Meet Kali J | Songwriter/Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kali J and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kali, is there something you believe many others might not?
I believe in taking risks and I believe the the societal pressure to “play it safe” in our careers often does more harm than good. Especially for people in their teens, 20s, and 30s, take risks, be cringe, chase your dreams, start that business. Now is the time to give anything and everything a shot. Don’t spend the rest of your life wondering “what if.” I think a lot of people will be surprised what they can accomplish simply by taking the road less travelled and daring to step out of the box a little.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My name is Kali J and I’m an independent artist/songwriter based in LA. I knew what I wanted to do from a very early age and I’m now lucky enough to say I get to do music and my artistry for a living. One thing that sets me a part is not only do I do a vocal style that helped create my own sonic brand, but I’ve also been able to tailor my writing so that it gets picked up and licensed by large brands around the world in their marketing campaigns. This has not only allowed me to write music full-time, but also provides massive exposure for my music and gets me in the room with some amazing collaborators.

I began my journey in the Fall of 2017 and it took 3 years, crazy hours, and an insane amount research and practice in order to build my brand into a full-time job. I became full-time at the start of 2021 and have been doing it ever since.

It was not an easy journey. I learned a lot of difficult lessons along the way and had moments of extreme self doubt, but I was determined. I played with sounds, branding, and vocal styles until I found what worked for me, and I invested a lot of time and money learning about the business, attended conferences, made sure I was organized, easy to work with, and searched for collaborators who wanted the same things out of their careers.

The one thing I want people to know about me is that as someone who has struggled with self doubt, self confidence, and self image my entire life, I write music for anyone who can relate and to help combat the negative self talk. Need to feel like a bad b!tch? Listen to Bow Chika Wow It. Need a confidence boost? Listen to I Got This. Want to feel unstoppable? Listen to Born For This? I gotchu 
My music is a reflection of who I’m striving to be, the life I’m trying to build, and the community I try to surround myself with. While I do credit everything I’ve been able to accomplish to God, I also believe the music we write and listen to can have effects on the lives we create, so we might as well write positive, confident, unstoppable music.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
We’d make a day of visiting my favorite record stores and thrifts shops, and end the day at my favorite sushi place, Sushi Note, in Sherman Oaks.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

Professionally: I would like to give a shout out to Taxi Music A&R. Their Taxi TVs and conferences were a major source of education and finding collaborators when I was first getting started.

Support System: My Mom and Dad. Although, I was the only musical member of my family growing up, they did everything they could to support and encourage my passion for music. As I progressed in my career, started my own business, and began pursuing music full-time, while hesitant at first, they continued to support my dream and they trusted the process. I will forever be grateful for their support and encouragement and I truly don’t think any of this would have been possible without them. Thanks Mom and Dad 

Website: https://www.kalij.net/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kalijmusic/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kali-arnott-kali-j-5bb366124/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@musikality94

Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thekalij?_t=8aTu8EvqGa6&_r=1

Image Credits
Photographer: Maxine Bowen