Kevitch Invites Listeners Into Her Magical, Freeing World
Alt-pop songstress Kevitch immerses herself in her own world of magical, beachy imagery that captures the nostalgic feelings of an endless summer vacation. In “Don’t Let Go,” Kevitch’s lilting vocals feel like a hallucination on a beach. Intoxicating and entrancing, the dreamy R&B-tinged effort glides over a plush resonance. Beginning with a delicate guitar and subtle drums, “Don’t Let Go” blossoms into a melodic soundscape that captures pure bliss. Kevitch effortlessly evokes the embodiment of unconditional love as a special, yet fleeting experience.
The duality of unconditional love and running away may not go hand-in-hand, but Kevitch’s hope is to hold onto this sensation without its euphoria fading away.
“‘Don’t Let Go’ plays off my last single “Secrets” with the idea that now I’m fully immersed in this human without anyone knowing how deep it runs,” Kevitch says. “I’m running through the motions of being in love and it’s this idea of being in your own little world with this person, feeling both excited and hopeful of the possibilities.”
The accompanying music video for “Don’t Let Go” is Kevitch’s vision to stay true to her DIY roots and aesthetics through VHS filming. She gravitated towards how the visuals feel relatable and not overly produced.
“‘Don’t Let Go’ is more upbeat and happier than my other songs and I wanted to visually present that,” Kevitch says. “I love how we incorporated the beach alongside flowers and palm trees because those visuals give off this wild and free feeling that is behind the song’s overarching themes.”
The songstress is reinventing herself to the world as a reluctantly lovesick romantic in her untitled debut EP set to release this summer.
“I’m excited about this EP because it has a magical and hopeful feeling,” Kevitch says. “I played with different genres in this project, incorporating R&B, pop and lo-fi influences. This EP surrounds the evolution of a relationship when you first meet someone and the emotions that come with that. It then segues into the demise of that relationship and how we cope with those aftermath feelings.”
[UNPUBLISHED]: Thank you for sitting down and talking to Unpublished Magazine. For any readers who aren't familiar with you and your music, what inspires your creative persona and style?
[KEVITCH]: I would say I'm very inspired by imagery and things that you can feel and see and touch and I think I've always been more like a visual creative. I think for me, it's like the west coast, the palm trees and the beach and I love the city lights at night and the skyline at night, magical things like that.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Your music also touches on a lot of different soundscape elements from alternative, pop and R&B. Do you have a favorite genre to experiment with and why?
[KEVITCH]: I think that's the interesting thing about the music I make. It's not like one genre, it’s a combination of genres and then each song might have a different type of element from that, some are more R&B influenced, some are more pop influenced, some are more like the melodies could be more R&B. I think it's just the way I bring them all together is kind of the interesting thing of what I'm trying to do, but I wouldn't say there's one specific genre.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Can you tell us about your evolution in music since you started up until now?
[KEVITCH]: I think I grew up always doing it. It was kind of innate in me. There was never a question like it was always what I did in my free time. I bought a mic with my first money in high school. I would record projects. I would always do music. I went to jazz school. I think just starting off in the real music world, I always knew I wanted to do it and it was just definitely a minute of diving in, learning, trying things and experimenting and trying to figure out your sound. So it definitely took a while to get to where I am now and finally cultivating that sound.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Your recent single release “Don't Let Go,” acts like a glimpse into your upcoming debut EP release in June. It's super dreamy and it reminds me of a lot of 90s R&B icons. What was the inspiration behind the song?
[KEVITCH]: I didn’t go into it with an exact vision, my producer and I started messing around and talked about an idea. He already set the picture for me and the vision rolled out from there.
[UNPUBLISHED]: The accompanying music video also feels very serene and you are around a lot of natural elements. It has almost like a vintage feel to it because of the grainy aesthetics. What was the inspiration behind the music video and how was your experience filming it?
[KEVITCH]: It was really good. I just wanted to keep that gritty, not overly produced and very DIY format following me around and it was a really freeing experience. I liked that because it feels very relatable to people and just captures a raw moment in time. I feel like the vibe nowadays people need to feel that freedom and that refreshing energy.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Your debut EP is set to release this summer and a huge congratulations is in order. What was the inspiration behind the EP?
[KEVITCH]: I think just the imagery is very coastal, beachy freedom and frolicking with friends in a happy relationship living in that moment. There's a lot of song concepts that are secret and I’m the only one who knows that. I think it's just living in that happy, exciting and hopeful place and not letting the outside world bring you down. I think that was the big inspiring throughline, just living by the beach. I live in Venice and the imagery really tied it together and made the story more visually powerful.
[UNPUBLISHED]: What is your favorite song off the EP and why do you love the song? Is there like a specific lyric or message that stands out to you the most?
[KEVITCH]: It's so hard because each song is so different. I feel like they each have different feels, different tones and different elements. They’re each different moods and there are more pop elements in some than others, while others are more upbeat or melancholy. It’s hard but I truly love them all.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Have you experimented more or taken any more risks with this upcoming EP than your previous releases?
[KEVITCH]: I definitely have a sense of just feeling and leaning into things. I think back in the day, I was very shy. I think just from working for so long, my confidence was building and I wasn’t afraid of what people thought. I tried hard to not overthink because I’m a perfectionist. I think the whole combination of being a perfectionist feeling like sometimes you have to give people what they want and I think this is the first time I really lean into the process and trusting people and not overthinking things, really just allowing the process to just go out smoothly. I think that was the first time I've ever been able to do that and depend on a team and it's just like all a new experience for me and letting go of control.
[UNPUBLISHED]: What can listeners expect from you in this new era of music for you?
[KEVITCH]: I think just being able to hear more music and more of a body of work and finally seeing visuals I think they'll be able to put together the idea of who I am and who I am as an artist and all I want people to do is like to feel something. I feel like that's definitely going to happen when they listen to this music and I'm just excited for them to keep getting that vibe.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Did you have any lessons or breakthroughs when creating this EP?
[KEVITCH]: I think just not overthinking was a big lesson for me, and in the past I definitely self sabotaged by saying this sucks. I think me not allowing myself to sabotage and put things out with this project has definitely been a first for me. It was a big new lesson and learning experience for me.
[UNPUBLISHED]: How are you feeling in this current era of your career and what does the rest of the year look like for you that you would like to share with the magazine?
[KEVITCH]: I'm excited for everything to come to life. I think it's been like a long time in the making. I'm just excited for everything to start moving and shaking. I'm excited for people to hear it, and everything that starts making sense together. I'm excited to be putting out music and keeping the process going.
