Aspiring young rap artist YBZ Vandr looks to etch his name in the music industry. For his age, understands that it takes hard work and consistency to make it, and he’s no stranger when it comes to the grind. Recently HCM got ut with YBZ Vandr for an interview to talk a little bit about his accomplishments during his journey. Check out what he had to say.
YBZ Vandr Interview
HCM. How did you come by your stage name?
YBZ Vandr. There’s not much of a meaning behind the name YBZ Vandr. I was in middle school when I created the name and I was never planning on taking my music as far as I did, so it’s really just a variation of my real name with a bunch of letters moved around. I’ve thought about rebranding at times to change my name to something with more meaning, but YBZ Vandr always kind of stuck with me.
HCM. When did you discover your love for music and what made you realize you wanted to pursue a career in music?
YBZ Vandr. When I was a very young kid I had no interest in music at all, but this was just because I wasn’t exposed to the type of music that I create now. It wasn’t until some of my friends started playing music like Lil Uzi Vert and Fetty Wap that I even started listening to music. Back before I made music I’ve always enjoyed creating the most random things. For example, back around the age of 10 I taught myself how to create and code apps, and I ended up putting a mobile game in the app store. I kind of just combined my love for music and creating things one day and I made a beat on my computer. Over time I started recording lyrics over beats and releasing them under the name YBZ Vandr.
HCM. To what or whom do you accredit your sense of style?
YBZ Vandr. I think that listening to Juice WRLD and Iann Dior had a big influence on my sound. I’ve made music in a lot of different styles, but the sound that stuck with me definitely came from them.
HCM. On your current/upcoming album… How did you come up with the concept for this project?
YBZ Vandr. Gone Forever was written all the way back at the beginning of Covid when I was stuck inside my house. Being inside all of the time really messed up my perception of time, so I wanted the lyrics to focus on that, along with how there were so many things that I took for granted back before those times. The mainline in the song “Time moves fast cause the good stuff never lasts” really focuses on how it’s hard to stop and appreciate things in the moment, which was a realization that I had during those times in the pandemic.
HCM. What are some of your greatest challenges as an artist, and what is your greatest attribute when it comes to your work ethic?
YBZ Vandr. Being 16 for sure has made a big impact on my music, especially because I’m not with a label or anything, so I had to develop a bunch of different side hustles in the music industry like cover art and audio engineering to get the funds to make my music. Also at the time of this interview, I’m not even able to get my driver’s license yet, so going out to film music videos and make content is a big challenge, although recently the videographer I work with has helped out a lot with that.
When It comes to my work ethic, the dedication that I put towards my work has played a big role in where I’m at with my music. Ever since I started making music I’ve kind of locked myself into this mindset where giving up is just not an option, and I will work for hours every day just to get to the next step in my music journey.
HCM. What are your plans for the near future?
YBZ Vandr. I have a remixed version of Gone Forever featuring Jesus Honcho that I should be dropping soon.
HCM. Is there anyone you’d like to thank, any shout-outs?
YBZ Vandr. All of the fans who told me to keep going with my music from the beginning.
Connect with YBZ Vandr on social media via Instagram to stay up on the latest.
Check out the latest from YBZ Vandr on Spotify:
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