Kanii was only a senior in high school when his track “I Know” blew up on TikTok. “It was stressful trying to battle doing press and all these other things surrounding the music while still being in high school,” he tells PAPER.

When he walked across the stage at his high school graduation, the DC-born singer and rapper says that the whole crowd started singing the chorus of “I Know,” a surreal moment for a kid thrust into the fast-paced lifestyle that comes with TikTok virality — the very thing that every up-and-coming music artist and record label aims for nowadays.

Like many young artists, Kanii got his start in his bedroom, having released his very first track, “So Long,” on SoundCloud in 2018. “Honestly, it was me going through puberty,” he says. “I couldn’t even sing at my full potential.” That first song showcases his prepubescent vocal tone, an endearing statement from a then-preteen that musters up visions of a young Michael Jackson or other R&B vocal prodigies.

In 2020, the then 15-year-old got his first taste of TikTok traction with “attachment (she wanna love).” The track featured a vocally assured version of Kanii, with a beat that mixed hints of Jersey Club with hyperpop and melodic rap. It instantly carved out an identity that listeners could grab onto. Since then, he’s grown his career primarily through the platform and by just being himself — cultivating a sound and identity that is emotional and effervescent.

Now that he’s past that phase of his career, the 19-year-old is focused on the future. “I’m very persistent in what I want,” he says. After a string of solo and collaborative EPs, Kanii is finally ready to create a complete body of work that builds a world for the listener, not just an ephemeral viral sound. “I’m no longer looking for that as satisfaction in my eyes.”

Below, we catch up with the budding star to chat about his new single “young n turnt,” being endlessly inspired by the King of Pop, and his creation process.

Hi Kanii! Where are you at right now?

I’m in Williamsburg, Brooklyn right now. I moved here in December.

You’re from DC, right?

Yeah, I was born and raised in DC.

Congrats on the “young n turnt” video. Was that shot on Howard Street?

Yeah, it was in front of the Maison Margiela store.

I can recognize that block in an instant.

It’s maybe the most recognizable block in SoHo, honestly.

Tell me about creating that song.

Creating that song was pretty simple. My producer friend Luv sent me a beat through messages, and the beat grabbed my attention instantly. I was like, Let me just rap on it. Let me just speak how I’m feeling on it right now. That’s how the song came about. With the video, I was like, How can I translate the energy from this song in video form? The song is called “young n turnt,” and I’m just talking my shit in the song. So let’s have all the people pull up and we just turn up for it.

What is your songwriting process like? Do you have any rituals?

It definitely depends on the type of stuff I’m making. So when I’m doing rap stuff, it usually is a lot of low effort. Picking a beat and just going at it full force, just seeing where it takes me. But with the more recent pop and melodic stuff I’ve been doing, that stuff is built from scratch. From square one. All the instruments and the writing are way more meticulous. We’re just nitpicking everything.

What was it like for you when “I Know” blew up on TikTok?

Since I was still in school, it was stressful trying to battle doing press and all these other things surrounding the music while still being in high school, and having kids be kids in high school. So it’s you having a song that’s popular and then going to school with a bunch of children and then them having the reaction to that success, you know what I’m saying? It was definitely stressful, but it wasn’t the worst thing in the world, honestly. It was neutral. It could’ve been a lot worse. For me, it was pretty controllable. I could deal with it.

Were there any crazy moments that came with being so popular?

Yeah, it was when I graduated high school. When I walked across the stage. I was second to last to walk across the stage because of my name and my major. So when I walked across the stage, they all just started singing my song. I actually dropped a documentary about that whole graduation, and it has that clip. It’s on my YouTube.

That must’ve been surreal.

It was. It was crazy. I didn’t expect that at all, especially not being the most popular person in school and I wasn’t the most talkative person in school either. So having them show that they really fucked with me without having really talked to me as much was crazy.

Was it a private or public school?

It was a public school, but you had to audition into it. It was an art school.

I think the immediate thing that listeners may connect to with you is your vocals. At least that’s what stood out to me. The obvious reference that comes to mind is Michael Jackson.

Yeah.

How did you come into your voice and discover your sound?

I was always inspired by Michael Jackson. I feel like that has gone unnoticed until recently when I started pushing the sound that I’m going for now. The pop and the ‘80s wave. But I’ve always been inspired by that. Honestly, it was me going through puberty. When I was going through puberty, I couldn’t even sing at my full potential, my full ability. My voice was in that weird phase of being high and being deep and raspy, you know? So it was just going through that, and then as I matured into my voice, all of it kind of came together.

What’s your favorite Michael Jackson song?

My personal favorite? It’s hard to pick one, but right now it’s probably “Tabloid Junkie.” It’s a sleeper, but that’s one of my favorites.

Who are some of your other inspirations, both musically and visually?

I’m inspired a lot by The Weeknd and the way he presents his projects. Aesthetically, I think what he’s doing is really cool. I’m also inspired by Brent Faiyaz. He’s one of the hometown GOATs, in my eyes. I’ve always been inspired by him and his sound selection, his artistry.

Are there any specific music videos that formed you as a kid?

Yeah, going back to Michael Jackson, my mom used to play a lot of his music videos on TV. I remember one of the first music videos I had ever seen was the “Remember the Time” video. Following that was the “The Way You Make Me Feel” video. Just it being a full production for every video, that inspires me to shoot for that instead of it just being short clips.

How do you approach your visuals?

Usually, I watch a lot of old commercials or old films. I recently watched Edward Scissorhands for the first time, and I was like, Yo, the way that this is shot is fire. It’s amazing. I just consume a lot of content to draw inspiration from. That’s really what I do.

What is your greatest strength as an artist?

As an artist, I think I’m very persistent in what I want. I don’t stoop myself lower than the standard to satisfy someone else, if that makes sense. If there are people around me saying that something that I’m doing is creatively not for their ear but it is for mine, then I’m gonna keep what my idea is because I make the music for myself. I feel like I’m a perfectionist, even though some people may say it doesn’t seem like it or some may say it does. There’s no satisfaction in my creation. I feel like there’s always more that can be done. Even when songs are out and finished, I’ll be like, dang I wish I could’ve added something.

What does the future look like for you? Are you working on a project right now?

I’m working on a project. It’s speculated to be called Blue, but I’m keeping it lowkey where we’re going direction-wise. The appeal for it is not to have a viral moment. I’m no longer looking for that as satisfaction in my eyes. I don’t want the appeal for it to be one viral song or one dance associated with the music. I want the appeal to be the quality of the music and the effort that I put into the songs. I want to create a world for the listener.

Are you gonna tour?

Yes, actually I’ve been on three tours and I’m going on my fourth tour next month. It’s a European tour. I had a smaller European tour earlier this year, and that was pretty dope. London was pretty fire. Everywhere was pretty fire, honestly.

Photography: Lauren Davis
Styling: Dylan Andrews
Styling assistant: Daviel Castaneda

Editor-in-chief: Justin Moran
Managing editor: Matt Wille
Editorial producer: Angelina Cantú
Music editor: Erica Campbell
Story: Ivan Guzman