A Chat with Kyle Waves (04.08.25)
Fresh off the release of his new EP Signals, music artist Kyle Waves is riding a creative high, one marked by bold sonic shifts, visual ambition, and deeply personal storytelling. Known for blending emotionally charged lyrics with infectious dance-pop energy, Kyle’s latest work marks a deliberate evolution from his earlier project Fragments, weaving house and drum and bass influences into his already distinctive sound. We chat with Kyle Waves about the stories and inspirations shaping this dynamic new era.
OSR: Your new EP Signals marks a shift toward a more danceable, house-influenced sound. What inspired that sonic evolution from your last project, Fragments?
Kyle Waves: I always want to try to learn from my previous work, and my strongest songs, and the ones that people really resonated with, were the dancier and more upbeat ones. I’ve also been listening to a lot more house and drum and bass recently, so I wanted to try and add that flair to my own work because it’s where my interests lie at the moment.
OSR: You’ve mentioned that each track on Signals represents a different moment in your personal journey with love and heartbreak. Was there one song in particular that was the hardest or most cathartic to write?
Kyle Waves: ‘Broken Soul’ came out of a very difficult moment, but was probably the song that I wrote the quickest because it was so raw. I think in doing so, I was able to process a lot and reassess certain feelings in my mind, so it was extremely cathartic to do so.
OSR: ‘I Feel Too Much For You’ is such an emotionally charged yet upbeat track. How do you balance vulnerability and energy when writing dance-pop?
Kyle Waves: ‘I Feel Too Much For You’ in particular was really an intentional juxtaposition between the sadness of not being able to be with someone and the sort of thrill that comes from the internal feelings you have for them. I think the easiest way to balance that is to write honestly and not try to oversell either part of it.
OSR: Visuals and choreography are clearly a huge part of this era for you. How involved are you in the creative direction of your music videos and performances?
Kyle Waves: Oh, entirely. Every song I write, I’m already thinking about visual direction or how it fits into the era, even if I don’t end up releasing it. I keep Pinterest boards for every song that works as the basis for the visual aesthetic. I’m lucky to work with a great director on my music videos, Ben See-Tho (OrangeBen of Orangejuuz,) and he’s always down to collaborate and expand on every idea I’ve had brewing. Same with working with my recent choreographer, Peter Lee, I gave him a base idea of what I wanted, and he crafted wonderful choreography and listened to all of the ways I wanted to edit or adjust until we came to an amazing final product. I love being involved in all ways because I think it’s one of the foundations of being an artist.
OSR: Working with Kai Tsao, who’s collaborated with major artists like 21 Savage and Kid Cudi, must’ve been incredible. What did he bring to the Signals project?
Kyle Waves: Kai is awesome. He has a lot of amazing experience which made the whole recording and engineering process very streamlined. We have a similar understanding of music and building the sound, so he was able to take some of my less technical explanations and really nail what I was looking for with the mixes. I don’t think this project would have been as polished without him.
OSR: There’s a strong emotional thread throughout the EP, from the heartbreak of ‘Broken Soul’ to the dreamy melancholy of ‘In My Heart’. How do you channel such personal experiences into something listeners can move to?
Kyle Waves: I try to be mindful of my listeners’ experiences when I write songs. I don’t want them to be so specific that they are unrelatable, but I also want to make sure the songs feel true to the things I’ve lived. I think something I’ve become good at that has helped is starting with a simple experience I’ve had and then usually taking it off in a way that diverges from my reality so that it has the fantasy element for both the listener and myself.
OSR: You’ve cited influences like Lexie Liu and Jackson Wang. What do you admire about their artistry, and how have they shaped your approach to music and performance?
Kyle Waves: Both have such a unique and personal approach to their music and visual identity; they know what story they are trying to tell, and they aren’t afraid of producing music that might be less mainstream in sound or visuals that feel otherworldly. They’re very narrative-driven artist but also great individual performers, and I try to bring that unique and well-thought-out narration to my music, whilst also having the polish and skillset that is what people look for in a popstar.
OSR: As someone born in Singapore and now based in NYC, how have your cultural and geographical influences shaped your sound and identity as an artist?
Kyle Waves: Spending my most formative years in Asia meant I was exposed to a lot of Asian music like K-pop/C-pop growing up, and it’s obviously influenced my musical and visual style heavily because those are the artists I’m really trying to emulate. I think NYC has really allowed me the opportunity to explore and grow my confidence as a queer artist, as it lets me explore that side of myself perhaps more freely and more unapologetically than it would in other places.
OSR: You’ve called Signals a sideways step rather than a step forward. What does that mean to you creatively, and what might fans expect from your next project?
Kyle Waves: I view Signals as more of a sidestep because I think I’m still exploring what really resonates with me in my sound and what I would want to be doing in the future. This EP is really only the start of the Signals era, and I hope that over the rest of it, I get to showcase more of my talents and really hone in on my signature sound more, as I think I’m really finding that flow this era. As I think ahead to my next project, I already feel like people should expect it to be more mature and perhaps a different side to myself than people are used to.
OSR: If Signals is the soundtrack to falling in and out of love, what’s one message or emotion you hope listeners take away from it after the final track ends?
Kyle Waves: A message I hope the EP leaves with people is that romantic connection looks like a lot of different things, we should embrace all of it and be open to feeling things, good and bad. But we should also know when to leave and search for new signals elsewhere.
Many thanks to Kyle Waves for speaking with us. Find out more about Kyle Waves on his Instagram and Spotify.
