Creative Contact w/ Kia Orion

If there's a rapper who is poppin in Philly I'd bet Durrell has shot for him. Durrell aka MAKEWONDERSWORLDWIDE came by the kitchen a while back and chopped it up about life as an independent photographer. If you're curious about life behind the scenes as a visual artist this is the one for you. If you're in the PHL or LA area and need dope visuals drop this man a line. You can connect with him and...

I don't know how he does it. This man is a dad AND an artist. ToNe Wiley is a Philadelphia native with an incredible story. ToNe was willing to chop it up with the boy in the kitchen a few weeks back. He came out to West Philly and we talked about what it's like being an artist while balancing a family. You can't wait for the hand of god to come down from the sky and give it to you. If you've got...

Was supposed to upload yesterday but my hard drive crashed. So we're a day late. DEAL WITH IT. Big news next week! Stay tuned x) Enjoy!

What to even put here... I INTERVIEW MY DAD JUST LISTEN TO IT, OKAY? If you know anything about me you know how dope my parents are. That's nothing against your parents...and it's not a competition but...mine are just... better? Sidebar: please DM my mom https://www.instagram.com/jaa17/ and tell her to stop being a baby and do the podcast already... I was fortunate enough to sit down with my old m...

WHY U SLEEPIN ON THE BOY? This is a fun and short episode where I mostly make a fool of myself. I talk about my interview with Marcus Branch, what I've got in store for you over the next few weeks, and my buddy/artist/musician friend Dylan Owen's upcoming project. Big ups to all the folks who peeped the new tracks and gave me feedback. If you haven't listened yet you can find the new jams anywhere...

BRUH. This man really does it all. When I say multi-dimensional it doesn't even come close to an accurate description. Photographer, director, dancer, model, the list goes on... I met up with Marcus a few weeks ago at a cozy little cafe on Pine Street. He dropped some CRAZY gems on the boy and was hands down one of the dopest artists I've ever had the chance to meet. We talk about what it's like g...

YUP. WE BACK. SOLO DOLO YOLO (can you tell I'm excited?) New EP and video TONIGHT. In this episode I talk about the roll out for POWER, MONEY, FAME, SEX and where the inspiration for the title and concept came from. I also touch on the insecurities that come with releasing music, the importance of deliberate practice, renting a hotel room in jersey for a video shoot, and what's in the chamber for...

I don't know if there's anything I can put here that will come even remotely close to how dope this interview was. But a man can try. I met up with creator Zeek Burse and his writing partner/manager Paralee Knight at a coffee shop out in old city last week. We agreed the interview would be from 10:30-11:30. We talked from 10:30-1:30. I couldn't squeeze the whole thing into one episode but I got as...

Riding high off a compliment from a random girl on the train, Kia comes to you this week with some updates on recent interviews, upcoming music releases (march 16th whatup), and why PHL > NYC. Also, are strangers in the apartment? Maybe. But this was recently posted so obviously he made it out okay. (Yes, it's still me typing this copy and I'm talking about myself in third person. Deal with it.) S...

Katie Feeney does it all. Not only is she the lead-singer and frontwoman of the funk-rock band You Do You, but she's also the Development Director for Rock to the Future, an organization that uses contemporary music education to help youth succeed in music, school, and life. We met in a coffee shop on a windy afternoon to talk about what it was like growing up in Pennsyltucky, the positives/pitfal...

YUPPPPPP. you read that right. we flyin' DOLO today. no guest? NO PROBLEM. that's what my dad always says.** i tell you about my weird blood problem, re-branding the podcast, new EP coming in march, and finding GEMS in an old beat machine with my buddy dave. would love to hear your input on how the show has been going. what questions should i be asking? what's working? what isn't? there's a creati...

J. Cerrone is an author focused on street literature, and shared some of his most life-changing stories with me this past week. I'm stoked for you guys to hear it. If you want to know what life is like as an independent author this one is for you. Connect with J: https://paperchasepublications.com/shop/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiGWBsrFxl0 https://www.instagram.com/paperchasepublications/ 8...

How do you go from Camden...to school for ballet, and eventually become a professional dancer? By accident. That's how. Kingsley Ibeneche is truly an artist. Now a full-time creative he finds work as a dancer, a singer/songwriter, and an actor. In this episode he shares his story and everything he went through to get here. Kingsley will be performing at the Barnes Foundation in Philly next week, t...

West Philadelphia native Claude Forte doesn't pretend to have it all figured out. But he doesn't need to. After switching his focus from playing ball to making music he's confident it's just a matter of time. And I don't blame him. When I first heard his songs I could tell there was something unique about this dude. His voice carries a certain weight that only comes with years in the game. After l...

They don't call it the city of brotherly love for nothing. Will Toms is a young entrepreneur from Philly who is creating a new way for artists to collaborate. Growing up in and around the city Will saw how often artists were competing for the same shine. RECPhilly, a company he co-founded with his high school best friend Dave Silver, is one of the most prominent start-ups in the city. The goal for...

This man needs no introduction. You can't talk about Philly Hip-Hop without bringing him or his group into the conversation. Spade-O from the legendary rap crew Major Figgas was generous enough to sit down and chop it up with the boy about his come-up and rap career. We talk about what it was like growing up hustling in North Philly, signing to a major label in raps golden era, hearing his song pl...

If y'all from Philly then you've probably (see: definitely) heard of Ill Fated Natives. They were featured recently as one of the city's top 19 young people making noise and I was lucky enough to kick it with their bassist, Bets, for this weeks podcast. https://billypenn.com/2017/08/29/whos-next-music-19-young-pros-creating-the-new-philadelphia-sound/ Bets and IFN are creating the soundtrack for t...

Tommy Rowland is a Born Hustler. You might know him as the hip-hop artist "Rowlan" who has been hitting more than a million streams a month and is working every day on being one of the biggest names in music. Rowlan gave me an afternoon in New York last week to drop some knowledge about what it's like chasing the dream and how much work it takes to get there. We talk about his time selling phones...

ONE OF DEM ONES. This episode is mostly me laughing with one of my biggest mentors and dearest friends, Jerame Hawkins aka Hawkeye Productions. J is the Director of the Youth Advocate Program in Ithaca and also runs multiple online businesses. If you're into old school hip-hop and what it means to be an artist in this day and age this is the one for you. We talk about the definition of success, ma...

Maryam is easily one of the most woke/articulate people I know. If she's not at a rally fighting the patriarchy she's posting ridiculously good looking pictures on social. She's one of those people that just kicks ass at everything. I'm not bitter about it (maybe a little...) Maryam came by the kitchen to talk about growing up Muslim-American and how she has been able to find a balance between the...

This man has seen it all. A young man growing up in North Philadelphia Spiz The Prophet has a perspective unlike anyone I've ever met. Sharing his incredible journey to Hell and back I was lucky enough to sit down with Spiz a few weeks ago during a snow storm in the city. We spoke for close to 3 hours. I chopped it down to a few of the most impactful stories, but when I say this man drops GEMS tha...

Let's talk turkey. Larry Brown is a West Philadelphia native who specializes in residential and commercial property all throughout PA. When his dreams of playing ball got destroyed by a thieving coach (yo fuck that dude for real tho), he turned his focus to business. If you're into property or real estate you're going to want to hear what he has to say. Larry talks about dropping out of college wi...

There's so much I admire about this man I don't know where to start. Dexter Thomas has worked for the LA Times and is currently a correspondent at VICE News Tonight on HBO. If you've ever wondered what it's like behind the scenes of a news company this is the one for you. He was at the Williamsburg hotel for work and was kind enough to give me some time. He also bought me breakfast. We spoke for c...

Hands down one of my favorite interviews I've ever done. I traveled to Jersey City to get this man on the mic. KC is the founder and manager of NuBlack Music Group, a management company established in 2011 that is abandoning the sanctity of convention in life & in sound. I met KC in college soon after he had a career-ending football injury. He turned that same focus he had for sports into creating...

Bruh. This man really does it all. From creating eye-catching visuals to unique sonic landscapes Blue Boy LAZ is a renaissance man. We talk about creating your own reality, the process of finding your own voice, Yu Yu Hakusho, and a bunch of other cool shit that's too much for these show notes. I also butcher some Jay-Z lyrics and awkwardly talk about my family/Thanksgiving. The interview with LAZ...