In this interview spotlight, I chat with Vinnin about the latest video and single, Way Back, as well as challenges, technology and more.

Full Q&A along with links and music below.

Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)

I am from Toronto, Canada. I create Hip Hop/Rap style of music. I create music that I can relate to and that means a lot to me. I make melodic melodies and explain my feelings through my lyrics or tone of voice.

What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?

I started music ever since I was 10. I first started singing part of the choir and playing the instruments: Trumpet, Violin and Keyboard. I grew up listening to hip-hop music and I absolutely found rapping really impressive. I practiced different rap flows and started to sign up for talent shows in my school. Many people asked me why I didn’t create my own music and that I got talent. I started to write my own music and started to make my own music when I was 14. Ever since I started, I never wanted to quit. What motivates me to keep going would be I always think about why I started and look how far I made it from when I started.

How is this new release different than previous ones? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?

My new release Way Back talks about moving on from fake friends. In this song I tried to make lyrics that I can relate to personally. I shot a music video for this song as well and it turned out amazing!

Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?

Two challenges I faced as an indie musician would be getting people to listen to my music and getting paid to do what I love. Thanks to social media and ad platforms I can invest my money into ads and  reach my audience right from my house. This would attract more people to my music, find my audience that love my music and at the same time get paid.

What was the last song you listened to?

Last song I listened to would be Neeye Oli by Shan Vincent de Paul and Navz-47.

Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?

MP3s. The market has gone digital nowadays. People would rather listen to MP3s over anything, it’s easy to use and everything can be downloaded right on your phone and played through bluetooth.

How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?

Spotify. I like their built in stats system that helps artists understand their audience and get to target more look alike audiences that they already have. Even though the pay for Spotify is really low, I really like their playlists and how everything is set up with their app.

Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?

Best place to connect with me and discover more music  would be my Instagram: VinninWinnin

Anything else before we sign off?

Go check out my music video for Way Back on YouTube! Follow my Instagram: VinninWInnin.