TCR Exclusive: Sean Kiez Talks New Single “Dream” And More!

“Even though it seems hard, it’s not as hard as it seems,” raps Sean Kiez on the thunderous second verse of “Dream.” Though his voice is commanding, he’s reassuring, too. For the Houston singer, emcee, and songwriter, that’s an old trick: in his long and varied recording career, he’s always been able to sound personable, approachable, and invincible at the same time. On his latest single, he puts his skills and his charisma to the service of his inspiration message. Be tenacious, persevere and believe in yourself for these are riches nobody can ever take away.

If he sounds like he’s rapping about what he knows (something that every good rapper should do), that’s because he is. Sean Kiez has certainly experienced more than his share of poverty and struggle. His upbringing in the churches of Milwaukee and Los Angeles gave him the mental and spiritual skills to confront hardship and triumph on his own terms. His ability to give “voice to the voiceless” is evident in every bar of “Dream.” Kiez’s commanding performance — one with overtones of the pulpit — is supported by a five-piece gospel choir, piano and organ, and a martial drumbeat calling the angels to array.  Yet as immediately inspirational as the song is, Kiez never forgets to ground the track in the dirty southern hip-hop he loves. That means big hooks, bigger swagger, and a swampy bass and kick drum as deep and wide as a rain-swollen river.

The synthesis of R&B, and Gulf Coast rap on “Dream” is just the latest example of Sean Kiez’s remarkable versatility. The new single follows the guitar-driven “Rockstar Rebel,” a collaboration with Raphael RJ2, and the sweet “On Ya Bull,” an exercise in seductive soul. His discography contains pure pop and devotional music alongside certified baby-makers and hardcore tracks that align him with the long and storied tradition of Houston hip-hop. It’s all held together by the star’s magnetism — that and his intelligence, his compassion, the ease with which he tells his stories, and his unshakable belief in himself.

It’s all on display in the beautifully-shot clip for “Dream” — a video that makes a gas station convenience store feel as sanctified as a cathedral. Throughout the video, we see Sean Kiez operating, hanging with friends, magnetizing audiences, enjoying the fruits of his labor, and doing it all with gravity and purpose. But most of the time, he’s rapping, straight to the audience, from a loading dock behind a disused factory. Kiez and co-director Jeah Ross make sure to pan back to show the viewer that nobody is around. Viewers are shown one man gathering himself, alone with his song, his story, his dreams, confident that his message resonates with a human family ready to embrace it.

1. In your career, you’ve created everything from hardcore rap to devotional music—how do you blend genres to craft a distinct style and sound? It’s the essence of who I am. I come from an environment with experiences that have been harmonious and very traumatic and in the middle of those experiences you learn to balance and find your center and it’s expressed through the emotions of melody I create.
   
   
2. Who are your biggest musical influences, both in hip-hop and beyond? I would have to say 70s funk and soul… Starting me off growing up was the background music in my household. I played the drums at church and was in the band and choir at school. We were heavily influenced by West Coast rap so I was coming up in a time where all Coast had a turn even through the South so I take a piece of all of that because it became a part of my Musical DNA.
   
3. “Dream” carries a powerful message of perseverance—was there a personal moment that sparked its creation? Yes, “Dream” was created from a space of going through life and not feeling accomplished. Even in the space where most fulfill. You are successful. It’s like having a job as a lawyer, but the whole time you had everything it took to be an astronaut, but sometimes we allow other experiences to deter us or internally. We block ourselves from achieving the desires of greatness that we want because sometimes we mask or forget about what would make us feel accomplished. We sometimes get caught up in titles over passion. My dream was to always do music. I worked in the background as an executive and I got frustrated with that and figured I had to live out my dreams as well so essentially I was managing to ask who I grew up listening to and I figured I had to do what I had to do because a lot of people don’t respect or appreciate the value that you bring to their careers to get them back on so I have to pour my resources back into myself. I built a team so I understand all sides and appreciate the reciprocity that we all share.

4. What motivated you to infuse gospel elements into “Dream”? I started in the church. I grew up in the church of God in Christ That old-school Pentecostal Type of church. We would have a few services every Sunday, I had to play drums for most of those services for years and sing in the choir so that’s deeply rooted in who I am.
   
5. Talk to us a little bit about the filming process—who did you collaborate with and how did you bring your vision to life? Well, we came up with the concept that I wanted to show some positive elements and reflect my life on what was most important to me growing up and you know coming up. You didn’t have a lot to share so to share a bag of chips with somebody with your last dollar was a big Way to show that you appreciate them and that you love them and have a child-like approach of not being attained by what’s in the world to steal dream I wanted to show that so in this video, you will see two little kids sharing a bag of chips and it’s kind of reflecting me as a little boy And a show the progression of unity I shot this with airborne entertainment that was the Videographer. I directed it and had some conceptual ideas with the treatment from Ari of Cre8tives United.
   
6. In what ways does the video’s imagery reinforce your message of self-belief? 
   Well, you can see when I’m by the warehouse dancing on the lawn. Sometimes you have to dance alone before people appreciate who you are. It was a bold move that I took to get out of behind the scenes primarily to focus on my craft as well. I had to dance alone up until this point now here we are. It doesn’t mean that some of the ideas that I put together I won’t be by myself even with the success that I’ve had so far I’ve never been afraid to live because when we die, that’s alone so I’d rather live out loud, and pour myself out while I have the breath to do so.
   
7. How important is your faith in your music and your perspective on life? I believe in my music to the utmost. Sometimes I listen to other people and be like my style is a lot different. I don’t know if it’ll fit for everybody, but I will stop making music for everybody. I make music for what I like and I feel like those who appreciate good music will appreciate me. My tribe will come. All I gotta do is stay ready. and connected to God and I’ll be cool. I’m not the most religious person. I’m more spiritual-based because I make mistakes as well, but I try to keep that relationship open where I can hear his voice and create elements from that.
   
8. What’s next for you after “Dream?” Are there more songs and music videos in the works? What’s next for me and Dream will be flipping some of my records. That’s already out. Working on the live set. Hopefully catch y’all in your city on a tour soon. I got a lot more music and videos to push out that’s newly released and I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon so grab your seats and get comfortable.

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