Photo by HandshakesnhugzGENRE: Pop, reggae
ESSENTIAL TRACK: “Coffee Kisses”
FOR FANS OF: John Mayer, Damian Marley, Robin Thicke
One listen to Portland artist Kid Indigo and it’s clear he’s on a different level. The songwriter and producer is blessed with a gorgeously imperfect, raspy voice that maintains a vulnerable swagger—but that’s not the only tool in his cabinet.
“I have one goal and that is to continuously create good music that people can relate to, no matter what life throws at me,” tells Madison Fischer, aka Kid Indigo. “Things can get hard sometimes, man, but that’s when the music ideas and creativeness pour out. So basically my goal is to never stop making music and to continue being authentic and different with my art.”
Like many true musicians, Kid Indigo seems to draw from a need for expression; instruments and genres are just his vehicles and venues. He cites old-school hip-hop as his first love, and at the age of 15, he started a serious foray into music as the drummer for Foreign Talks, an indie pop and reggae band he created with his brother Marcus Fischer and some friends. When people started showing up to watch them practice, he began thinking, “Man, I could really do this.”
After the success of their 2013 hit “The Spell,” Kid Indigo moved into a lead singer role. The 2016 follow-up album No Ceilings featured “Chocolate Vanilla,” a collaboration with emcee Myke Bogan that got attention in local hip-hop circles. Around the same time, the then-20-year-old started releasing music on his own in the form of singles, beginning with “Dojah,” his most streamed song to date—listen below.
Features on T.$poon and Bogan’s records in 2018 brought the buzzing young singer into my world. A slew of songs with Astral OG (aka his brother) made the rounds in the underaged rap scene, and a hype performance in one of Burn Money Music's Bridge City Cypher videos that went viral showcased the Kid’s ability to bar out—watch below. But it was the unofficial content that drew me in—an acoustic cover of Post Malone’s “I Fall Apart” recorded at The Dandy Warhols’ Odditorium (which now boasts over 2.5 million views) and scores of social videos where he sings alone with the guitar—because this is where he connects so well with his core fans.
His most recent success perhaps confirms his direction. “Coffee Kisses”—a java-inspired ditty on his two-track Indigo Jazz EP—has been getting lots of attention. In fact, the Tim Slew-directed video has racked up a quarter-million views on YouTube since January (watch below), proving that the curly-haired crooner is on the right track.
With a deep skill set, a dedicated following, and lots of time to grow, Kid Indigo seems like a lock for success, and I, for one, will enjoy listening.
MOST RECENT RELEASE: Indigo Jazz out now, plus look for two new singles—"Fire" and "Crystal"—out August 16
