Interview: King Fabbs

[gallery type="slideshow" link="none" size="full" ids="146311,146312,146313"] What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today? I feel like I’ve always been drawn towards music naturally. Whenever I saw people playing instruments I would stop and stare at them for a while. It didn’t matter what they were playing, I just loved it. I found it so fascinating and I knew that I really loved music during those times. There’s many artists that I’m very inspired by but I naturally just gravitated towards music, it was never just one thing getting me into it. If I did not get into music I would probably would have dove deeper into Hockey because that was a huge interest of mine when I was younger, and I still love it today!   What do you like to do when you're not playing music and how does that influence your creativity? I try to spend time with my friends, and I practice writing lyrics. I sometimes like to go for walks around my neighborhood, it helps me decompress and it’s also a good time to think about the things I want to write about. I feel it’s important to keep my head clear so I can always feel confident when I’m writing.   How long has your band been around? I made my debut on July 2nd, 2021 so it hasn’t been that long. I’m a solo artist and I’m looking to make an big impact in the scene.   Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music? I’m from Calgary, Alberta, Canada! There’s a lot of great local talent here and seeing some of those artists play a show gets me pretty inspired and wanting to put myself out there.   How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you. King Fabbs is a nickname I picked up for a short period when I was in high school. I decided to bring it back to life when I created my Instagram account several years ago, but it also felt like the perfect name to carry into this. “King” for me is like a mentality. It’s being the best person I can be every single day, it’s always giving 100% in everything that I do. It’s being selfless, and constantly reflecting on my humbling experiences. “King” is like a reminder to always be a good human. Tell me about the best and worst shows you have played. Well I’m a brand new artist as I mentioned before and I played one show so far which was very successful! I had a bunch of people dressed in cow onesies as a large part of my audience! It was amazing haha! I had a great crowd for my first show so that made it lots of fun and made me feel comfortable on stage. I was in a band in high school and while it was really fun, we were not that great haha. We played two shows, and I wouldn’t say the shows really went “bad” but the first show no one really cared and the second show we played to 8 people at like midnight. We then had a classic band break up.   Tell me about your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you haven't already? The one place I’ve performed at so far is this outdoor venue called ContainR here in Calgary. It was a great place to play and I would love to play there again! Some other venues I’d like to play here would be the Rec Room, and Macewan Hall at the University of Calgary. The other places I want to play are all major concert venues across the world.   If you could play any show with any lineup who would be on the ticket? Defiently All Time Low, State Champs, Seaway, and Stand Atlantic.   What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band? I would say stick what YOU truly want to do! Getting advice from other artists is great but I feel a lot of people start to do the same things as everybody else and they start to lose their original flavor. Set small goals for yourself and remember, it’s about the art that you want to create, not what others want you to create.   If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be? I would tell myself to just go for it! I spent a lot of time wondering if I really wanted to start a career in music and I wish I spent that time working at it rather than thinking about it. I would tell myself to find the confidence and courage to put myself out there. People will always judge you no matter what! You never need approval from anyone to do what you love. So do it for yourself and the people that love you, and you’re going to make yourself proud!  

Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?

It really is hard to pick one because I always write from the heart and all my songs mean a lot to me, but if I had to pick one it would be “Dancing in the Dark Room”. The song is about remembering who you are in your darkest moments and to never give up. Life will always give you setbacks no matter who you are. Sometimes people feel like giving up on life and Dancing in the Dark Room is a reminder to not give up! You are loved and you can find a lot of value in life. There’s a place for everyone, finding your place can be tough, but surrounding yourself with people who really care about you, and taking the time to take care of yourself is what will pull you through. Everybody has a story, so keep writing!

Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most? Again I’m still pretty new to the scene and I’ve only played one show so far, but my favorite songs to play are No Stopping Tonight, and Safe and Sound.   What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music? I feel like I’m a little bit like Billie Eilish’s brother Finneas where he just makes all his music at home in his room or somewhere around his house. When I come up with an idea I do whatever I need to do to remember it, so I’ll write it down or make a voice memo. When I get the chance to build on the idea I’ll usually build on the idea by writing guitar parts for it and I continue to build from there. I love to hear about how other producers and artists write. Watching others helps me come think creatively so I can make my own ideas. When I write I have one important thing I always like to remember and that is “There’s no such thing as a bad idea”.   What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music? I like to give messages of motivation and messages about life in general. I want to write about what we feel as humans. That message can be a positive message or a message with some darkness to it. I want to express we feel in the art form that is music, and I want people to feel that in the words. We’re all just trying to live and we all feel different things, but I want people to remember that we’re all just humans at the end of the day no matter who you are and where you come from. I want people to know they should be their true selves and I want my fans/supporters to feel welcome and comfortable around me while being their true selves.   Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them? As a solo artist I have never had to disagree with anyone which is the beauty of being a solo artist haha! I am my biggest critic and I always put a lot of thought into what I do.   What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that's coming Up? My plan right now is to gain supporters, build my brand, and to keep creating. I have a single I’m going to be releasing in a couple of months! I don’t have a date set in stone but there will be more details in the coming weeks. I’m looking to play more shows and I’m looking to collaborate with other artists!