Kayzo talks about his Unleashed XL tour and what it means to headline The Discussion board in Los Angeles [Interview]

Kayzo’s humble beginnings as a pupil of Icon Collective in Southern California seem to be a lifetime in the past, now that he’s simply introduced his Unleashed XL tour for 2023, ending with a headlining efficiency on the iconic Discussion board in Los Angeles. Since he began the mission in 2012, he’s hit each marker of development and has steadily grown as an artist and individual, resulting in this actually monumental event.

The Unleashed XL tour is on sale now. We caught up with Kayzo over the telephone this week to speak about his greatest headline present to-date, reigniting the Unleashed tour after COVID, and what it took make this all occur.

So I’ve recognized you for I take into consideration seven years now, since that first interview within the pizza store in North Hollywood.

Oh, my God, dude. Yeah, that's such a throwback. I forgot all about that setting till now.

I used to be at your first Doghouse takeover at Avalon in 2016. I feel I used to be at your first EDC too whenever you went again to again with Protohype and Lookas in 2015.

Oh, yeah, the bassPOD, we opened it up at doorways.

Now you’re headlining some of the iconic venues in Los Angeles, The Discussion board. When that supply got here via, what was going via your head, particularly wanting again at the place you’ve come from?

You stated it greatest. It’s some of the iconic venues in Los Angeles and some of the iconic historic venues round simply judging by its historical past. It’s been 5 years, happening six subsequent yr, from my final headline play in LA which was on the Palladium.

Was it actually that lengthy?

Yeah, dude, isn’t that loopy? Yeah, it was like 2017 once I did the Palladium. And so, clearly, with COVID our plans that we had at the moment acquired pushed again, so it’s been 5 years because the final LA present, you realize, LA being sort of sentimental for me. It’s essential to me as a result of it’s the place the whole lot began musically for me again in 2012 so ensuring that we placed on the most important, greatest Kayzo present that we are able to probably do in Los Angeles is sort of like high precedence, proper? It’s sort of like, you set the tone with it. It’s like a mile marker and sort of efficiency in Los Angeles, all the time for me. So after we had been sort of determining the place we wished to play, what our goal was, and what our purpose was for the present, The Discussion board all the time caught out to me as a result of, you realize, I’ve been to different reveals on the Discussion board. Non-dance music reveals particularly. And I bear in mind the final rock present I noticed there. It was Carry Me The Horizon in 2019, and I noticed Fever 333, and I forgot who performed within the center. But it surely was the primary metallic and rock present that I noticed at The Discussion board. And there’s simply an vitality in there that was –

That present was with Thrice. [laughs]

Yeah. Okay. It was with Thrice. Yeah, present was unimaginable. And, for me, it’s simply, you realize, rising up, listening to you realize all kinds of totally different rock, metallic, pop punk, different, sort of hardcore stuff, put up hardcore, and likewise coming from a sports activities background, via hockey, that kind of sports activities/area model venue, these kinds of venues generally, I all the time sort of gravitate in direction of as a result of it’s a superb illustration of my life with sports activities and my life with music now, since they sometimes home these kinds of occasions. So, the vitality in these kinds of arenas, particularly The Discussion board, like once I noticed that present, I sort of knew proper then and there that was like– I bear in mind, I used to be with my supervisor at that present. I used to be like, “Dude, we'll play this venue sooner or later. We have to play right here,” like there’s one thing about this place that simply units it other than some other venue that I’ve been to in LA for music at the moment. And so when that supply got here in, it was sort of surreal as a result of I knew it was potential to do The Discussion board. I simply didn’t know when, and I simply didn’t understand how it will come about. And so when that choice turned out there, it was tremendous full circle for me. I began to recollect all of the reveals I’ve been to there and simply having that dialog with my supervisor like, “We’re going to do a present there.”

I’m so excited for the present and it’s been one thing that we’ve been engaged on for months, and we’re nonetheless engaged on, when it comes to making it good for everyone by the point Might rolls round.

So that you’re now the third EDM artist prior to now yr to announce or play on the Discussion board. You already know, Subtronics and RL Grime. And also you talked about that you simply haven’t seen any EDM acts there. The one ones I've seen prior to now 5 years had been Armin van Buuren and The Chainsmokers. What do you assume is going on that artists, significantly, it appears, bass artists, are actually enjoying The Discussion board? Are they opening as much as it or is bass attending to that crossover space the place The Discussion board is now like, “Yeah, we are able to do that.”

Proper. It’s a superb query, I feel somewhat little bit of each. I feel sure acts such as you talked about a minimum of within the final couple of months, and I used to be on the RL Grime present too, which was nice, actually, actually dope present. It’s a venue the place an artist that actually takes satisfaction within the imaginative and prescient and the storytelling behind the model and the showmanship of the present, it’s a superb place to indicate off that story exterior of the standard membership and even regular venue. It’s only a larger stage, and it’s a special kind of viewing expertise than different venues you could go see. So I feel The Discussion board, clearly they’re coming round to see extra dance music in there. Dance music is at a superb place for these like giant scale reveals. The reveals that they placed on there, whether or not they’re digital particular music, or with myself who does a mixture of rock and digital that’ll carry, like with out gifting away an excessive amount of of who now we have and what we’re doing, like we’re bringing a complete stay expertise exterior of simply DJing to this present and to the tour that I simply introduced even exterior of LA for my set. That sort of resembles what I did in 2019 with Unleashed however on a bigger scale in a special format, and likewise, you realize, there’s going to be help bands and totally different stay components to the present that sort of carry it full circle, make it really feel not much less like a rave, however it brings the the storytelling and the backstory of the place I come from musically, what I get pleasure from exterior of dance music to the desk.

I feel they see this as a superb alternative for artists to take larger dangers. And check out various things out that aren't simply the conventional, commonplace, large LA present. So I feel The Discussion board provides us a platform to take larger dangers. And I feel they’re enthusiastic about showcasing that with the newer era and the newer kinds of music like digital music and never simply being so band-centric and you realize, “We solely do bands, we do stay music,” they’re now sort of shifting and diverting in direction of additionally having extra digital music in there. So it’s sort of simply coming with the occasions. Similar to some other main metropolis venue, competition. We’ve been seeing it for the final 10+ years, the illustration of dance music artists or levels at main crossover festivals are just about commonplace at this level. So I feel you’re beginning to see that bleed over into the exhausting ticket touring side of issues with artists, you realize, digital music doesn’t have to only essentially be in a membership or a venue that homes simply digital music. Now you'll be able to take it to The Discussion board or, you realize, you see acts play at SoFi Stadium or Allegiant in Vegas like with Illenium. If there’s a narrative to be instructed, and there’s an viewers for it, I feel these venues are far more welcoming to it now.

Completely yeah. You form of already touched on my subsequent two questions somewhat bit, however I’ll simply hold it shifting. Beforehand, you talked about the RL Grime present on the Discussion board, and I bear in mind seeing you there the night time earlier than Escape. And I sort of talked about to you want, “Oh, you’ve acquired a giant announcement at Escape, huh?” I clearly had no thought it was going to be in regards to the Discussion board on the time. I don’t know should you bear in mind this.

Yeah we had been on the bar speaking about it.

Had been you attempting to, like, cover a smirk the entire time, such as you knew?

Yeah. I imply, it was simply sort of like I used to be attempting to maintain it beneath wraps simply solely as a result of like, not that I used to be afraid of anybody saying something. I simply was excited; we had already filmed this actually, actually, actually cool promo video that I premiered at Escape to tender announce the present to everybody in LA that was at my Escape set. So I simply wished like that to be like, exterior of the promoters that booked the present and my managers, I wished even like buddies and those that I keep up a correspondence with within the business to be utterly shocked and likewise blown up, like, let that be an enormous second, so I used to be attempting actually exhausting to only hold it beneath wraps till that second occurred at Escape. You already know what I imply? However I used to be undoubtedly excited to be there for that present and sort of simply get a superb perception of like, what’s to return and what the capabilities are from a manufacturing and showmanship standpoint at a venue like that, and it was actually, actually thrilling to see what will be performed in that venue.

We had been additionally speaking about your Unleashed tour. I used to be wanting up earlier than this, you realize, for the on your final album, you introduced that tour. I feel it was like January or February, 2020. And that was like simply a few months earlier than the pandemic, and now you’re doing the Unleashed XL, even larger than earlier than. So, I imply, such as you’ve come out of the pandemic, you realize, completely leveled up. How does it really feel to, for lack of a greater phrase, overcome that adversity and are available out the opposite facet on a a lot larger stage?

Yeah, that was sort of a bummer again then. I bear in mind saying the Unleashed tour that we had been speculated to do. We introduced firstly of 2020 after which, like, actually, like two months later, like a month after saying or no matter it was, needed to pull all of it down. I simply had such large aspirations for that tour as a result of I had simply acquired performed doing the Unleashed, large one-off solely reveals in San Francisco and Chicago and New York, Houston, the place we had been testing the concept as a result of we had been enjoying Coachella in 2019. So we wished to carry a stay side to Coachella, and that’s what sort of sparked the concept of Unleashed to start with, with a few of the reveals. So, we introduced that large tour. We had been so excited coming off Coachella and people reveals after which the pandemic occurs. And, you realize, I by no means knew if I used to be going to get one other alternative to do the Unleashed present or one thing prefer it. You already know what I imply? Didn’t know what got here out was what was going to return out the opposite facet throughout the entire expertise with COVID.

After which popping out of it after which getting the alternatives to proceed to grind and work exhausting on my craft, and proceed to push this sound and this narrative that I'm doing with my music with rock and digital, getting the possibility to, carry again Unleashed and do Unleashed XL as a result of you realize larger, higher manufacturing and sort of a special story. I’m similar to tremendous, tremendous lucky and grateful for it. As a result of that unique tour thought was such an essential piece to my storytelling and I didn’t know if I used to be ever going to inform it. And now I get to carry it again to life in a special, modern approach for 2023. It’s like full circle, and it comes with lots of different development, private development, artistic development, development in my relationships and you realize my girlfriend, household, and the whole lot from the pandemic. I want I'd have been capable of do the tour again then. However I’m virtually happier that I’ve been capable of sort of undergo much more private and inventive development and I feel I’ve been capable of sort of put myself in a a lot better and totally different headspace that I feel will solely profit the tour and the present and all my followers that come to those reveals. I’m excited that we lastly get to inform it and we get to carry it throughout the US and Canada after which finish it off in LA on the Discussion board.

The lineup for the tour simply acquired introduced as effectively. It’s actually wonderful to see who’s gonna be supporting and enjoying with you on this run. The Discussion board help continues to be TBA. However you realize, you already sort of touched on this, with lots of your LA reveals we are able to count on one thing actually particular. I do know you'll be able to’t actually get into too many specifics, however is there something you'll be able to possibly, like, tease?

For positive. We have now one date nonetheless to announce within the tour that’s like sort of spray painted out proper now, after which now we have these TBA helps, not as a result of we don’t know what we’re doing, however as a result of we're sort of similar to ready to announce these at a later date, as a result of, yeah, they’re they’re going to be larger than a traditional present. Clearly, venues like The Discussion board are enormous, proper? So we wish to actually come out the gate swinging and convey one thing particular. And likewise like I alluded to earlier, reveals just like the Discussion board and a few of these larger reveals like we’re bringing a stay side to them. So like now we have bands, and bands as in plural, on these reveals, So, I don’t wish to give away an excessive amount of of like, who and what, just like the specifics as a result of we’ve acquired a while till then, however like I'll say there’s going to be an enormous stay side to that present particularly that may separate it from something that I’ve performed in LA and likewise something that I’ve performed prior to now to date with some other Unleashed present. Keep tuned for that one. It’s going to have some issues that folks have been asking for out of doors of the band. I get hit up on social media on a regular basis, and a few of these requests are lastly going to return to fruition on the Discussion board so I feel folks might be pleasantly shocked and excited for what now we have deliberate.