“The world can be really shallow and superficial and sometimes you gotta get your hands dirty and fight for what you want within the system,” says new artist baron. Despite debuting in late 2020, Canadian-Korean singer, songwriter, producer, and recording artist from Vancouver, baron. has aggregated over 1M streams, filmed a live video, and released a new single this March.

His unique name comes from a fun story hanging out at a friend’s veranda, trying his best to think of a simple artist name. After running out of ideas, he started to consider the word “veranda” which became “baronda” and then “baron.” He tends to end his texts with a period at the end and decided to carry that over into his name, tagging it to the end.

Though baron. only recently took on music as a more full-time endeavor, he inherited his passion for music from his mother and older sister. He knew from an early age that he wanted to express himself through his art and swerved from conventional post-grad work to pursuing music more seriously while in college.

“I wouldn’t say that there’s a specific moment in time that made me go against a traditional career path, but rather the build up of perspective through my life experiences helped me to realize that my personal taste of lifestyle and interests didn’t allow me to walk a traditional path. I think I’ve just become more honest with myself over time and that just happens to mean straying away from a traditional path.”

When asked what a normal day looks like as an independent artist during COVID, baron. described his day as starting at 5 a.m., working out, heading to his normal day job working in film, and then exercising and working on new music into the wee hours of the morning. He expresses, “It’s always a struggle to keep up as an independent artist, but I really believe in my music and hope to build a career as an artist.”

Well on his way to doing just that, since his debut, he has released an EP entitled No Tears, singles “We in Love,” “Where You At,” “Love Is A Lie,” and his newest composition “Diamond Spoon.” He has also collaborated on several new songs, most notably with RIKII who contributed to the production of “Diamond Spoon.”

While baron.’s sound is particularly influenced by modern hip hop acts like Post Malone, Juice Wrld, and The Kid Laroi, he also draws influence from Korean styles such as Penomeco, DPR Live, and Sik-K. Bridging both Korean and Western hip-hop styles, baron. is especially inspired by the song “Feel Good Inc.” by Gorillaz.

“I think they really opened my mind to strive for something different and unique and although the song is over 15 years old I find their art is quite tasteful and inspiring. It reminds me to strive for timelessness,” he tells us. He has also been listening to the exciting and fun song “SAD GURLZ LUV MONEY” by Amaarae. 

baron. describes his songwriting process as flexible and ever-changing. He generally starts with the concept for a song whether it is an emotion or idea and then writes a catchy melody, oftentimes the hook. As he listens to the melody, he begins to hear the music in his head, starting with the chords, sound, and drums, setting the stage for the rest of the song to take shape.

His newest song, “Diamond Spoon” has actually been in production for quite some time. What initially started as a demo that might never be released went through months of production tweaks and re-recording of vocals. 

The concept of the song centers around the superficial nature of society and baron.’s own hunger for success as a new artist. “I wanted to express the anger, disappointment, and greed I felt in myself not having more and resented the world for the idea that ‘money makes the world go round.'” He hopes that through this song people are reminded that sometimes one might need to do things they don’t like to get what they want.

The production of the song puts these ideas into focus by juxtaposing chill production with pessimistic but thought-provoking lyrics. One of baron.’s favorite lines is “Cause I can’t run away from Babylon, I be needing a billion, I’m in love with the money and the love that it gives me.” Here, the lyrics express how it might be easy to lose oneself and give in to the world’s shallow desires while reminding him and the listener to find purpose and continue fighting for what they want.

“I hope this song helps people understand that the world can be really shallow and superficial and sometimes you gotta get your hands dirty and fight for what you want within the system. I hope this song motivates people to hustle for what they want, whether it’s meaningful as keeping family happy or something as superficial as drinking cocktails on a yacht.”

According to baron., “Diamond Spoon” is only the beginning of what he has planned for 2022. Filled with excitement about what he has been working on, he sometimes even has trouble sleeping at night. Listeners can expect lots of new ideas, concepts, and songs soon, and he wishes to express gratitude to fans and listeners going forward.

“It really means a lot to me to have people that look forward to my music. I hope that you’re as excited as I am about the creations I make and I humbly ask you to continue to show support so I can strive to be inspired!”

(YouTube. Images via Reify Movement)