All eyes are on d4vd. The 17-year-old artist from Houston began recording his own music at home after facing copyright strikes on his gaming channel, using the app BandLab on his phone to make beats. Today, he releases new single Worthless, the guitar-driven anthem that's getting us ready for his Australian tour next month. d4vd will play Mary's Underground on Monday, April 3, before heading to Melbourne's Howler on Tuesday, April 4. We spoke to the artist about his journey, getting the Zane Lowe cosign and who his ultimate guest star on stage in Australia would be:‍

We’ve read you fell in love with writing through journaling. Tell us about when you first started writing songs. How old were you when you started writing and how did it make you feel? 

“I started writing when I was in 5th grade, so I was 12 years old. It made me feel so many emotions because of the stories that I was telling and the way I portrayed characters I would create. Different backgrounds and personalities. Being able to express myself from different perspectives has always been a surreal experience.”

You began making music on your phone and recording in your sister's wardrobe which we love. What inspired you to begin doing this? 

“My mom actually haha. After receiving all of the copyright strikes in my Fortnite videos she’s the one that pushed the “do it yourself” mentality and told me to “make my own music” for those videos.”

We know you love playing video games - do the sonics involved in video games ever influence your songs and production? Are you still gaming often? 

"I'm still gaming heavyyy and yes! My first 17 songs were almost completely tailored to my gaming videos. Almost if I was scoring them like a movie. Getting the vibe from my clips, putting them together and then executing the music based on the vibe of the video.”

You were recently included on Zane Lowe’s list of 23 artists to watch in 2023. We were so excited to see you on the list. Was this meaningful to you? 

“IT DEFINITELY WAS. I’ve been hearing Zane Lowe’s voice in passing all my life. So it was such an honour and a blessing to be able to meet him in person and speak to him about music. Then I was featured on his list!! That’s absolutely insane.”

Has growing up in Houston influenced your sound? 

“Not at all actually lol. The music I connected to the most was either out of state, or out of country. I’m heavily influenced by Japanese rock music.” 

Which artists have inspired you?

“My biggest influences right now are Hayley Williams, Billie Eilish, Chet Baker, and Brenda Lee.”

Ultimate d4vd collaboration? 

“Ultimate d4vd collaboration is SZA!!”

We love your style. Is fashion important to you? Which brands do you love?

“Right now I’m in love with Acne Studios, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy, Entire studios,
The incorporated
Mm6
Chopova lowena
Kidill
Second layer
Anderson bell
Alyx 

All of who i’ve been wearing recently ;)”

You’re touring Australia soon...! What are you most excited for on this tour? We can’t wait to see you live. 

“I can’t wait to see all the huge bugs I keep hearing about lol. I want to bring a huge spider on the stage as my special guest!”

What’s next? 

“A lot more music, visuals and stories. I’m trying to build an entire universe around the music and bring so many different mediums together into a bigger creation."

Buy tickets to d4vd's Sydney & Melbourne shows HERE.

@d4vddd