Bringin’ it Backwards: Interview with Kid Hastings

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Together with American Songwriter, we had the pleasure of interviewing Kid Hastings over Zoom video! 

Kid Hastings, AKA Jake McEvoy of Hastings, England(though raised in New Jersey) is a jazz and choir kid turned bleached-hair indie rock/pop guitarist and songwriter currently based in Los Angeles. Returning after a year long hiatus, the new single “Call Me Up” and accompanying video is ​out now​ via ​Ourros​.

As “Call Me Up” speaks to the struggle of expressing one’s own identity when launching into anew relationship, the accompanying visual acts as a delightfully deranged take on the odds of identity as it flows fluidly across time. Harmonically and melodically, the song was inspired by a particular jazz standard while the production juxtaposes fuzzy synth and plucked guitar with glitchy, layered drums. Channeling that dichotomy in production, McEvoy taps into 2021 with an ode to freedom within his own identity, literally dancing across the duality of masculine and feminine within the music video.

With the help of friend and fellow creative, ​Ava Doorey​, the two devised a video that embodies the complexity of Kid Hasting’s persona. These self-proclaimed “reformed theater kids” cooked up a concept that not only allows for McEvoy to present his unparalleled physical performance prowess, but also creates freedom through freedom. As the world kept turning, the pandemic made us all stay still. That said, McEvoy stepped into the zone of self-expression through artistic movement, and the freedom of identity that is the basis of the video allowed McEvoy to feel blissfully free himself.

Following the success of his 2019 debut EP, ​Golden​, ​McEvoy returns with the release of “CallMe Up” as the first single of his forthcoming project. With over 415K Spotify streams under his belt and previously sold out shows across the indie LA scene, Kid Hasting’s is set to take 2021 by storm.

We want to hear from you! Please email Tera@BringinitBackwards.com.

www.BringinitBackwards.com

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