Life & Work with Kennedy Kyle

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kennedy Kyle.

Hi Kennedy, I’m so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, how can you bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My story has changed so many times and twists and turns that we’d need hours to get through it all. I will stick to the high points and how things have unfolded up until this point.

My name is Kennedy, like the President; Kyle is like the boy’s name! I am an artist, R&B, pop singer, and songwriter with a 90s flair, but I also double as a full-time HR professional. I started my music journey fairly early and far before my professional career. From age 5, I knew music was a gift I had been given and had to share. Through school, both high school and college, I found myself in an array of music development and performance arenas: choral, solo, ensembles, classical genres, contemporary genres, acapella, karaoke, competitions, musicals, show/entertainment auditions, etc., really all of the outlets you can imagine lol.

It wasn’t until I graduated from the University of Tennessee in 2016 that I began sitting with the thoughts of what I’d be doing and where I wanted to go in life. I moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in 2019, where I was fortunate enough to lay a firm foundation for music and began networking across the city to get me into some pretty cool spaces. From interning at Love Renaissance music label and opening for fellow singers like J. Holiday and Dondria to hanging backstage with the CFO of Revolt Media for their annual music conference. I’ve been privileged to experience and participate in as much as I have in a relatively short time.

During my 3 years in Atlanta, I worked to put out 15 songs, 2 EPs, and 3 music videos, traveled to LA to work with a Grammy-nominated producer/singer, created an artist website, designed and sold custom merch, and grew immensely in my talent and skill as an artist. However, I also worked full-time as a recruiter serving the people of Atlanta by aiding them in job searches and securing careers. Both parts of my life worked together so well, more than I even realized at first. In an industry where entertainment comes through exposure and marketing, I used my full-time job to promote my brand and self by simply connecting and caring about the people I helped while working diligently on my music craft outside those hours.

By 2022, I had a personal shift in my life and was unsatisfied with what I was doing, where I was, and what I wanted. In April of that year, I decided to move back to my home state of Tennessee and returned to where I spent my elementary years, the musical city of Nashville. When I first relocated, I knew I would face challenges in a new market that was equally as saturated as Atlanta’s but also had a completely different primary genre permeating the community. Luckily, I am not afraid of change or challenge, and I have a deep love and desire to get into country music eventually. So, what better place for me to be right?

Admittedly, as I sit here thinking over the last 2 years of my life, I realized I was nowhere near as ambitious as I was in Atlanta, but that may also be due to my growth and finally turning 30 years old. I’ve learned there is no timeline to get or go anywhere. Whether I’m putting out studio music or not, I’m still an artist. Whether I’m growing exponentially or not, I’m still an artist. Whether people know me or not, I’m still an artist.

So, looking forward, music will forever be a part of me, and I intend to get back to recording and putting out content, but of course, in my own time. Additionally, I have had more focus on my professional HR career and recently passed a certification exam that will continue to move me forward and upward in this particular industry. I have time to be more than one thing, and I love that I have finally figured out how valuable, necessary, and okay it is to be more than the box everyone tries to put me in.

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The struggle is a part of life. But thank God, He gets us through! I’ve encountered many, many struggles and obstacles in this life and while on this pursuit of who I am today. The earliest being the loss of my mother at 10 years old due to a car accident, and one of the most recent being laid off and losing my place of living all in the same week. It was the first time in my adult life that when people said, “You got it, Kenn, you always figure it out,” I was truly stumped and at a place where, no, I couldn’t figure it out.

When our physiological needs are not secure, it is challenging to direct energy into any other space but what you need. In May of 2023, I reached a place where nothing mattered. Music didn’t matter, working didn’t matter, going out (because to know me is to know I am the party lol) didn’t matter, nothing mattered. I just knew I was tired of all the years of trying and feeling like I wasn’t reaching success.

I auditioned for American Idol 3 years in a row, and every year, I was told to come back with something else, to be signed, not move forward. I applied to every cruise ship you can imagine, thinking I could combine my love for music and travel and be a performer through the Caribbean. But to no avail did that pan out. I auditioned for America’s Got Talent and was so nervous that I bombed my audition.

So, have there been struggles? This does not even scratch the surface. But I’ll tell you this – the more struggles a person has, the better they become, the stronger they are, and the more wisdom they gain. Re-finding myself and God over the last year has done some incredible things for me inside and out. And now, I welcome struggle because I know how big of an overcomer I am. I now recognize that I’ve had much success and am still starting.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’ve covered the basics of what I do musically, but I would love to provide more detail. While the genre I identify with is primarily R&B, it is more nuanced than your traditional-sounding rhythm & blues. I am a genre-bending R & B/Pop artist with elements of 90’s nostalgia. In my song Deal, you can hear the older elements through the song structure, theme, and the way it is sung. However, songs like Faded and Left Behind are more contemporary and pop-like. Still, I have included similar vocal runs that are notorious for people like Whitney Houston, Brandy, Toni Braxton, and Mariah Carey – the 90’s music queens.

I am a lover of almost any music and want to create projects that exist outside of my current lane. I love gospel/contemporary Christian music and was raised on such; I adore country music and its ability to tell a story to its listeners. I have even thought about a small acapella project where I build each song using only elements of my voice (inspired by Brandy’s song, A Capella – Something is Missing).

Nowadays, it feels like everyone can sing, create, and perform; if they can’t, they can still find ways to get the attention and traction they need. It’s hard to find those unique factors that set people apart anymore. I think it will reach beyond my “sound,” but my brand in totality will keep me set apart. That is still a work in progress and coming together as needed. Still, as society progresses, artists must be innovative in their different approaches. To learn more about me and what I do, you can visit my website, thekennedykyle.com, and connect with me on social platforms!

What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important lesson I’ve learned is to trust the one who created me to get me where I am going. I am a firm believer that what’s for is for you, period. If it was destined for you, it will happen for you. Now, I don’t want to promote naivety and have everyone believing that you can wait for your destiny to occur because some effort and work must be made to align yourself with what God has for you. “Faith without works is dead.” The hardest part of it all is the believing. Believing you’re enough, thinking you can, thinking you will, assuming it won’t always be like this. If you can come to terms with your belief, where it sits in your life, and how to grow it, paired with a little commitment and time, you’ll be ahead of 90% of everyone else wandering through life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thekennedykyle.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekennedykyle/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kennedy-kyle/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/thekennedykyle
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thekennedykyle
• soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-243522022?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@thekennedykyle