Kap Slap sat down with EDM Sauce after his 2/21 Breakout Tour show in Los Angeles and talked about the path that has led him to headline his own tour, upcoming plans and his major role models within the industry.
“It's not necessarily the fame and the fortune and all that stuff. It’s looking back in 20, 30 years and saying: “I wouldn’t change a single thing that I did.'”
What do you think the crowd’s reception to the Breakout Tour has been?
KS: It’s been great so far; everybody’s been super pumped up. All of the shows have been so much energy and it’s kind of cool. We had a lot of old school fans and a lot of new ones. Everything’s been so nuts so far, so a lot of fun.
What was the inspiration to embark on this tour, this new adventure?
KS: My first original track was just released a couple of weeks ago, “Let It All Out”, and we called it the Breakout Tour because this is like breaking into the new market of actually being on radio and getting on iTunes. That’s the thought behind it. It’s been a journey but we’re finally here. It’s exciting.
You’ve been traveling all around the country and will be visiting Mexico soon. Are you tired?
KS: It’s definitely exhausting but it’s worth it. To see all these people and to make people so happy is just such a cool feeling and I get to see so many different places. I kind of wish I did have a little more time, days in a row in the studio because it’s kind of hard. Everything’s going so well.
“Surreal. It still is. It’s extremely surreal.”
How have people reacted to “Let It All Out”?
KS: Phenomenal. It’s so refreshing; it’s so great to hear. It’s only been positive feedback. Everybody’s been really impressed by the actual song itself and it’s getting radio play now, which is really exciting. It’s everything I could’ve hoped for. I’m pumped to keep getting these tracks out to public, and I have a lot of more stuff I want people to hear.
Listen to Kap Slap perform “Let It All Out” at the Fonda Theatre below:
What’s next for Kap Slap? What are your plans for the future?
KS: I have four or five tracks that are pretty much close to being done so it’s just a matter of which ones we’re releasing first. I can’t talk specifically on that but we do have a lot of stuff in the works. There’s going to be a lot more singles, a lot of more pop EDM crossovers. Similar to what my mashups are but trying to make them radio friendly while still unique enough to be recognizable.
It wasn’t that long ago since you started doing mashups. If you could describe this journey (from mashups to having your own tour) what word would you use and why?
KS: Surreal. It still is. It’s extremely surreal. No matter how many times I have these shows, every time I meet somebody who’s just like “Hey, I’ve been a fan for so long,” it’s so refreshing to hear that. I don’t think I’m ever going to be jaded by it. It’s always such a fun time. It doesn’t seem like its real life to me.
Who would you say has musically influenced you?
KS: As far as versatility goes, I really respect Dillon Francis. He can produce anything and make it sound phenomenal. His stuff is fire. As far as Zedd, his musicality; he’s basically a modern day Mozart. I’m a huge fan of him. Sound design I really respect Knife Party. Especially Rob Swire. It’s really impressive, the attention to detail he has, not caring about the trends and really making sure he gets stuff out there that he’s really proud of.
Who would you pick to collaborate with?
KS: I’d probably say Dillon just because he uses Ableton and it’d be really cool just one meting with him, just seeing the tricks that he has. Even just a couple hours of just being in the studio and seeing what he does. My buddy Gazzo, he’s on tour with me, he’s such a great producer and I’ve learned so much from him and from all these other people too. It’s all about constantly learning, always being open. You can’t be stuck in you ways, you want to be ready to keep learning.
If you had to give advice to upcoming DJs, what would that be?
KS: Persistence. No many how many times you get frustrated by hearing your song and hearing a professional song and being like “Oh, I’ll never be there!” just keep practicing and keep trying as hard as you can. I was there and it’s one of those things where you gotta put in the time, learn as much as you can and only really push things that you’re really proud of. You can try making different styles of music. You learn different techniques that you can apply to anything.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
KS: I’m hoping that the path a lot of these people like Chainsmokers, Cash Cash, it only takes one or two songs to get out here and to break out. So I’m hoping within five years I’ll be out there and playing all these big festivals. I just wanna look back and be proud of what I put out. That’s the main thing. It's not necessarily the fame and the fortune and all that stuff. It’s looking back in 20, 30 years and saying: “I wouldn’t change a single thing that I did.”
You’re really active on social media. You just had a meet and greet, you’re always interacting with fans. How important is that?
KS: It’s everything. Without these fans I’d be nowhere. I have some really great fans and I wanna take every opportunity to really meet them and be as I can with them. And it's really, you cant take them for granted. They’re the ones that are allowing me to pursue my dream and do what I love.
Kap Slap takes a picture with fans at the meet-and-greet before the show. The DJ is in the second part of his Breakout Tour.
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