Ninja Kidsoul shot into the the conversation in 2016 off the back of a viral COLOURS show performance of his debut solo effort, “Playing Games”. In the years since the rising German-American artist has been honing his skills and surrounding himself with talent in the form of the Kabul Fire Records. Off the back of the release of his debut full-length effort, the Never Really Gone EP, Saint Audio spoke to Ninja Kidsoul about his growth as an artist, his process and his collaborators.

How does it feel to finally have Never Really Gone out in the world and how long was it in the making?

We had three months to make it happen, that’s why it was only like four tracks, I had a whole set of tracks ready, but they didn’t make it, but I’m happy. I’m excited. People seem to seem to like it.

I’m curious to see how we will go in the future, but I’m optimistic. I’m gonna just keep dropping. Keep making it happen. But the feedback has been super.

It’s been a long time coming and it’s been a long time since that marquee COLOURS show in 2016. How have you evolved since then?

I’ve just been practising man, I’ve just been working with Aga (AgaJon) working on my craft. I’ve been practising with the loop station since about 2020. There hasn’t been too much going on because of [coronavirus]. That lockdown had me messed up. But yeah, I’m just crafting, getting to know people. There’s there’s this big pool full of freakin geniuses that I can’t wait to meet. I want to link up with people and see how that goes.

The EP is very short and sweet, only about 12-15 minutes. What was the creative process like?

Aga and I had a lot of fun making this project, which I’m very thankful for. I’m thankful for him. 

I’m happy with it, well really I’m content. I’m a perfectionist, I believe there’s more that I can do. There’s more that I can show. I want to tap into people’s emotions. I want them to hear a colour that doesn’t exist or isn’t obvious.

My favourite track of the EP has to be “Gap Shit”. With that track in particular between the video and the EP was like a difference of two semitones in the pitch. What was the thinking behind that?

Oh, we just did it. There was no thinking. Aga likes to play around and he just switched it up on me. I was like: “That goes hard,” so we just went with it. We were just being playful with it, that’s all.

There’s quite a soulful throughline across the EP’s production, was this a concerted effort too or a spur-of-the-moment thing?

Anytime I record, I just try to grasp the window of inspiration. That’s a big thing for us. Whatever happens happens, y’know? When we record, we just go out with how we feel. We just go with the flow. 

With that in mind, was there a goal then with the EP, or was it just a case of: “Here I am, here’s my music,” and letting that do the talking?

Yeah, pretty much. just wanted to drop something. there are a lot of people that believe in me, shout out to Kabul Fire Records and my manager. Without them, this would have never happened in the first place. 

I wanted to show something, and now I can take further steps and keep growing and showing people what I have, what I’m capable of doing.

I’ve also been thinking about singing more because lyrically I’ve been trying to step up my game, but like, like I said on “Gap Shit”, I’m really not an MC. Also, I’m trying to have fun with it, I’m not trying to get too caught up into being serious, into trying to make the next hit or anything like that. I just really want to bring these feelings across That’s it.

Do you think then that the EP represents who you are, not just as a person but how you approach music?

Yeah, no doubt. The intro and outro to “Never Really Gone” especially is where I want to go with music, which involves the loop station. I think I can tap into something that is very extraordinary that no one has really done yet. Even though there are a lot of people that really work with the loop station and make hot stuff 24/7, all I’m doing is making my beat and putting down my ideas that just come out. That’s where I’m trying to go. So, I started a few months ago working on this loop project. I don’t know how many tracks will be on there yet, but I’m hoping that it will be well received.

You mentioned earlier that your approach to music is like a day-to-day type thing. We recently got the music video for the track “Zone” off the EP, do you approach to the visual side of your artistry the same as the audio side?

It’s really simple, I’m not complicated. I mean, I can be, but when it comes to making music I just let go. I see myself getting caught up if I think too much, if I try to approach something too aggressively. Just go with the flow. 

The EP is out on Kabul Fire Records and you’ve had a lot of collaborations with other artists on the label in the past. What sort of influence have they had, either on the EP itself or you in general?

Again thanks to Aga, that’s how I got involved with Kabul Fire Records in the first place. It’s just getting to know certain individuals, and they turn out to be exactly what you need. God makes no mistakes in my eyes, he’s setting this up perfectly, it’s just aligned. I got to meet my manager. I wouldn’t be doing this if it wasn’t for her, Kabul Fire Records, Farhot, who’s the big boss. They have done a lot man like I can’t put into words. Making music and being able to travel has done the most for me. It’s it’s a blessing truly. So to answer your question, they’ve done a lot.

Music coming out of Germany often doesn’t get as much coverage in English-speaking countries as it should. What are the next trends looking like and who is going to blow up?

Thanks to Kabul Fire Records I’ve been able to meet a lot of interesting people, and they’re all younger than me, so I feel like the next generation is going to be poppin’.

There are so many crazy artists doing a lot of shit 24/7.I just saw this one dude, I don’t know his name right now, and he’s just started flowing over like classical music, like just making beats from classical music. People are getting smarter and smarter with this. I don’t think there is a specific way, artists are always seeking the next new thing.

So, the EP is out, the videos are out, we saw you at Montreaux Jazz Fest 2022, what’s next from Ninja Kidsoul?

I have no idea, I’m just as curious as you are. I’m trying to manifest a few things, make them become reality. I would like to work with a few artists, I will be featuring on a few tracks. I will definitely try to get another project done by the end of this year. Like I said it’ll probably be this loop project. Other than that, again, we’ve been working. We have a lot of stuff in stock, so we’ll see that we’ll get that finished and whatever comes my way.

Follow Ninja Kidsoul on Spotify.