Music can be a powerful tool and is often used in therapeutic practices. For Cyner, music has helped in a variety of ways, including aiding with his ADD in his early teens. Music was just something else for him. He explains, “I realized I could sit for hours and it felt like half the time. I cannot even play video games for more than an hour.” 

Today, he’s walking the line between hip hop and emo with debut LP, ‘Roses in the Wind,’ and we talked about that, the late Lil Peep, and more in this back and forth exchange. 

Kendra: You’ve noted that music has been with you since you were a kid, but it wasn’t until the loss of Lil Peep that you started to pursue it. What about that death drove you to take that next step?

Cyner: I have a couple of answers to that. The first is his death made me realize how short life is. I was aware of Peep before he died, but I wasn’t really into him. However, when he died I got so invested in his music, I started to understand it more and more. Which made me sad, because I blew off the music when I first heard it, and it made me think about how many more people probably just scrolled over his music. I always wanted to make music but was always scared, but I started to tell myself, it’s not fair for me to be here and have these dreams and never try anything. It’s not fair to the artists who are dead.

Kendra: Like Lil Peep, you seem to straddle the line between hip hop and emo. Did you grow up admiring both genres, or did you tend to lean more towards one over the other? 

Cyner: I’ve never been into the mainstream that much, I listened to a lot of underground rappers like Witt Lowry and Ivan B. I just knew the hip hop vibe attracted a lot of people and that’s what I want.

Kendra: Let’s talk about ‘Roses in the Wind’ because, for an independent artist, it’s a really solid debut LP. Did you play every role when it came to creating this record?

Cyner: I did not produce any of the tracks, but I wrote the lyrics and recorded the vocals and mixed the vocals, all in my room.

Kendra: One song we can hear on ‘Roses in the Wind’ is your current single, “Loner.” It’s a song about not being able to see the one you love for a while. Do you feel like it hits even harder now with COVID-19 and the whole social distancing going on?

Cyner: The COVID outbreak has not affected me that much, I got everything I need at home.

Kendra: Like yourself, I come from a small town. Are you looking to move to a bigger city for music when the world is safe to do so?

Cyner: AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. This place is really nice but it was not made for me.

Kendra: How do you feel 2020 has shaped your creativity and drive moving forward? 

Cyner: 2020 has not given me much yet. It has been a real moody year. But I think the year will get better and if not maybe the next.

Kendra: Usually, this is where I ask people what they have planned in the coming months but with the world in a strange place right now, plans aren’t as concrete as they typically are. You can go ahead and let us know what you have tentatively planned but can you also share a song that never fails to get you through when the world around you feels like a mess? 

Cyner: I’m going to be improving my sound and skills as an artist and writing more songs to put out through the outbreak, so keep up. And the song I would say helps me is “Sunset” by Sinxi. I love the drums and the mood of the song makes me smile a little.