American artist Blxst (pronounced as “Blast”) is among the new generation of rising artists, with his musical style of R&B, rapping, and crooning.
One of his latest hits “Chosen,” which features fellow rappers Tyga and Ty Dolla $ign, is doing well in the Philippines. It is currently No. 11 and No. 14 of Spotify Philippines’ Viral 50 and Top 200, respectively.
Its music video which premiered last March 26 now gained more than 8.4 million views.
Power of music
The track has gained popularity on Tiktok coupled with various dance challenges to complement the West Coast sound.
Blxst said he feels honored to know that people around the world can connect to his music.
“I think it is crazy, especially being able to touch a whole different side of the world. It just shows you the power of music and how we can all come together just from music alone,” he said in an interview with Interaksyon.
Through word of mouth, he described that his music spread “organically” among his friends, which made the “trend” of his music going.
Why Blxst?
When Blxst, whose real name is Matthew Burdette, was younger, he came up with his moniker. After becoming a father, the 25-year-old singer said the stage name meant being a “superhero” for his three-year-old son.
In 2015, he began his solo music career in LA. He stressed the transition from being a producer to a singer went “hand in hand” because the process “made it easier” for him to grow as an artist.
He said his song “Forever Humble,” which is part of his latest extended play single “No Love Lost,” depicts his life now and “dives deeper into who Blxst is as an individual.”
With several collaborations and productions for artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Mustard, YG, he said he felt empowered to be linked to them.
“As an upcoming artist, I feel it is important that I can do music with the top-tier artists. I just want to display that in my music that I am able to hang [with them],” Blxst said.
The Los Angeles rapper added that some of his dream collaborations would be Kanye West and Pharell.
Blxst also looks forward to working with Filipino artists, saying he will see to it who is currently “popping (becoming popular)” in the country.
‘No Love Lost Tour’
In the meantime, he is ready to hit the road for the “No Love Lost Tour” following the success of his EP of the same title.
Released in September 2020, “No Love Lost” has attracted 250 million streams on Spotify to date and 4 million monthly listeners.
Three months after the release, Blxst launched the deluxe edition which includes “Chosen” featuring Ty Dolla $ign, “Wrong Or Right” featuring Bino Rideaux, and “Got It All” with Dom Kennedy.
Last month, the rising artist also released his track titled “Movie” also featuring Bino Rideaux.
After Blxst’s concert tour announcement last June 21, it officially sold out in less than a week.
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Blxst said all performances in his “No Love Lost” Tour will be done on stage amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“[No Love Lost Tour] is my first tour so I want to get the full experience of actually being on tour. I am excited about it,” he shared.
“I definitely want to make it an experience [for the fans.] First, it’s just me performing songs with some type of theatrics to them. [I will] give the audience a dive into the music and bring it to life,” he added.
The next goal, he said, is to take the tour internationally, including the Philippines.
“I am excited to grow with my fans, especially in the Philippines. I never knew that the love was this big [and] it surprises me. I will keep putting up new music and be the best version of myself. I can’t wait to come out there,” Blxst said.