We talked about ZAY TALK, XXXTentacion and Trippie Redd influences, versatility, and more with Harlem, New York-born creative ZAY KANASHI in this interview.
Hey! Introduce yourself. Where are you from?
Hi! My name is ZAY KANASHI and I’m from Harlem, New York, but I’m in Ithaca, New York mostly at the moment going to college.
When did you start making music?
I started making music around February 2020, right before quarantine hit.
Who inspired you to start making music?
Musically I’d say people like XXXTENTACION and Trippie Redd, but my main inspiration for even starting music in the first place is my friend Jonathan. One day all my friends were just chilling in my house and my friend Joey goes, “Yo, have you guys heard Jonathan’s song?” We were all confused so he played us a song Jonathan made for fun a few months prior and it was genuinely really good. After that, I just kinda got inspired to give it a try myself. I was like “If he can do it maybe I can too.”
How would you describe your music style?
That’s hard because my music style is very diverse. I’d say my style is a mix of clean and raw. Lots of raw emotion goes into my music, but I try to make the end product sound as touched up and polished as I can. Kinda like taking some of XXXTENTACION’s early music and making it a little more marketable to the mainstream. Some songs are more poppy and commercial than others, but overall I’d like to think the emotion is still there, whether it’s in the lyrics or the delivery. Something the listener can really gravitate towards.
Who are you listening to now?
Recently, I’ve been listening to a LOT of SSGKobe. Songs like “Caddy” “tired of me,” and “Nurse.” Just been needing that chill vibe lately. Also a lot of older Lil Uzi Vert. Like “LUV is Rage 2” era Uzi.
What’s your best project or single so far?
My best singles have to be a tie between “ZAY TALK” and my recent release, “DON’T WASTE MY TIME” I think those two songs really show my diversity and are probably some of my best produced in terms of instrumental, layering, and vocal delivery.
Any upcoming releases from you to look out for?
I just dropped a song called “DON’T WASTE MY TIME” so I’m probably just going to step back on releasing music and focus on promoting this song as well as keep working on things behind the scenes.
Have any shout outs?
Shout out to Slumped State. They’ve really held it down for me over the past few years and helped me get to where I am right now, even if it’s just the beginning. Y’all aren’t ready for our takeover in the future.
Want more from ZAY KANASHI? Check out ZAY TALK, DON’T WASTE MY TIME, and the rest of ZAY KANASHI’s discography on Spotify or wherever you listen to music.