“I’m a completely different person than I was 3 years ago,” KILLY recently tweeted.
Which is fair. A few years ago, Khalil Tatem was a 19-year-old kid from Scarborough who, thanks to the freak overnight success of his entrancing first single, “Killamonjaro,” found himself swept into the trap star-industrial complex. Dude uploaded a track on SoundCloud and next thing he knew, had millions of streams, a cult-like following, a record deal with Epic, and virtually every mainstream hip-hop publication (including this one) billing him as “the next one to blow up out of Toronto.”
“Looking back, I can say, yeah, it was overwhelming,” KILLY tells Complex of his rocket-powered ascent. “It was very overwhelming. And I think that’s what forced me to take a break from music.”
For the last year and change, the Toronto rapper has kept a low profile. He dropped only a few loosies in 2020 and has largely avoided posting on social media. He says he needed a breather from the music industry at large, and time to reflect on the changes in the world (you know, the whole global pandemic, racial reckoning, and whatnot). Just as direly, he needed a break from people.
Three years in the game have made KILLY wiser, but also acutely aware of the 24/7-ness of rap stardom. In the era of Instagram Lives and fickle algorithms, artists are expected to be more accessible—and more often—than ever before. It’s an introvert’s idea of hell. And in case you didn’t pick up on the message in “ANTI EVERYBODY,” the standout cut from his WondaGurl-produced 2018 tape KILLSTREAK, KILLY’s not exactly on the DJ Khaled side of the sociability spectrum.
“I’m for the people but I don’t fuck with people,” he says.
Which makes the next stage in his career interesting. Because for the past year, KILLY hasn’t just been vibing at home; he’s been relentlessly cooking up new music and plotting a rap takeover. He just dropped KILLSTREAK 2, the sequel to his tape from three years ago, which sees him continue to flex his exceptional ear for melody on some of his most combustible tracks to date, from the anarchic snarl of “PYRO” to the merciless, distorted stomp of “LOVE PRISON,” featuring dancehall disrupter Tommy Lee Sparta. Later this year, he’ll release a collaborative album with Grammy-winning producer Boi-1da, a pairing that may well yeild the chart-topping hit he needs to take that next step and reach superstar status. He’s also got a solo album on the way, and judging by the furious flows on the new tape, he’s ready to move in for the kill.
All this to say, in the months to come, a lot more people will want to fuck with KILLY—whether he likes it or not. We caught up with the rapper to talk about KILLSTREAK 2, his upcoming Boi-1da collab, his struggle to come to terms with rap’s social media era, and his future in politics.
There’s a really interesting array of producers on KILLSTREAK 2. FortyOneSix, WondaGurl, Finesse, Jenius, FORTHENIGHT. But I noticed FREAKEY! is all over this one.
Yeah, exactly. FREAKEY! is sick, bro. He has that next level, new generation sound, so me and him working together is just a natural fit because he pushes the boundaries. There’s not a lot of producers that can make make beats like him, so it’s challenging for me. But that’s what makes it fun. He literally pans his 808s. A lot of people don’t like that, but you can hear the drum hitting from left and then hitting from the right. It creates a soundscape, I guess. Not a lot of producers do that. That’s kind of shunned upon in the community or whatever, but I think me and him do it neatly.
Yeah, he definitely fits your otherworldly, kinda alien sort of sound.
[Laughs.] You’re looking for words to describe it. I don’t even know how to really explain it, bro. I guess that’s just the music that I naturally make, you know? I didn’t really think of trying to direct myself in a certain way. When I’m in a studio, I just really do whatever comes to mind. So a lot of the time, I guess it ends up sounding like how you described it, but I don’t even know how to describe it, really. It’s hard for me to kind of summarize it with words. But regardless, it’s fire. So that’s all that really matters.
I saw a tweet from you a little while back. You said, “I’m a completely different person than I was three years ago.” That’s interesting because the first KILLSTREAK dropped about three years ago. So how would you say that KILLY differs from today’s KILLY?
Three years ago, I just feel like I got exposed to a lot at once. I met a lot different people, seen a lot of places, and just looking back, I feel like I was more naive and now I’m more knowledgeable, and just more worldly. I don’t really know, bruh. The first KILLSTREAK dropped when I was 19, 20? Now I’m 23. So I guess, at that time I was thrown into it. That year I was just on tour all year. I don’t know. I just grew, as you should, really. So that’s really what I meant by that.
“If I didn’t make music, I probably wouldn’t even have social media. So the fact that that’s even more valuable than the music sometimes these days is wild.”
When your first single “Killamonjaro” blew up, you were super young.
Yeah, I was 19. And that was my first music video, right? So immediately I was thrown into just real life. And on top of real life, I’m also thrown into the industry. I feel like spending a couple of years navigating through that has left me a lot more knowledgeable about everything. Maybe they can hear it in the music, maybe they can’t. But I feel like because of that, my music comes out a little different now.
What was it like to be thrust into this whole new life as a teenager? Was it overwhelming?
I mean, I was taking it day by day, really. But looking back, I can say, yeah, it was overwhelming. It was very overwhelming. And I think that’s what forced me to take a break from music. Before I dropped KILLSTREAK and the singles leading up to this, I didn’t drop music for a year. I just took some time to reflect, and then COVID was happening. Also, I was living in L.A. and the protests were happening right around my crib. There was just a lot. So I took a year off to just take in everything. Just live life, you know? Experience it without without the music aspect thrown in there. And so KILLSTREAK 2 is basically me coming back and getting ready just to go crazy. I have the Boi-1da album coming after this and then my solo album eventually after that.
So you’ve had a year to reflect on everything. Where’s your head at now?
I’m just ready, bruh. I’m ready to work. I’m excited to go back on tour. Hopefully, God willing, with all the COVID shit, we can start doing concerts again in Canada, but I have a European tour booked for September. So I want to just get back on the road, start performing, start dropping a lot. A lot, a lot. You know, KILLSTREAK was five songs; KILLSTREAK 2 is 15 songs. I’m not stopping. I never stopped. [During my break] my productivity basically stayed the same. Like, I never left the studio. So, now I just have all this music that actually needs to come out. There’s just too much to not drop.
Dang! You haven’t stopped cooking. It’s like you’re in a flow state.
Yeah. And also, you just have to not care, you know? Just care less. That’s the thing I’m working on as well. I’m just trying to enjoy things, because you get so invested into something you love, but it’s also your livelihood. That’s your job. This is what pays me. This is what feeds my family. So, like, when you turn something you love into into something like that, sometimes it changes the way you feel about doing those things, you know? I think after taking time off and a step back, I’m able to find the difference between those two.
You mean after a while you were starting to see music more as a business kinda thing?
Well, yeah. It’s crazy because the music industry is different. As an artist, it’s like, I don’t just go home after work and it’s done. This is aligned with me, you know? My job is basically who I am. It’s my identity as well. So, for someone with my character, maybe other people handle it differently, but I guess it’s hard [for me] to. I’m trying to find words to explain what I mean. Basically, I can’t go home after I’m done work, you know what I’m saying? My whole life is work. So you have to find a way to enjoy that and find comfort in that.
“With Boi-1da, he really brought me back down to earth. When it comes to these beats, they’re hits. He makes hits. That’s what he is: He’s a hitmaker.”
Yeah. It’s a 24/7 job.
Exactly. Because it’s not like I will wake up and go somewhere and then I’m doing my job. It’s like, I am my job.
Especially today with social media. Rappers have to be on all the fucking time, on IG Live, constantly communicating with their fans and promoting their shit and making TikToks or whatever.
Facts. Everything. That just goes against who I am. If I didn’t make music, I probably wouldn’t even have social media. So the fact that that’s even more valuable than the music sometimes these days is wild. You have to just learn how to adjust, really, to that. And I feel like that’s what I’m trying to do.
Yeah. I guess it can be a struggle, especially if you’re a more private person, to have to put yourself out there all the time.
Yeah. For sure. Because it’s like, bro, I don’t want all that. I just like making music. That’s really all it is for me. I just like making music. But right now, to be a musician, making music is like 30 percent of what it takes. That’s just the way it is. I’m not complaining. It’s just like, that’s just how it goes. You have to learn how to navigate that.
This is a great segue, because I was going to bring up “ANTI EVERYBODY,” your track off the first KILLSTREAK. Are you still anti-everybody today?
I’m always anti-everybody, bruh. Come on. For sure. I’m for the people but I don’t fuck with people, if that that make sense.
[Laughs.] What does that mean?
Like, KILLY is for the people. It’s just, he doesn’t fuck with a lot of people, you know? It’s pretty self-explanatory.
OK, got you. [Laughs.] What can you tell me about the Boi-1da project that’s on the way?
Boi-1da has been fucking with me. He’s really the first person to acknowledge me that was, like, already on. He hit me up when “Killamonjaro” just had 10,000 views. So, within the first week I dropped my first video, Boi-1da DM’ed me on Twitter and from there it’s been love. He produced on my first project Surrender Your Soul and we’ve just always been in touch. It was always a thing, but I just had to really work and get to a place where we could make it a reality. And then boom, it just ended up working out. We were supposed to do like a whole camp in L.A.—literally the week COVID broke was the same week we were going to start our three-week camp to make the project. So it got pushed back a lot because of those types of delays. But it’s on the way and it sounds hard. I was recording it all last year in L.A. and then I came back early this year to record the rest of it in Toronto. I’m amped for it. It’s going to have features on it. It’s going to be hard for sure.
Features! What kinda features?
Bruh, it’s KILLSTREAK time. It’s KILLSTREAK. I can’t into even get into that. We still have to promote KILLSTREAK. But yeah, features for sure. You’ll be the first one to hear the singles.
Is it a departure from your usual sound?
Yeah, I think it is, because Boi-1da, he has his sound, so we were going 50-50 on this. It forced me to really refine my sound and simplify it a little while still maintaining the KILLY elements. But yeah, Boi-1da, he has his sound, so sometimes it was a challenge to try and figure out how to come on his shit, and then sometimes it came easy. But the final product is hard. It’s going to be sick. Super sick.
So it’s a more streamlined direction. Is it poppier?
Not more poppy, but just, like, you hear the beats on KILLSTREAK 2—those are crazy beats. I can’t even really hear people rapping on a lot of those beats, other than me. But with Boi-1da, he really brought me back down to earth. When it comes to these beats, they’re hits. He makes hits. That’s what he is: He’s a hitmaker. So to do that, you need a certain level of simplicity. That’s where we met in the middle and it ended up being fire.
That’s dope, man. You know, you’re in an interesting place. You’ve got this huge following, and it seems like you’re on the brink of hitting that next level of stardom…
I’m one song away, brother. One song. That’s all it is.
One smash hit.
Exactly. And then it’s over. KILLY’s in there. Facts.
So how do you plan on doing it? Is the Boi-1da album gonna—
Well, the way I’m approaching it is, I don’t even want to think about it like that. I’m just going to keep doing what I do, making the music that I want to make. That’s why people fuck with me. The moment I start trying to chase the hit, I feel like that is the moment my music will start declining sonically. So the only thing I really haven’t done that I’m doing now is features, and then just consistency with dropping. With all my projects, I just drop and then I go live my life, and then I come back a year and a half later and drop a next one. So that’s the difference now; I’m just not going to stop dropping. And then what you’re talking about what will happen.
You do realize, though, that once you get there, you’re going to have even more eyes on you. You’ll need to be always-on to an even greater extent…
Bruh, I don’t even know how that shit’s going to work. We’ll just fucking cross that bridge when we get there.
Baptism by fire, man. [Laughs.] We’ll just have to see what happens.
Fuck it, bro. Fuck it. No cap.
Tell me about this European tour. Have you noticed that you’ve got a big following there?
Yeah, for sure. Europe shows me a crazy, crazy amount of love. I’ve only gone there like three or four times, but every time I’ve gone it’s been amazing. The thing about Europe is they’re down for whatever. If I say, “Yo, fucking look to your right and punch that person in the face, we’re fucking raging,” they’re doing that in the crowd. They’re punching their best friend in the face. There’s real rage over there, you know? I fuck with that. And then when I see that, it gives me fire on stage too, so I just turn up even more and it ends up just being chaos. It’s amazing, actually. I fuck with Europe.
That European rage. It’s a real thing.
Yeah, bro. They don’t give a fuck out there. Over there, I’ve jumped off balconies. I’ve front flipped into crowds and shit. It’s fire.
Is it a trip for you to experience that? You know, one minute you’re a 19-year-old kid uploading a song to SoundCloud, the next, you’re commanding crowds in Europe to punch each other in the face.
Yeah, bro. It’s a blessing. I mean, fuck. I don’t wanna say it’s a blessing. [Laughs.] But it’s a blessing to be able to do that! I dropped my first couple songs, my first project, and then went straight to Europe, you know? I was able to bring a lot of mandem from Toronto with me, like the dogs I grew up with. I did it independently. So it was just a good experience, doing what I love with the people I love. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
What else are you hoping to accomplish?
I wanna start doing stuff outside of music a lot more. Just other ventures, like clothing or charity. I feel like with time I’ll start showing people I’m doing more things that aren’t just music-related. In the coming year, that’s a focus for me.
What sorts of charities are you interested in getting involved in?
I want to go to places where people need help. It’s crazy because before I wanted to be a musician, I wanted to be a journalist. But like, a frontline journalist. I always thought that was the coolest shit. I mean, now it’s different, but back in 2005, it was hard to get that real information, like frontline information. You’d just be hearing it straight from the news sources. But I wanted to be like an online journalist, really showing people the real stuff, like I’m there live, where this is happening, you know? I remember watching the G20 summit. I remember just being hella young and seeing the riots and the protests in Toronto. And I just remember wanting to be there and spread information. Just to be able to help people by spreading information and doing whatever I can, really.
So would you want to start your own media outlet?
Yeah, maybe. I don’t know, really. I haven’t really thought about that too much, but that’s something I want to do. And also, I never went to school. I want to go to school as well. I don’t know for what, but eventually I want to go to school. I barely fucking graduated high school, but I want to be able to say that I fucking went to school. I feel like that’s a flex. That’s a super flex.
You should go to journalism school!
Yeah, something, bro! I need to eventually, you know? That’s something I’ll need eventually, you know, down the line when I’m just like a politician or some shit.
[Laughs.] So that’s part of your plan too, eh? Parliament Hill?
Yeah, fuck it. After I retire from music, I’m going into politics.
What’s the first law that you’re going to enact?
I would fucking make it legal to cross the border with psilocybin shrooms, because I been trying to do that and they fucked me up.
Amazing. I hear that shit’s good for your mental health. There’s lots of research being done on it.
I know! There’s vitamins in it! Literally, I don’t know if I’m supposed to say this, but I went to the border and I guess I had some on me and they made such a big deal out of it. But it’s literally like just microdosing vitamins, you know? So yeah, that would be the first law I make. No cap.
