Bonus Episode 10 | Musical Journey From Tone Deaf to Top Charts with Kendra Erika

Episode Transcription

• Bonus Episode 10 Transcription

  Intro: Are you ready to change your habits, sculpt your destiny, and light up your path to greatness? Welcome to the epicenter of transformation. This is Mick Unplugged. We'll help you identify your because so you can create a routine that's not just productive, but powerful. You'll embrace the art of evolution, adapt strategies to stay ahead of the game, and take a step toward the extraordinary.

  So let's unleash your potential. Now, here's Mick.

  Mick Hunt: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another exciting episode of Mick Unplugged, where we explore stories of inspiration, creativity, and passion. And today, I'm excited to chat with a talented singer and songwriter who's making waves in the music industry with her soulful voice and powerful lyrics. Everyone, please welcome the powerful, the dynamic, the mesmerizing Kendra Erika. Kendra, how are you doing today, lady?

  Kendra Erika: Wow. Very, very lovely adjectives.

  Mick Hunt: It's all true. It's all you.

  Kendra Erika: Well, thank you. Very, very happy to be here. Thanks for having me. How are you doing today?

  Mick Hunt: I am wonderful, and I have been waiting for this podcast moment for a long time. Why don't you tell people about your journey, Kendra? Like, how did Kendra, Erica get here?

  Kendra Erika: So I was born, but I was born tone deaf. And being that where I am today, it just shows that with tenacity and also with with perseverance and with just, like, conviction all around, you can overcome something like that. But I was introduced to a professional opera singer when I was around 8 years old, and he was able to really get in there and do the groundwork and lay a classical foundation for my voice as well as curing that tone deafness. So from there, I was able to then fully participate in community theater and other theater productions and so on and so forth and doing talent competitions and doing other local shows and singing in restaurants. And then the writing bug hit me in my early teens, and I wanted to then start writing and recording my own music because up until that point, I had just been doing covers, and I wanted and I was fascinated with the original songwriting process.

  Kendra Erika: So I wanted to really try my hand at that. And I was working with producers in in Miami, And then those producers then led to producers that I was working with in New York. And then from there, then that brought me to the team of creatives and collaborators out here in Los Angeles that I've been working with. And then from then on, I've had 5 top 10 hits on the Billboard dance chart, and and I've opened up for likes of Jason Derulo, Cody Simpson. And I've also had national tours that I've that I've gone on, and I've collaborated with some of the most seasoned in this industry.

  Kendra Erika: And I've really been, year by year, just elevating my game. So and now I have now I have a lot of a lot of music under my belt and a lot of music that I have released so far. And it's been it's been an evolving journey.

  Mick Hunt: There's so much that I wanna unpack and unplug right there. You know, starting with you saying, you're tone deaf. Right? And a lot of people a lot of people that can't sing or or amateurs will say, oh, I'm tone deaf. Right?

  Mick Hunt: But then they keep going anyway just to prove the point that they're tone deaf. You actually took that, I'm gonna say disability and turn it into a strength. Right? What was it like for you to master, I'm gonna say the little things. And and being tone deaf, explain to the audience what that really means as well.

  Kendra Erika: Well, at that at that age, I didn't know I was tone deaf. Because when you're when you're that young, you don't have the wherewithal and you don't have the sensibility yet. So when I would sing, it would just be very atonal. Like, there's actually footage of when I turned, I think, 3 or yeah. I I think it was 3.

  Kendra Erika: But I was singing happy birthday to myself, you you know, singing the likes of Andrea Bocelli and singing all these dance songs with very with very wide range. When I was singing happy birthday to myself, I was like, you. Like, I'm not joking. If I bring up the the the video, you'll see what I'm talking about. So that's the kind of tone deafness that I was that I was working with and working through and working on trying to demolish.

  Mick Hunt: So so what steps did you take to to overcome that once you realize that, oh, yeah. I am tone deaf.

  Kendra Erika: That's the thing. I didn't realize I was because I would perform for my my parents and their friends at their dinner parties, and my parents would have to bring out other, like, extra bottles of wine in order to tolerate. It was like, oh, Kendra's performing. Bring out the other bottle of cab. You know, here she goes to Ken.

  Kendra Erika: But I had the confidence. Just the skill set was not in place yet, but it it became in place is what I'm saying.

  Mick Hunt: Alright. So so what inspired you to sing? And when did you know that it was a thing you could do and pursue professionally?

  Kendra Erika: What inspired me originally was like any parent. My parents would sit me in front of the TV, and they would pop the the Disney VHSs in. And I would watch these movies with musical numbers and the, you know, the princesses would sing and do all that. And there's just something about that that just really, like, that's what I wanna do. Like, it was just an instant draw and an instant, like, magnetism that I had for wanting to do something like that.

  Kendra Erika: So and then over time, my my preferences and my taste buds evolved, and I then started getting into, you know, the Britney's and the Madonna's and the Dusty's Childs and Spice Girls, and then I grew out of that. Then I was more into, you know, Lana Del Rey, LA Goulding, which I still am. And then I started getting more into the old timers, like Frank Sinatra and the Great American Songbook. Because at that time, starting in my teens, I started singing at different restaurants in the Boca Raton area. And if you know anything about Boca Raton, it attracts a lot of those New York, New England, or not even just that, just around the around the country retirees that have an appreciation and have an affinity for those types of songs.

  Kendra Erika: So I had to really build my repertoire with that in mind. And I started singing a lot of Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Connie Francis, and, also, I was doing Andrea Bocelli because a lot of these restaurants were Italian, so I had to add that flavor and touch in there as well. So I I established and I rooted myself in in jazz as well, which then flash forward, I did a remake of witchcraft by Frank Sinatra with Ralph Johnson and Myra McKinley, and that won the Hollywood independent music award. And now I just did a stripped down version of my song a deeper love, which charted on billboard dance. But I also stripped it back and did a jazz version of that as well, and that has not been released yet.

  Kendra Erika: That is that is forthcoming in this year.

  Mick Hunt: Oh, do we know when?

  Kendra Erika: No. If I know, then you'll know. Okay. Alright. You let me

  Mick Hunt: know, and we're gonna let the world know at the same time. Right?

  Kendra Erika: Yeah.

  Mick Hunt: One of the things that I love about you, Kendra, is your perseverance. Right? Like, for people that don't know, the music industry isn't easy. Right? There there's a grind, and there's a lot of hoops to go through.

  Mick Hunt: And the best isn't usually at the top. Right? Like, I I learned this professionally. Best known beats best. Right?

  Mick Hunt: You can be the best at something, and and nobody really knows who you are because best known is what wins. Walk us through or talk us through your perseverance in the in the industry. Like what challenges have you had to overcome? And then how did you overcome them? Because, again, for those who don't know, the music industry is a grind.

  Mick Hunt: It's not all glitz and glamour.

  Kendra Erika: Correct. Yeah. Well, starting off fresh out the gate, being being tone deaf was, like, the the one obstacle that trained me and that really set the stage for what was to come for me. One of the struggles that instantly comes to mind is, as you know, most of the mainstream artists that we see have had lots of of help.

  Mick Hunt: Yes. For those that cannot see, can just doing the the give me money symbol over there.

  Kendra Erika: Yeah. They've had a lot of financial help. Either it be daddy had $8,000,000,000 or, you know, grandpa had $4,000,000 to invest. My parents are very hardworking individuals, and I've said this before in other interviews and I've also posted about it as well. But my parents taught me the way to be successful, not the way to be famous.

  Kendra Erika: And there's something to say about that because and and, also, back to my point, a lot of the the artists that you see, they've had financial help. It's not that they're, oh my god, mesmerizing. It's just that they've had that financial help. And so my my parents, like I said, are very hardworking individuals. I have experienced a level of support from them, but then the other the other majority of that portion of that battle lied within me to push forward.

  Kendra Erika: And the wealth of of work ethic and spiritual wealth has also really propelled me as well. And I think it's not not just saying, but I really do believe that that is what's especially in this day and age, in this year, in this great awakening that we're in is really going to advance me. So that's been one of the struggles because when I was growing up, I would see certain people that were at the top, and I was like, but they only have, like, one octave range. But then come to find out as I got further along and deeper into the industry and I started hearing from more experienced people that this is what's actually going on, then that actually then fueled me even more. I was like, oh, I'm gonna paradigm shift this into my favor.

  Kendra Erika: And then another another struggle that comes to mind as well is when you think differently than most of the industry, you then become the black swan or the black sheep. And what can happen is that if you have different

  Mick Hunt: viewpoints or different opinions than the industry, it's

  Kendra Erika: then up to you Because if you're not thinking the most popular way, Because if you're not thinking the most popular way, then that can either hurt you or put you at an advantage. And over the course of time, immaturity, and observation, I've been able to use that as an advantage. It used to be a disadvantage for me, but now I've been able to really strategize it in a way that puts me at a copious level at a very like, in a position of gain. So those are just one of the struggles that come to mind and also not willing to fit within the mold because we're not baking cookies. So I don't have to fit into the the cookie cutter ways because we're not baking cookies.

  Kendra Erika: We're making history. And especially in this day and age, there's a lot of mold fitting. Like, as you've seen with Nicki Minaj, Cardi b, Ice Spice, Saweetie, it's like they're all the same person.

  Mick Hunt: Uh-oh. I like it.

  Kendra Erika: I mean, you have Selena, Dua Lipa, Demi Lovato, Camila Cabello, like Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Cart they're all the same person. And when you have someone that stands out in this day and age, people are like, we don't know what to do with that. But at the same time, if you look back in in the day, who are the people that stood the test of time? Madonna, David Bowie, Cher, Whitney.

  Mick Hunt: Right.

  Kendra Erika: It's because it's because you can't replicate. People that you can't replicate. But in this day Danny, there's a lot of cloning going on musically and stylistically. So I felt that I I wanna take the approach of what has worked so magnanimously into the future and so gravitational into into the future and what I'm doing. So that's why I said I'm now using the black sheep or the black swan approach to my advantage strategically because those are the icons, the ones that push the envelope that went against the grain and that quite honestly went against establishment.

  Mick Hunt: I love it. One of the things that also makes Kendra stand apart and one of the things that I truly admire about you is you are a freaking amazing songwriter. Talk to us about what your creative process is when you get ready to to start the process of writing a song. Because, you know, back in the day, I was a little songwriter too. So I know that there's a process, right?

  Mick Hunt: Like, you just don't wake up and, oh, here's the song I'm gonna write. What what's Kendra's process to songwriting?

  Kendra Erika: It varies between the varies on the collaborator or the producer or songwriter that I'm working with. But how I like to conduct my fashions, if you will, is I always like to have a deep and meaningful and almost philosophical conversation with whomever I am collaborating with. Because from then, by doing that, that breaks down the 4 walls, and we're not coming from an obligatory place. We're not having to placate or obligate to anything. So that breaks down the 4 walls, and it then elevates us to come to a place of inhibition.

  Kendra Erika: And so from there, then we can start really pulling pulling concepts and then and then penning them and gulping them into the what then becomes the the song. That's lyrically. And then, melodically, it all depends on on the track because the track is what inspires the the melodies, the harmonies, and all the musical accruchement.

  Mick Hunt: I love it. That's a that's amazing, and and that's a great insight for people to understand that process. To me, that's that's very deep, and and I love and admire you and in the process that you have in songwriting because I do think and these are the words of Mick. And Mick only, one of the top 5 songwriters that we have out there is miss Kendra Erika, just so that everyone knows.

  Kendra Erika: Oh, thank you. I appreciate that.

  Mick Hunt: So a couple of things I'm a get you out of here, Kendra. So what's next? What's your 3 to 5 year vision of yourself in this industry, in this space?

  Kendra Erika: Well, currently, this is, doing a shout out. Currently, I have a residency at CIRN in West Hollywood every Tuesday night. So I'm I'm there performing. I'm there creating a nice a nice vibe, a nice lane. And I have a release party coming up for the video that I did for self love symphony.

  Kendra Erika: That's a collaboration that I did with Dave Allde and Olivia Newton John's daughter, Chloe Lutensie. So we have the video releasing May 1st, and there's a whole release party that we're doing in West Hollywood. It's gonna be fantastic. That's next week, May 1st. And then after that, I have more music I'm releasing, more videos to shoot.

  Kendra Erika: I have a performant I have 2 performances in Mexico City and in Guadalajara in June. And then from from then on, I'm going where the wind takes me, and I'm embracing and soaring on the wings of the opportunities that come my way in the horizon.

  Mick Hunt: So if you could make the wind go anywhere you wanted it to go, like, if you had control of the wind, where would you take yourself in the next year, year and a half?

  Kendra Erika: I would take myself to an elevated version of what I'm doing now.

  Mick Hunt: Love it. Alright. Rapid fire with Kendra. You ready? Sure.

  Mick Hunt: Top three favorite artists of all times.

  Kendra Erika: Sonya Sinatra, Kylie Minogue, and the 3rd

  Mick Hunt: You can say yourself. You can say Kendra Erika. Kendra's in my top 3. They are 4

  Kendra Erika: pointing to my k e.

  Mick Hunt: There you go. K e. Number 3 is k e. Love it. Love it.

  Kendra Erika: Oh, gosh.

  Mick Hunt: See? It's okay. You can you can be a fan of yourself. You should be.

  Kendra Erika: I am. Just the inner guilt trip of don't be conceited. Don't be conceited. I concede.

  Mick Hunt: You you should be a fan of yourself. If you are in your top 3, you should be in your top 3.

  Kendra Erika: Darling, I am a fan of myself. There we go. I channeled my inner lives, Manelli.

  Mick Hunt: Darling. Love it. If you had to sing one genre of music for the rest of your life, what would it be?

  Kendra Erika: Jazz.

  Mick Hunt: Love me some jazz.

  Kendra Erika: Mhmm. Love me some jazz. It's still it's still it's still rhythmic, but then you can also incorporate that legitimate style of of singing, that very legato, way of singing. So you kinda get the both worlds of classical and dance, and the mediator is jazz.

  Mick Hunt: So you just had the most amazing day of your life. It's late in the evening. What's your happy song? What's the song you're belting out to to end that amazing day?

  Kendra Erika: The day just ended. It was very victorious. I'm trying to I'm trying to put myself in that setting.

  Mick Hunt: The sunlight is just going down. You're you're on Santa Monica Beach. You're you're on the pier. Everything's perfect. What's what's the song that's coming to your soul that you just wanna belt out?

  Kendra Erika: I have no idea because there are a lot of there there there are quite a few that come to mind. I have sweet dreams by Annie Lennox. There's a song out right now. I forget who it's by. It's called, like, when you're alone tonight or something like that.

  Kendra Erika: I I I forget. But, oh my god. Oh, I I can't answer this question. It's just it's it's too it's too it's too situational, too subjective, and I'm like

  Mick Hunt:  I I tried to narrow it down. I tried to give you the scenario. I get it. I get it.

  Kendra Erika: I get that. Yeah. It's like it's like bringing me into a gelato shop. It's like, good luck. Yeah.

  Kendra Erika: You'll be here for, like, 3 hours later. Kendra's still, like, sampling everything. You know?

  Mick Hunt: There you go. Alright. I'm gonna get you out of here on this one, Kendra. What's your advice to anyone that's trying to come into the music industry now? So for the young in their mind up and comer that's like, I wanna get into the industry.

  Mick Hunt: What's two pieces of advice you'd give them today?

  Kendra Erika: Something that my dad always instilled in me, and that's hard work beats talent and talent doesn't work hard. That's one of them. Also, speak up for yourself because everyone else is out for their own interests, and you have to be the one to speak up for yourself. Also, don't sell out. Protect your soul.

  Kendra Erika: And how you do that is not being predictable. Don't be predictable. That's how you protect yourself.

  Mick Hunt: That's amazing. Well, Kendra, I totally appreciate you taking a little bit of time with us here today. You know, I'm gonna come out to serve since you have residency there. I'm making a West Kirk trip later on this summer. I'm gonna stop by and I'm gonna spend some time listening to Kendra live.

  Mick Hunt: Because I've listened to hours upon hours of of you, but I haven't heard you live. So I'm excited to to hear Kendra live and to get the true Kendra Erica experience.

  Kendra Erika: I appreciate that you called it an an experience, but thank you. It's been it's been wonderful speaking with you today, and I can't wait till you come out, and we'll spend some time.

  Mick Hunt: There you go. There you go. Ladies and gentlemen, the great, the electrifying, Kendra Erika. And remember, your because is your superpower. Unleash it.

  Intro: Thanks for listening life. Don't forget to rate and review the podcast, and be sure to check us out on YouTube at Mick Unplugged. Remember, stay empowered, stay inspired, and stay unplugged.