Hailing from Washington, D.C., independent singer-songwriter and producer Kevin Ross has released his first single of 2023, “Look My Way,” from his upcoming EP Midnight Microdose.

The song is an ode to classic R&B with its layered vocals and sleek rhythmics complimented by Ross’ passionate and composed performance. Influenced by the intrinsic liaison embedded in traditional R&B elements, the song is a lyrical embodiment of iconic influences through a smooth musical aspect. 

To learn more about Ross’ plans, he conversed with Variance's Ethan Ijumba to discuss his career, music, and upcoming project. Be sure to stream “Look My Way” on all platforms and stay up to date by following Kevin Ross on Instagram and Twitter, as well as scroll below to read their full conversation.

Ethan Ijumba:
Sorry to catch you up while you're on the road, but how's everything been going? How's it been for the past couple of months, and just how's everything going with you? 

Kevin Ross:
Oh man, everything is good new life, new father.

EI:
Congratulations!

KR:
Thank you so much, man; it's been amazing.

EI:
Aside from your new chapter with fatherhood, you also have new music as an independent artist under your label, Art Society Music Group. Having that independence to go your route and lane with your career, how has the transition been? 

KR:
It's been great; it's a lot more difficult in the sense of navigating those waters on your own, but it's really about being smart about your decisions and who you affiliate yourself with as it pertains to business. Understanding that you do not know everything and also know yourself in that way, it's a lot more than music as it relates to the music business. So, the past four years of being independent have been awesome to see my growth. When I was signed to a major label, I couldn't see the monthly statistics across all DSPs, even physical sales, because I didn't own my masters. Now that's different, I can understand how to scale, use the money, and reinvest it into my company so that we can continue to push further and beyond. 

EI:
To go along with that, do you have any plans where you want to take y your career into a specific direction that you want to focus on most, whether it's your role as an artist role or the producer or the writer aspect with the independence that you have now? 

KR:
I want to scale it to the point where it can become a blueprint for other R&B singers. In R&B, we don't have Percy Millers’ (Master P) and Bryan Williams (Birdman) in the R&B industry, we don't have those heroes in the R&B space, and I feel we need them, and there are amazing independent artists that are killing it right now. But I think it's about time for us as an industry to scale it and make sure that success is accessible to a lot more people within the genre because it's available, and it's just about making sure that the light is shed on it. 

EI:
Do you feel at this current state of R&B that it's been getting progressively better with the vision of what you're trying to achieve, and could you further elaborate on why? 

KR:
Absolutely, I think sonically, it’s getting better for sure, and I think that musically it's getting back to a place that's a lot more solid. Regarding business, some seeds are being put into the ground, and we just kind of got away for the harvest. We're trying to see the full maturation of the R&B business because many of my heroes are signed to major labels. So we're charting waters that haven't been sailed or driven or road in quite some time or not as often.

EI:
To go along with that, your newest single, “Look My Way,” just came out today. Its natural R&B elements from traditional harmonies and poetic lyrics give an organic and reminiscent nod to an era that listeners can enjoy. How exactly did the song come about regarding its composition process?

KR:
It always starts with the piano and me. But I am also being intentional about understanding where my fans are. I represent the working nine-to-five women; the music I try to create is for me to make a statement to say, hey, I see you, and I understand what you're going through, and I want it to be the soundtrack to their day in that sense. My fan base ranges from the college graduate to the aunties. It's a blessing but also a huge responsibility that plays a significant role in how I create music. I think “Look My Way” is an example of trying to be the bridge, and I think once we look at the data over the next couple of months, we'll see if our efforts make sense. 

EI:
You mentioned how your process starts with the piano and keys, and you've got the opportunity to work with and collaborate with artists such as Trey Songz, Toni Braxton, Tank, and Ne-Yo. Do you keep that same process when working with these others? Or do you follow a different method of craft that comes with it? 

KR:
I wish, most of the time, it's a track that already has what the artist kind of likes and then, you know, just writing to that track, you know, kind of seeing where the headspace is at with the album that they're working on stuff like that. Seeing what the missing holes in the album are and how I can contribute outside of the Toni Braxton records, Sex & Cigarettes, where shout out to Antonio Dixon because he encouraged me to take to the piano and start making some chords while recording. Outside of everybody else, it's just play tracks. 

EI:
“Look My Way” is the first single from your upcoming project, Midnight Microdose. Are there any details about it you can give based on what it's about or how exactly you're taking this one different from your previous releases?

KR:
Absolutely, this one has more escapism in it than ever before. Visually, it allows me to play different characters and take people on a journey. So I'm excited to see how people receive the visual aspect of Midnight Microdose when it comes out, and it's the biggest thing about it that people always say to me is that my music is so short. My songs are very brief, and usually, I will make them longer because people enjoy my music, but I double down and make it and complete a whole project. Based on this short and sweet concept, it's the level of potency within that. But we're also in the streaming world, and it's different now, so the shorter, the better I want people to run it back 34 times because the beauty of music is that it can come back to something. If there's a success, no recording is the end all be all; there can always be an extension of it. You never know if something takes off or if people are rocking with it.