How Leven Kali’s ‘Genre Gumbo’ Is Stirring the Next Wave of Music

Leven Kali is a seasoned artist blending music genres like never before. Born in the Netherlands to two musicians as parents, he grew up listening to what he describes as an “elastic array of genres” from Donny Hathaway, Led Zeppelin, and 70s rock and soul.

Music for him started simply as him making music for parties in high school with his friends and has transformed him into a Grammy nominated artist. After starting in music so young he emphasizes how important playfulness is to his longevity in music. He fell in love with music production in a process he describes as “sampling himself” by simply recording random snippets and playing with the speed and pitch of things.

He also dives into why he is so passionate about music genre fusion, “I saw how segregated crowds could be. House nights looked one way, R&B nights another” he says. “ I wanted to bring those worlds together, like Studio 74, where everyone’s just vibing to the same groove”.

He draws inspiration from everywhere, old N.E.R.D. records, Steely Dan’s jazz pop experiments and even water itself. “Love is like water, you can’t live without it. I’ve been really into cymatics and the vibrational nature of things, how water reacts to sound, and how music can move energy”.

He recently collaborated on a song called “P Funkentelechy” which includes the genre of “P Funk” or Parliament Funk with Jay Worthy and music legend George Clinton. George Clinton is hailed as the leader to the genre which Kali draws a lot of inspiration from. Kali describes him as “one of the sharpest, creative, funky” musicians. After playing his cover of P Funkentelechy, George agreed to collaborate and the new version of P Funkentelechy was born.

When looking ahead at his music career he exclaims “now is the best time to embrace the things that motivate you and inspire you” claiming that there is a community for everything and that it is best to pursue things we all genuinely like. When asked about what we can expect for his next steps he says he will expand on his “genre gumbo” by including the rock genre a little more into his own music. With his fearless approach to fusion and his deep respect for the roots of every genre he touches, Kali isn’t just shaping his own path but also redefining what the future of music can be.

(Featured image credit: Apple Music)