Skylar Blatt Talks Journey from Freestyling to Music Stardom, Cincinnati's Influence, & More!
Jun 22, 2024
Nyla Symone
What motivates someone to turn a love for casual freestyling into a full-fledged music career? Skylar Blatt from Ohio opens up about her transformative journey from a sports-driven childhood in Cincinnati's West End to becoming a rising star in the music industry. Hear how the loss of a close friend became a pivotal moment, pushing her to take her musical talent seriously. Skylar shares intimate details about her tight-knit community’s influence on her discipline and decision-making, and how the support of her cousin and the local music scene helped her gain traction and positive feedback with her early releases.
Shifting gears, we explore the cultural landscape of Cincinnati, a city known for its family-friendly atmosphere and its growing appeal to former NFL players seeking stability post-career. We also spotlight the meteoric rise of Kyler Black, whose viral success on Instagram caught the attention of none other than Chris Brown. Kyler recounts the thrilling story of how his track "Fuck Fame" led to a mentorship and collaboration with Chris Brown on "Wake Up." This episode underscores the power of support systems, strategic networking, and recognizing one's potential in the cutthroat world of music. Don't miss these inspiring stories of perseverance and success!
What motivates someone to turn a love for casual freestyling into a full-fledged music career? Skylar Blatt from Ohio opens up about her transformative journey from a sports-driven childhood in Cincinnati's West End to becoming a rising star in the music industry. Hear how the loss of a close friend became a pivotal moment, pushing her to take her musical talent seriously. Skylar shares intimate details about her tight-knit community’s influence on her discipline and decision-making, and how the support of her cousin and the local music scene helped her gain traction and positive feedback with her early releases.
Shifting gears, we explore the cultural landscape of Cincinnati, a city known for its family-friendly atmosphere and its growing appeal to former NFL players seeking stability post-career. We also spotlight the meteoric rise of Kyler Black, whose viral success on Instagram caught the attention of none other than Chris Brown. Kyler recounts the thrilling story of how his track "Fuck Fame" led to a mentorship and collaboration with Chris Brown on "Wake Up." This episode underscores the power of support systems, strategic networking, and recognizing one's potential in the cutthroat world of music. Don't miss these inspiring stories of perseverance and success!
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Speaker 1:
I really like Ohio. I'm not going to lie, I've been a few times. Seems like a good place to settle.
Speaker 2:
It's the perfect place to live. Yeah, it ain't too much and it's not too less. It's like you ain't going to go broke. You shouldn't go broke here.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:
It's not that we don't got no strip clubs.
Speaker 1:
No strip clubs Wow, tell me about it. No, that's great actually. That's a place I can raise a family. Thank God I don't need my man to be attentive about nothing.
Speaker 2:
What's up, y'all? It's your girl, skylar Blatt, and you might have heard my new single, wake Up, featuring Chris Brown, out now. What's up, nyla? We need to talk.
Speaker 1:
What's going on, guys? Nyah Simone here with another episode of we Need to Talk, and today I got a very special guest in the building All the way from Ohio. Okay, I got Skylar Blatt in the building.
Speaker 2:
Who is it the biggest? How you feeling I'm good. How you feeling I'm feeling good.
Speaker 1:
I'm happy to be here. Glad you're here. Welcome, I know you said it's hot in Ohio right now. I'm a little jealous. 86 degrees.
Speaker 2:
Sheesh 90. It's been in the 90s too 90s Already.
Speaker 1:
Wow, for like what? Two weeks, three weeks, I got to spend more time in the Midwest. I do so being from Ohio. Just talk to me about your background growing up inspirations, because I guess who the biggest to come out of Ohio? Bow Wow, bootsy Collins. Ooh, that's a great one, all right. Well, talk to me about your influences growing up um.
Speaker 2:
Growing up, you know I played sports um. I did a lot of what sport I played basketball, softball, flag football, cheerleading.
Speaker 1:
I played almost everything, yeah.
Speaker 2:
I was. I was a sports head I still am, though but I played a lot of sports growing up, and then, you know, eventually I start being a little bad little kid running around throwing rocks at people, cars and stuff like that, so it was fun growing up in a. I grew up in downtown West End, cincinnati, so it was like downtown West End Cincinnati is like they own community, we like like it's big, it's like the biggest neighborhood in Cincinnati.
Speaker 2:
I believe we probably do got the biggest neighborhood because it's like a lot of different parts and but it's all as one, but it's so many different parts to it. So it was just, you know, we. It was the good and the bad, it was like a mixture of everything, but I feel like I learned a lot of. I learned how to be disciplined and, you know, learned how to make better decisions for myself and stuff like that. So what drew you to the music? Really, well, one of my best friends had that.
Speaker 2:
Well, before he passed away, I had already started doing like my freestyles, so like it was fresh for me. So everybody was excited, though, like you need to do this, you need to do this, like so once he probably like I say probably a couple months after he passed away, I'm like all right, I want to do this, like I want to, I want to try it because it was so new. But it was something new. You feel me it was like, yeah, it was like I was really like more so tired of what my old life was consistent of, like. So it was like okay, let me see what this bring to me. And my feedback was crazy. So I just got in my bag with the music.
Speaker 1:
Fire. So you weren't. You weren't like growing up like yo I want to be an artist.
Speaker 2:
I got to no, no like yo, I want to be an artist.
Speaker 1:
I gotta no, no really no, like I started rapping when I was probably like 19.
Speaker 2:
Oh wow, I started going to like the club.
Speaker 1:
Once I started rapping, I started like making social medias and I'm always surprised when people who are really good at rapping hit me with the. I only been rapping for x amount of time, because how the fuck do you learn the skill like?
Speaker 2:
that and it's so crazy. I learned because I used to just be hanging out with my friends at the studio. They used to rap.
Speaker 2:
Okay, and I'm just there kicking it. So it was like, okay, I'm going to try this. And I literally tried it one day and just stuck to it. And you know when you like. I feel like we know when we good at something or when we see the potential to be good at something. Like my first time rapping, it was like no, I could be good at this, because it wasn't like whack.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, you see what I'm saying, like you know, when something whack, like, nah, I can't put this out. Yeah, like, I really put it out and it took a lot to do that because I started rapping in like 2014. Did you put out the first record? Yeah, like a freestyle, I put it out on social media like SoundCloud.
Speaker 1:
You got good feedback. Yeah, and it's been up ever since, and it was going.
Speaker 2:
It started going.
Speaker 1:
Damn, that's dope, that's good, all right. So fast forward. Here we are now. How did you go about, like, finding a team and navigating, because I know Ohio doesn't necessarily have an industry like New York or LA. So, like, how did you, I guess, start building your profile?
Speaker 2:
Okay. So once I started doing it in 2014, I was doing it on my own for like probably like six years. Well, no, I take that back. My big cousin, jury, like when I started, he was, like you know, helping, just because he was already in the music scene in Cincinnati, so he had like a big you know impact on it. So he was like coaching me, you know studio sessions, you know like just helping out, giving me like certain pointers on how to do certain stuff, like, um, I say probably like 2014 to 2020, right, and that's when I started. This has been my friend, though, for over 10 years. Brandon. That's who I started doing like ILWT with like 2022. I mean 2021, I would say 2021. Like 2020, 2021. So beforehand I was just doing it by myself and then I partnered up with Brandon and we just took it to the moon. My boy, sad, was there for a few years before we even ever signed. Like he was been there too, like he came in, played a big part.
Speaker 1:
That's dope. That's dope, all organic. So, that's what's the beautiful part about it.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, like we built our friendship up and then we was doing the music.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, so you said you was hitting the clubs and rapping. Talk to me about that club circuit, man, is it? Was it intimidating because you kind of got to keep the energy going when you, when you, you know, hit, hit the club uh-huh.
Speaker 2:
It's so crazy because, look, I would never perform. People used to think I was like stage fright, but I really used to be like like my first time performing, I need 10,000. That's how I used to tilt like and that's really how I built it up. No, seriously, everybody used to be like trying to get me to perform and stuff and they like I used to be hearing stuff. They used to be like you, but you're scared, you, you stage fright. And I used to just be laughing in my head like what, why would I be stay? This is what I'm doing.
Speaker 2:
But it was like I had to force myself to really stand on. That was me like standing on business, like okay, once I get booked, I want to get booked for this amount of money, like and I'm gonna work for it and like I I feel like when they booked me for ten thousand dollars, it was worth it, like I had been doing it for like years and and I had my resume was good for it to be like okay, we gonna do it, even though they was taking a chance, because I had never performed in the city, like had my own concert. I had never had my own concert. So it was like the people who booked me. It was like I'm they like it was like a bidding war going on. Some people felt like, oh, she should get 75, I wouldn't. I never budged. I'm like I want 10,000 like budged. I'm like I want 10,000. Like or we gonna.
Speaker 1:
I'm gonna see y'all later. Damn, I respect that. I respect that I know.
Speaker 2:
so it was like I got my first show for 10,000. I was even like it was. I was amazed Like once I was performing cause. Like oh, I really, just because I've been with Santa for years and years, like since I started doing music, I used to be like yeah, I ain't performing until I want $10,000 to show. Like, and everybody I was making music for so long and without performing, people probably really thought I was scared.
Speaker 1:
That and because you waited so long, people probably like. The anticipation is like you know what. This is a big deal. By the time you finally agree to do it, everybody's going to come out for it.
Speaker 2:
It was crazy. It was crazy they probably didn't, because it was like, once I seen the crowd, it was like I'm that girl, because I really predicted that, though, and so many people. I got so many people to witness for it. Because I used to tell people all my friends they used to be like why you ain't performing? Like why you ain't performing Like. I used to be like I'm going to do it when I want 10,000.
Speaker 1:
Dang. Now you just told me to step up, step up my standing on business. I like that.
Speaker 2:
Yes, it taught me how to stand on business, Because now it teach you, it teach people how to treat you, Because they like, once they sent the results, they was like oh yeah, like.
Speaker 1:
It's up.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, she said she. I see why she stood on what she stood on, because it's easy to be like oh yeah, I'll take that 75 right quick. Like, yeah, that ain't no bad number either.
Speaker 1:
But it's like no, I want that 10,000.
Speaker 2:
And I ain't moving my feet. Yep, like I. People respect you too. I tell all my friends that do music like, because sometimes you might have friends in the business that's doing the music with you, right, or the promoters, or whatever the case may be but they might feel like, okay, we the promoters, we got this certain crowd that's going to come regardless, but it's like no, I want you to, just got to be 50-50. When you got your people, I'm going to bring the people too. So I need this. I Just got to be 50-50. When you got your people, I'm going to bring the people too. So I need this. I understand we're friends, but I need this.
Speaker 1:
Yep, you know that's right.
Speaker 2:
So it just helps people, you know, because it's all like it's out of love regardless, but like out of respect we got to. Don't forget that part. That's a gem.
Speaker 1:
I received that. Thank you, I received that. I received that. Okay, so dang, what was my? Oh, I was gonna ask is Blatt your last name? Like what is that?
Speaker 2:
we really see. Look, in my city, like probably like 15 years ago, 14, we was listening to Young Thug. So, like to the point, it was a point we was listening to Young Thug. That was the only person we was listening to, like since high school. So once we started, you know how you is, you young, you y'all like, yeah, we black, we slime, we, you know like slime in my city, mean like simply living in my environment, but they got that from Young Thug. Originally that was something we used to say, like when we see each other, like that's how we greeted each other Black. Like when we see each other Like that's how we greeted each other Blat, like, blat, blat, blat. Like we would say it fast, though like when we see each other Blat, blat, blat, blat, blat, blat.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, Blat, Blat, Blat. Yeah, just like that. I'm like Skylar Blat.
Speaker 2:
Is that her last name? It gives Young to greet each other when we see like see each other so black doesn't have a meaning, it's just no it's really just the it's low-key literally people be like when I go to different cities. They be like is you blood? I'd be like no, it's the name it's the name.
Speaker 1:
I meant to start the interview with that question actually, because I'm like black, it's kyler black no, we don't gang bang in cincinnati, y'all don.
Speaker 2:
No, we don't have no gangs when people start acting like they gang and they lying, we don't do. No, we never, ever had that type of stuff going on. Really Never. I'm surprised. It's like either you from there or you from here. It ain't no like oh, we wearing red because we like this, we wearing blue. None of that. We don't have no gangs in Cincinnati, got it?
Speaker 1:
Hmm, okay, I actually respect gang culture in LA, just because they serious, they serious, but it's more than just you know. You from here, you from here.
Speaker 1:
Like it's a whole political system within it and like its own ecosystem. So I think, like its own ecosystem, so I I think it's cool, but, um, that's interesting that midwest doesn't, or cincinnati doesn't have it. You guys are a college town, though, right, uh, yeah, you see, kind of a college town, yeah, a little bit, a little bit okay. Okay, um, I really like ohio, I'm not gonna lie, I've been a few times. Seems like a good place to like, settle, live, yeah.
Speaker 2:
That's why a lot of NFL players, a lot of NFL players that came and played for the Bengals, they still got houses there.
Speaker 1:
And they're not even like probably in the NFL.
Speaker 2:
No more, they still live there Like it's the perfect place to live, yeah, Like it ain't too much and it's not too less. It's like you ain't going to go broke. You shouldn't go broke here. Yeah, yeah, yeah Like it's not that we don't got no strip clubs Like it's that.
Speaker 1:
No strip clubs? Wow, tell me about it. No, that's great. Actually, that's the place I can raise a family. Thank God I don't need my man to be made me attentive about nothing. No, but okay, all right. So so once you started blowing up in Ohio, um, because you started getting major looks, you know, you've had hell of a cosigns, from 42 Doug to Chris Brown to Lola, so just talk to me about that. And I guess, because you, you've already been staying on business like alright, you know, 10k minimum for the show.
Speaker 2:
But it's like, how did you start, I guess, interacting with other, like your peers, artists, yeah, yeah um, okay, so with 42, doug Brandon and him have like a mutual friend, so that's how that happened with Lola Seth. Put that together, of course, doughboy me and Doughboy I already followed each other on Instagram, so I just like hit him up about that.
Speaker 1:
Um who else?
Speaker 2:
was the features Iceware, vezo. It's the same branding. Have they have a mutual friend? Cool um, I feel like I'm missing somebody.
Speaker 1:
Chris, chris, come on missing somebody Not.
Speaker 2:
Chris, I was going to wait on that.
Speaker 1:
It was Meek, that's what.
Speaker 2:
I Meek. He had. He had reached out. He had sent somebody to reach out to me. They had a tour coming to Cincinnati, him and Lil Baby, so I had went to that tour. That's how I met him and linked with him and Chris and Chris, I got this record called F Fame you can cuss on here. Oh, I got this record called Fuck Fame and it had went viral on Instagram first. So one day I woke up, my Twitter was going crazy. Chris Brown had reposted it on his Instagram though, so I had DM'd him. I'm like thanking him and stuff like that. Him and Lil Baby had a tour coming to Cincinnati like a month after or something like that. So I went to that tour.
Speaker 2:
I wrote him when he was like performing, I'm like I want to come back there like get some pictures and stuff. So once I had wrote him, he wrote me back. Like 30 minutes later. He like I'm going to send somebody out there to come get you. So I'm like, okay, cool, that's fire it you. So I'm like, okay, cool, it's lit, yeah.
Speaker 2:
So, uh, one of the DJs from my city, dj Fresh he had came and got me, took me back there. We was just kicking it, but they had an after party after the concert. So that's what we went from the concert to the after party. That's when we like start vibing. We was, we rode the bus. I rode on the bus with him too, so he was already like. He was like yeah, put that Skylar Blatt on. Like, so you know, we're on, we on the buses, man, we just we vibing out, we get there. That's when we start like really having conversations, though Like we like talking. He's just like yeah, I fuck with your music, like this, that and the third Keep going. Like you know, just let me know how the industry work. It's basically like stay true to who you is. So he busts out. He was like yeah, we're going to work too. What's your number? I'm like what. I literally looked up like I'm like okay. So we exchanged numbers and stuff After we partied. I had one. You know I stuck to the routine. I still was in the studio working.
Speaker 2:
A couple weeks later I made the wake up record. I told my engineer. I'm like yeah, I'm going to send this to Chris. I sent it to him. He hit me back immediately. He was like want to wake up it's fire? You know sending messy emojis. Want to wake up. It's fire. He was just sending different messages so I'm like, okay, he love it.
Speaker 2:
Because I'm like let me know what you think about this record. I want you on it. He said want to wake up. It was fire. So I'm like okay, I know what that means. Yeah. So he called me back a couple hours later. He said his emotion was through the roof. He like want to wake up. It's fire. Like don't put it out. Don't put it out Because they were still on tour, him and little baby was.
Speaker 2:
So he like don't put it out. So I'm like okay, don't put it out. But once we get off that call, he texts me again like make sure you don't put it out. Like so I'm like okay, yeah, this, this, this a banger. So a couple weeks I went by. I say probably like three, four weeks went by. He'll reach out to me like oh my, I got you, I ain't forgot. Like I promise I got you. Like so I'm like okay, I'm patiently waiting. At the end of the day I'm not even, I'm still working. So he like um, he did that twice. He hit me up a few times Like I got you, I ain't forgot about you. I'm like of course I can talk to you. Like I think everybody can talk to you.
Speaker 2:
So he FaceTimed me. He was in the studio. He was like, listen to this, tell me what you think. So I'm like, oh shit, like it's real. Like he playing a song. I'm just on the E-Way, I'm going home. I'm like what the fuck? Like, fuck, like I'm listening to it, but I can't really get a feel because I'm driving. So I'm like, hold on, wait, I gotta park, I gotta park. So I called him back once I parked. I'm like, let me hear that one more time. Like so he playing, and we was on a FaceTime going crazy, he just kept laughing at me because I was going so crazy. He like your ass crazy.
Speaker 2:
So once he, um, let me hear the verse. He like I'm gonna send it over to you. I'm like, I got you, I want to shoot a movie. He like, let me know. Like like just right then. And I'm like, yeah, we got to shoot a movie. He like, let me know. Like, so I'm like, okay, my birthday was coming up like a month later, so I had reached out like a next the next week I called him. I'm like, um, I want to, um, uh, shoot the movie out there. Like he like, let me know what's the date. Like, like I got you, like I'm going to free up my schedule. Damn man, that's crazy, seriously. So we like my birthday. I stayed in my city for my birthday, so the first week of June I went out there. That's when I went out there First week of June. I went out there.
Speaker 2:
He was like what you think you need for the video and stuff like that. So it was like I'm like a basketball court, a rave, you know the Rolls Royce, like whatever I said in the song. I was just saying little stuff like okay, we can do this. He like I got you, we can shoot it at my house. So they put that together. He was coming from off a 24 hour rehearsal with Sierra from the night before. So that was another plus too. I'm like that's turnt. I'm like that's turnt, like you really about to shoot with me, that's turnt.
Speaker 2:
So we shot the video. We was already building our like connection up way before I sent the song to him, because it was just like you know, we wish each other happy holidays and stuff like that. That's so cool. So once I shot the video, our connection was just like boom. It looked like we really, really, really, you know, yeah, yeah, like that's why the video was so fun to watch and stuff like that, because our connection was already built over the time so we shot the video. It was like, yeah, you locked in, like I met his mom. It was just that's dope. It was just his hospitality was just like you know it was. I just love to see that coming from him, because not only did I already believe in myself, it just felt good for somebody like him to believe in me.
Speaker 1:
You get what I'm saying, hell yeah.
Speaker 2:
What Like this, the biggest. Yes, Like this is the, you know, like Goat, yeah, goat. So it was just like that. Right there, that was a move. I said yeah, we pulled that off, that was beautiful, that's so cool, that humble and like is paying it for it.
Speaker 1:
You know, Like you said, he don't got to do that that's great.
Speaker 2:
He did not have, he did not. He's like you got a second.
Speaker 1:
She's like yeah, let me, I got time.
Speaker 2:
I would have told the judge Judge hold on. This is Chris Brown, Not the judge.
Speaker 1:
Hold on judge. No, that's funny.
Speaker 2:
We're about to play a game. It's just a fill in the blank game, all right. The older I get, the less I blank. Oh, the older I get, the less Wow, the older. I get the less I Mmm, mmm. The older I get, the less I. No, I can't say that because I do that a lot. Am I on a time?
Speaker 1:
budget. No, no, you're not on a time budget.
Speaker 2:
The older I get, the less I argue okay, that's a good one.
Speaker 1:
That's a good one, alright.
Speaker 2:
You would never believe me if I told you blank you would never believe me if I told you I was about to say some crazy. You would never believe me if I told you I was about to say some crazy, say it, say it. You would never believe me if I told you A lie, a lie.
Speaker 1:
I wouldn't believe it. You're that good what you a Scorpio.
Speaker 2:
Gemini Mmm, mmm, mmm. I don't got no problems with Gemini's, I like Gem Gemini.
Speaker 1:
Mmm, mmm, mmm. I don't got no problems with Gemini's. I like Gemini's. No beef here. If you had said a different sign, it might have been like oh, I don't believe you, I can't believe I actually blanked when I was younger. I can't believe I actually.
Speaker 2:
I can't believe that. I can't believe I actually I can believe that. I can't believe I actually blinked when I was younger Dang Yo what was you doing?
Speaker 1:
She like, she said I can't believe I actually Cursed. Oh, come on, Come on, that's the norm at this point. Sometimes I look back at my life and blank Cry Really, yeah, happy, positive, or sad, happy, happy, mm-hmm. From time to time it's good to do blank Party. Mm-hmm, my personality trait is blank. From time to time it's good to do blank party. My personality trait is blank, impeccable.
Speaker 2:
I had to put a funny one in there, not impeccable.
Speaker 1:
What? I ain't never heard that one. That's pretty good, alright. Last one I made a complete fool of myself when I blinked. I ain't never heard that one. That's pretty good, all right. Last one I made a complete fool of myself when I blinked. When I trust, damn. Felt that All right, understood, understood. I felt that one. But, skyla, thank you so much for coming by. Thank you, shout out to your grandma. Everybody know where they can follow you. If they don't already, you can follow me on the gram at SkylarBlack.
Speaker 2:
Double underscore. You can follow me on Twitter, facebook under SkylarBlack, and shout out to my girl. Thank you for having me. Yes, you're an amazing spirit.
Speaker 1:
Thank you and I love this. And wait, wait, wait. I forgot to ask we getting a project.
Speaker 2:
Yes, coming soon. Coming soon. No date, no title. Okay, just a project, just work. I got us.
Speaker 1:
It's on the way. It's on the way. All right, we're looking forward to it, until next time.
