Kodie Shane is looking to take over the rap scene. The 20-year-old rapper-singer from Atlanta is best known as a former member of Lil Yachty’s Sailing Team. Now, she’s heading out on her own, after releasing her debut album Young HeartThrob in November and kicking off her first international tour. Earlier this month, Her Campus caught up with Kodie to talk about her life, influences, and all things music.
I want to jump right in and learn more about you. How did you get your start in making music?
I started making music when I was about 15 or 16 …. I was in the studio like every day, even when I wasn’t recording I was in there every day!
Did you have any specific musicians you looked up to growing up?
I looked up to my sister (Brandi Williams of R&B girl group Blaque) a lot growing up, also Frank Ocean.
He’s amazing. What album of his is your favorite?
I can listen to Blonde from top to bottom and know every song!
Would you say his music influenced the sound you eventually created?
Yes, it definitely did.
Your album, Young HeartThrob, is a bit of a hybrid between different genres, and you flow between singing and rapping. Was it a lot of trial and error in trying to figure out what songs worked for you and what sounds you wanted to go for?
Yeah, I mean of course! I feel like everything is about trial and error. There were a lot of problems that I had.
How many songs did you create for your album? What was the process like narrowing it down to the amount that you have on your tracklist?
I can’t even remember! There was a lot. We narrowed it down so many times.
Were both of your parents involved in music?
My mom has always been involved on the management side and my dad used to do backup for Cherrelle.
Did that also influence you to get into music?
Yeah! Also, I went on the TLC tour Fanmail as a baby. My sister, she opened up for TLC in a group called Blaque, her name is Brandi! So I went with her on tour as a baby.
Speaking of touring, your headlining tour kicks off this month in Sweden. What are you most looking forward to?
I’m looking forward to going to Amsterdam to see what the marijuana’s like, I’m excited to go to Sweden because I’ve never been, I’m excited to go everywhere – and see the Eiffel Tower! I just realized that I’m gonna be able to do that, so I’m excited.
Have you toured a lot before this?
I’ve toured all around America, but not outside of the US.
How long does your tour last? What have the preparations been like for rehearsal and your touring schedule?
About a month and a half. My band has been rehearsing pretty much every day. I’m gonna have a band for the domestic part of my tour, so that’s been really great. I’ve been being consistent with working out for tour, so I’m excited. It’s really about getting ready for the normal things, you know?
That’s great! I also want to ask more about the artists you like to listen to. What’s in your playlist right now?
I really like Frank Ocean. There’s this one song of Kodak Black, “Calling My Spirit”. That’s my favorite song.
That’s a good one! Do you like to listen to mostly hip-hop & rap artists, or do you dabble in different genres?
I like to listen to all the genres, all of them. If a country song is fire, then it’s fire! I like everything. Heavy metal? I don’t know. But I can probably get into it depending on my vibe.
I’m the same way! I don’t know how I feel about metal, but I’m open to a lot of different genres! So a year down the line, what would you most like to accomplish in your career?
A year down the line, I think I would like to do Coachella, and all the really big festivals. Also, I want to do another big album – like the one that people really love. Probably a year down the line, next year at this time I’ll be on another headlining tour going crazier!
After your tour is done, what is next for you?
As soon as I get off tour I’m back into making studio. I gotta make another album, I gotta keep making albums, you know? I gotta just keep recording. I’m going to Bangkok in March!
What are you doing in Bangkok?
Something private, I can’t even tell you! *Laughs*
Kodie Shane is currently on tour. Tickets are available on Ticketmaster.