I had the privilege to sit down and interview one of my favorite young superstars in the music game, Tino Szn. The North Carolina artist has been creating some serious buzz for himself as his unique sound has been catching major interest from bigger artists.
Erik Young: I just wanted to say thank you for your time and energy for this interview. I love your music and the energy you bring with it. First I wanted to start off with Who is Tino Szn and what do you represent as an artist?
Tino Szn: Tino Szn is a rockstar, the cool kid, but still the person that can fit in with the weird kids, I’m a person for everybody, but i really wanna represent the people who aren’t afraid to step outside the box and aren’t afraid of being called weird.
Erik Young: Where are you from? What’s it like being from said place?
Tino Szn: I’m from Gastonia, North Carolina. Being from this part of North Carolina really shaped who i am as an artist and person, I experienced so many crazy situations that developed my street smarts, and I’ve seen and been around people that developed my sense of style, i was always different, sometimes people would look at me as the weird/cool kid, so this put me in the perfect position to be what i want.
Erik Young: I initially got hooked on your album from 2020 called “Pegasus Kid 3,” what was the creative process when working on that album?
Tino Szn: I started working on Pegasus Kid 3 immediately after Pegasus Kid 2 (November 2019). My main thought was “I wanna make a project that can showcase what I’ve learned and how i can evolve” So from November 2019 to October 2020 i went through like 3 versions of the project, some of those songs were on my EP “Take Flight” and actually one of those songs was my single “Vice” featuring $NOT. I wasn’t satisfied until my manager, Drako, convinced me that the 3rd version was the best version.
Erik Young: Your best selection is always on point, who would you say are your favorite producers to work with as of now?
Tino Szn: Right now, my favorite producers are: Lucca, ilykimchi, OogieMane, Vintage, and Based1.
Erik Young: Who is a producer that you would like to work with?
Tino Szn: Wheezy or Pierre for sure.
Erik Young: You initially teased “Crash The Party,” on Instagram which got a lot of buzz and you just recently released it last week. What was it like getting a lot of buzz on that single?
Tino Szn: It was crazy, cause on the day i recorded that song, i was in love with it, i actually wanted to postpone promoting Vice to drop Crash The Party, but it wasn’t the right time, so months went on and i started to lose hope that the song would get attention, or even be released, so to see it start getting attention is crazy and I appreciate it.
Erik Young: I’ve been in touch with Jarred, your manager, what’s the relationship between you guys?
Tino Szn: That’s my brother man, i really don’t even like calling him my manager cause he’s like another big brother to me, Jarred has really shown me how to grow as an artist and as an individual and he does a lot of things many other managers wouldn’t do, i think I’m really lucky to have someone on my team that isn’t just someone i do business with.
Erik Young: Being an up and coming artist, it can be difficult to gain some serious traction. What are the steps that you take in order to stand out from the others?
Tino Szn: I watch what other artists do and i try to see where they mess up, and i see where they make the right choice, then i try and do something different but i also try and do it the right way.
Erik Young: If the purge were to happen, what would be the first crime you would commit?
Tino Szn: I would go to every walmart and steal as many birthday cake flavored pillsbury cookies i can.
Erik Young; What has been a struggle being the music scene, if any, and why?
Tino Szn: Collaborating with other artists and getting the respect that other artists have, it’s like a lot of these upcoming guys have big ego, cause i know many of these artists have seen me, a lot of them have dubbed me or talked weird about me, but at the end of the day i have nothing against anyone, all of this just makes me work 10 times harder.
Erik Young: What is your dream collab?
Tino Szn: A project with Lil Uzi Vert produced by Maaly Raw and Don Cannon with Executive production from Wondagurl & TM88
Erik Young: What can we expect next from Tino Szn?
Tino Szn: I have a project right around the corner, it’s called 4 Seasons, this project is gonna show everyone that i can do any style and still stick to my original sound, this isn’t Pegasus Kid, this is better, this is my favorite project yet.
Erik Young: Any advice to up and coming artists?
Tino Szn: Don’t get discouraged if you see another artist doing well, your time is coming, my time is still coming, that person who you look up to may be in their prime, whole time you wanna be where this person is at when you could be 20 times farther than if you put in the work, so lock in and trust the process, stand on all 10.
It’s no doubt that Tino Szn is up next. He definitely gives me 2016 Lil Uzi vibes which is a feeling I would call nostalgic. Make sure to keep an eye out on the young superstar as the sky is the limit for him.