When I sat down for a conversation with sophomore Kevin Song, better known by his rapper name KSONG, I had no idea what to expect; I quickly learned that this uncertainty is precisely what his music and persona are all about.
KSONG’s journey as a performer started in an unlikely place: an election for his high school’s first-year class president. Song reflected on this moment, remembering how he wanted to make a memorable impression on his high school’s student body and thus decided to campaign through music rather than traditional speech; “Vote Kevin Song for Freshmen Class Prez / Should you vote for me, the answer is yes” Song raps in “Vote” (2019).
While he was not exactly KSONG at this point, Song still made waves with this first song, found his creative outlet and rapped his way to the presidency. This was the first step of his creative journey and KSONG has continued to grow since then.
“You can start to see the difference gradually over time and just how my songs evolve in a way,” Song said. “It tells a story of my journey from when I first started to, you know, [be] in college and also talks about life changes as well.”
While his creative process is consistent, KSONG’s style, lyrical content and overall persona are anything but. Even individual songs have gone through many evolutions. For example, “MIDAS TOUCH 点石成金” was his first song recorded on campus in 2024, but before that, it went through many iterations, as Song contemplated what the concept of “the Midas touch” meant to him and how best to convey it. The song’s name changed a few times, going from “Dough” to “King Midas” to eventually “Midas Touch” as Song navigated the best way to give the song a positive connotation about success rather than a potentially negative one. This particular song has a deeper, more textured voice from KSONG that adds a level of depth and severity to his message that everyone can have something that they are successful at — that everyone has their own “Midas touch” in their own right.
The original concept of “Dough” was to be a part of a food-inspired album. While that album has yet to be created, KSONG has not abandoned this idea of culinary songwriting. This can be seen in his song “5STAR 五星级” which includes many tasty morsels such as “Eatin’ like a 5 Star Michelin / Sitting on the beachside chillin’ / Watch the sunset, sip lemonade / Got the whole world, girl let’s make it our way” on “5STAR 五星级.”
In addition to his food references, he also often fuses Chinese and English lyrics to emphasize the blended identity of his upbringing and plays with unexpected beats to ensure no single KSONG rap is the same.
“I can switch between the two languages and they are both so integral to who I am as a person,” Song said.
Song also noted the duality of his identity as KSONG beyond the combination of languages in his music.
“KSONG has grown up with me ever since I was little,” Song said. “Kevin helped create KSONG and KSONG helps Kevin be his own person as well. So it’s just like two connected things that are growing together on two different sides, but they are still one entity.”
Throughout his time at Vanderbilt, Song has found his creative home at the Vanderbilt Recording Studio (VRS). As a board member of VRS, Song encourages students to explore opportunities to pursue new hobbies and passions while at Vanderbilt.
“For anyone that’s out there, if you want to write your next hit song, let us know, and we’ll make it happen,” Song said.
According to Song, VRS is a great opportunity for aspiring musicians as it is a free, accessible and underrated resource open to all students. For those who prefer listening over recording, VRS will be hosting an album release party on April 29 to celebrate their collaborative album, “West End Blend.”
Much of Song’s music comes to life from his weekly songwriting workshops at VRS, where he dedicates time to helping others while also working on his own music. This process has allowed KSONG to have pockets of creativity within his busy schedule as a computer science major.
“Consistency is key,” Song said. “It really adds up over time, and for me, it’s just like I consistently create more songs as well without burning myself out.”
Song often surprises himself in many ways when he performs as KSONG and, according to him, often has “Woah, did I just do that?” moments. One of these more recent moments happened in his latest song, “平凡的光 (Ordinary Light) ft. Kiki S,” where Song challenged himself to write, produce and record a music video for a song in just one week.
That being said, KSONG will be releasing another song entitled “MY KITCHEN 我的厨房” on March 28. This song is another fun example of KSONG’s passion for cooking references as it features pots and pans banging throughout the track as well as references to his favorite Chinese dishes as a way of expressing the metaphor comparing how artists put in a similar effort and dedication to their craft as one does with cooking.
“KSONG got the juice like a 笼汤包 / 四川麻辣 mouth on fire now / Haters can’t handle it, spit it out now / Leaving out the door but they come back around / KSONG got the sauce, my fans say 加油 / Making my dish, I bring out the dough / Do you want more? They never say no / I’m cooking that 5-star, putting heart & soul,” Song raps on “MY KITCHEN 我的厨房”
While Song admitted during our conversation that he is a “bad cook” himself, he definitely excels in curating these detailed, meaningful connections within his music and pushes listeners to think beyond the culinary references.
