception about me is [that] I’m happy all the time, but I tell people happiness is like a boxing match, and it happens every morning. You wake up and the bell rings, and you need to fight for it.”

In 2020, he followed up with See You When I am Famous!!!!!!!!!!!!, and like many artists with new projects that year, felt it didn’t reach its potential due to it being released during the pandemic. “I was so meticulous with trying to make that album perfect, and in my eyes, that is still the best thing I’ve ever done,” he says. “But that s–t really hurt me, because it totally did not react in the way that I was expecting it to.” The album debuted at No. 124 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, and lasted just the one week on the listing.

A year later, Kyle announced his split with Atlantic on Instagram, writing, “I have not felt like myself now for some time.. I felt like I was getting pulled in every direction and I had zero control of what means the most to me, my art. It is important to me that I give you all the best of me…”

Now, Kyle is free and back to making music for himself and for his fans. Billboard caught up with the artist to discuss his R&B side, releasing It’s Not So Bad as an NFT, and how he’s being more intentional with his music.

You’re newly independent as of June 2021. In your announcement, you revealed that you didn’t have much control over your art. Can you speak on that experience a bit?

I think I lost control over my art due to the expectations and the pressure that surrounded my specific deal. When “iSpy” happened, I had this massive record and there was this expectation surrounding the label that, “Oh, this is the kind of records that he’s going to make, and he’s going to do it like a factory, again and again and again.” And you get in a cycle of attempting that, and [I] realized my art is no longer being dictated by what I just think is cool.

Business-wise, it [wasn’t] necessarily that beneficial financially for me to be in this, so what am I really in it for? That’s no shade to my partners at Atlantic, because I think they did a phenomenal job with what they had, and together we did a phenomenal job for what we wanted to do. But where I’m currently at in my life, that’s no longer what I want to do. I want to do what I think is cool and what I love, without feeling like I’m letting a whole building of people down every time I do it.

What triggered R&B Kyle?

It was a lack of appreciation I was having for rap music at the time. I’ve already started working on another project which is all rapping, so I think I have that itch again. But I was loading up all these trap beats and realizing I don’t have s–t to say about none of this. I’ma tell you guys that I’m rich? Am I gonna rap about that, continuously? Am I gonna rap about wanting to make it? No. As a writer, in order to feel fulfilled, I need to write about something I really, truly feel. I know the ups and downs of relationships. I know what falling in and out of love feels like. I’ve been in a relationship for 13 years, since I was a little baby. Shoutout to Lil Baby.

R&B Kyle was activated because I needed to write about the most important topic of all topics in the world – and that’s love and what comes with it. Also, when you make music, you either want to say something for yourself, that’s the bottom tier. You want to make people relate, that’s the second tier, or you want to make people dance, which is the top No. 1 tier [and] reason to do music. And with [It’s Not So Bad] I wanted to do that.

Tell me about the concept of It’s Not So Bad.

It’s Not So Bad went through a lot of changes, aesthetically. When I made [the album] at first, “it’s not so bad” was just a phrase in my head that I was repeating to myself in the middle of the pandemic – me just being extra depressed like everyone else, cut off from the world. I hit a tough brick wall, and I had to keep telling myself “it’s not so bad” in the mirror. It’s very weird, but very effective, [saying] nice things to yourself like one-on-one.

Right, positive affirmations.

Affirmations, yeah! So It’s Not So Bad, the title is just the affirmation that was helping me get through that time. When I first started making this, I wanted to make lo-fi-beats-to-study-to music, because I was that sad. I had all these lo-fi songs because I was really going through it. Then I decided to fight back against my sadness, like I always do. I feel like I vanquish sadness, I be kicking sadness’ a– all the time, and I was like, “Yo, I need to move. I need to dance. I need to pick the tempos up, and I need to leave L.A.”

I realized in L.A., there’s too many ghosts of the s–t I went through. So I went to Miami, and the energy was different. I’ve always been so sheltered and so afraid. I make music by myself with one other person in the room. I’ve always been one of those creators – and this time I opened it up, because I really had very little in the tank. It’s Not So Bad is my statement on life currently.

I feel like this project really showcases your range – like “Perfect” sounds disco-y, and “Optimistic” almost sounds like Afrobeats or tropical. Was that your intention?

It is intentional for me to try to make a record for everybody. I always feel like I’ve been a person for everybody. Culturally, I come from a really diverse background – [there’s] many different nationalities and ethnicities in my family so I’ve always been open to doing a lot of stuff, because my musical influences are hella different.

When we made “Perfect,” it was like the sixth day, and I told everybody, “Stop. We’re making house music today.” It was like a room full of producers, and I was like, “If I hear a single f–king hi-hat come out of one of these laptops, you’re gonna have to wait outside.” [Laughs.] Luckily, Ape Drums was big on the album and he was there and had all types of house music references. And then my friend Rich, he’s a great multi-instrumentalist and also very well-traveled sonically, he starts playing me all this French disco. I just forced people to make house music and at first they weren’t happy about it, but we made something happen.

This is your second album dropped during the pandemic. How have you adjusted to making music since See You When I am Famous!!!!!!!!!!!!? How have those creative processes differed?

Thank you for asking me this because this is something I’ve needed to say out loud. I think my musical process changed drastically. With See You When I am Famous!!!!!!!!!!!!, I was so meticulous with trying to make that album perfect – and in my eyes, that is still the best thing I’ve ever done. What really damaged me was dropping it in the middle of the pandemic. I was stupid for doing [that], now that I think about it. But I told myself back then, “Kyle, you make music to help people – and if you’re trying to withhold it in order to make it bigger, then you’re not the superhero that you say you are.” So I [dropped] it anyway. But that s–t really hurt me, because it totally did not react in the way that I was expecting it to.

This time around, I was like “No, you need to have fun, and you need to just do what is actually the easiest thing for you to do. You want to sing about love? Commit to that. Kyle, do something for yourself, don’t do something for this big expectation.” I’m doing songs with more intention and less planning. I [went] into this album with no expectations. It’s a piece of art that was fun to make.

You’ve been dabbling into the tech space a bit with Twitch sessions, starting a Patreon and releasing this album as an NFT. I know you like to stay connected to your fans on a more intimate level, but do you ever feel pressure to always keep them in the know of what you have going on music-wise?

That’s a really good question. For me, it’s about knowing that there’s this community [of fans] that exists, knowing them well, knowing them in-depth and getting to know them on a first name basis. The heart of [my] fanbase is this big, and I want to know those people deeper because that’s what motivates me. And also, I really wanted to [use Twitch and Patreon] to rely less financially on this like, macro-success thing – and to keep me really in-pocket and try to be as true of an artist as I can.

Rappers are usually such a spearhead, financially, of their situation and where they come from. We’re usually the first people with any kind of financial success in our family. If I had this NFT technology back in 2017, and I [told] my family, “Yo, I just dropped this song on SoundCloud last night, and it’s got three million plays already. Do y’all wanna invest in my first album?”, and they all put together money, I could’ve made us all rich. What’s cool about this is: If you are a Kyle fan, and if you invest in this album and the next album, whatever album it is, if this album explodes and does financially well, this whole community of people are now doing financially well. That’s the true power in it for me.

Do you own any NFTs?

I do. I’m not like a massive NFT person, [but] I have an Alien Fren and two Catalina Whales. I think my future participating in the NFT space is going to be with my art, music-wise. Also, crypto-gaming. I love video games, and I have a Decentraland account. I probably will be one of those people who’s like, owning NFT shirts on a little character. I see myself going that route.

In an interview you did with us a few years ago, you said that in 2016 you were getting frustrated because you hadn’t had your breakthrough moment yet. Considering everything you have accomplished since then, how content are you with your music career right now?

You are really killing it right now. [Laughs.] There’s still more I want to achieve. I’ve been practicing this new affirmation word. Gratitude. I really just want to practice being grateful for where I am and where my career is right now because that’s how you truly live in joy. If you’re not grateful, you will lose joy very fast.

What’s interesting about what I said in 2018 is that I [was] speaking on not having enough and not being grateful. When I think back on 2016 – before that breakout moment, I loved that time and I had so much fun. Now, I’m actually happy with where my career is at, because I know I’m blessed, but I would be lying if I said there’s still not much more I want to accomplish.

Perfect segue – what are some other ventures, either in music or aside from it, do you want to get into?

In music, I want to focus on putting out a lot of music. Because in my career, [it’s] always been an album every two years, and before my career is over, I want to have a long, extensive catalog of projects. What I’m excited for in the upcoming years is trying to release two to three projects a year, and really play at a high volume because I’ve never done that before. So that’s exciting, musically, and then, I’m really focusing a lot on film and television. A little bit of acting but primarily show and film development.

The past couple years have felt so bleak but your music is always so fun and reassuring. What are some ways you protect your energy and peace?

I practice words of affirmation. The funny thing about joy or peace or good energy is you get it in a way that you wouldn’t expect. People think when they’re empty, you have no positive things to give, and so you need other people to be positive to you. In reality, what I’ve learned is that when I’m my most empty is when I try to be my nicest to other people. I practice just being as kind as I can to other people, and that usually keeps me in a good mood.

Anything else you would like to add?

I want to let my fans know that I have a lot in store for them this year, and there’s nothing that will stop me from continuing to give them as much music as I can. No expectations will stop me, no outside opinions. It’s me and y’all, and nothing is holding me back.