Khakikid

As the middle child in a six person household, Dublin native KhakiKid, was seen but not always heard. “Being in a family of six, attention is rare,” he shares. Born Abdu Huss, the rapper spent his formative years on Crumlin council estate, cognisant of his socio-economic background early on. “I noticed quickly that we didn’t come from money, and that’s a humbling experience.” Possessing maturity far beyond his 25 years, KhakiKid grew up quickly, relating to renegades both in his real-world purview, but also in forms of media and entertainment he’d digest in his free time — being of Irish-Libyan descent, he often related to having an ‘outsiders’ outlook navigating school and childhood. Relating to Channel U (later renamed to Channel AKA), quintessential UK acts like Chip and Skepta would come to not only inspire KhakiKid, but entertain him day-to-day also. “What’s that Chip song featuring Chris Brown?” he asks himself. “Oh yeah, ‘Champion’.” Further afield, US early 2000s rap guards including 50 Cent and Eminem would also fascinate KhakiKid and his wider appreciation for rap as a ubiquitous artform.

In real time, he grew up adjacent to the Tumblr and SoundCloud booms — a period of time across the 10s helping to birth the likes of XXXTentation, Tyler The Creator, and Mac Miller; artists of his generation able to meld hip-hop with the likes of pop, trap, rock, and ambient soundscapes. “It felt semi-rebellious to listen to rap music at the time in Ireland,” he notes. “People would tell you to ‘turn that off’, but it made it all the more appealing to want to learn more of.” Penning his inaugural rap-infused song at 12, he’d message a childhood crush on Facebook, seeking their approval. “It was super cringe, but it’s a natural thing to do,” he clarifies. “You like something, you emulate it.”

Continuing to pen songs with friend at the time Robbie across his teenage years, KhakiKid became obsessed with double entendres, double rhyme and other technical skills, viewing the likes of Eminem’s Eminem Presents: The Re-Up as hallmark standards of lyrical tenacity. “UK grime clashes also were just so competitive, it made you want better your pen,” he laughs. Briefly abandoning rap, to hone in on basketball, even landing a scholarship to train in Los Angeles at 16, Khakikid soon realised that the dream of making the NBA, might face obstacles. “Being good [at basketball] in Ireland and being good in America is a vastly different level to the game in America,” he admits candidly. “Now, my goal is to make an NBA celebrity game, just to say ‘I made it’.”

Returning to his first-love of rap, KhakiKid towards his late adolescence, gained solace in writing in his bedroom as an escape from final studies, and sharing them with fellow emerging rapper EFÉ. “It felt very gratifying to not necessarily share these with the world just yet, but have a space to send music somewhere and get real world feedback.” Posing back and forth on SoundCloud, KhakiKid grew in confidence, harnessing his crafts in real-time and sharpening his arsenal as a songwriter, slowly sharing his music on SnapChat, and then investing in second-hand equipment. “I had to get them cheaply, but I wanted to invest in things that helped the songs sound more elevated.”

Abandoning university plans, KhakiKid formally released debut single ‘Late’ in 2021, performing it for the first time at The Sound House for whiskey juggernaut Jameson. A smoke-infused crescendo of jazz and hip-hop, KhakiKid is every bit confident and poised as he navigates the atmospheric release — taking inspiration from both Mac Miller and Anderson Paak. “I found myself so drawn to new-wave and jazz when I got into instrumentation, I didn’t realise it at the time, but as I grew I found myself always picking, or wanting those sorts of production early on.” In successive releases like “Shlumped Up”, and “Cozy” KhakiKid would continue in this vein, even melding his foundations with g-funk on the latter. “Shlumped Up”, one of his most popular releases to date has amassed over five million streams to date, indicative of immersive world-building and relatable, witty and charming ability to frame angst, confidence, love and introspection. Building to the release of first EP Sports & Tattoos, KhakiKid bathes in his hedonism across songs like “Woodstock”, his early adolescence documented in real time weaved together in a lucid-groove, easily infectious on the ear.

But KhakiKid would form his own form of artistic development in real time, adapting his sound once more, and melding his American accent when singing or rapping, to an infusion of his authentic Irish accent. “It was acts like Kneecap that made me realise that talking or interacting in our style sounded, or could sound great too,” he explains. “Listening to a Lil Baby, for example, it's his intonation and playing with his voice, as well as his own accent, it doesn’t sound monotone.” On his sophomore EP san bebé, KhakiKid continues to build his canvas, funner than ever on cuts like “my boys”, his array of intonation, seeped in the foundation of his Irish accent, that help to build humour, engagement, and character to his artistic offering. Revitalised and refreshing, he sounds off about his disinterest with guestlists, heartbreak, and rebellion. Alongside regional peers like Bricknasty and CARSTEN2X, KhakiKid builds bridges locally in his ascension, engrossed in the scenes around him that bubble in real time. “It’s great to see a lot of us continue to do our thing, continue to build together.”

Only expanding as an artist KhakiKid sheds more of his skin as he evolves, his last EP Moanbag, a gateway to his mind and heart. “I’ve grown so much as an artist, an actual musician between these projects,” he admits proudly. “I’m writing proper melodies on this EP for example.” ‘Boy Racer’ is a bold example of that, the alt-rock rap single ushers in the era, weaving between a break up and temptation. “Waters warm, double doors // What am I gonna do,” he ponders across the tenderly crafted guitar-infused soundscape. “Date Nite”, the project's standout — now also at millions of streams — KhakiKid is cheeky, fighting for forbidden fruit. “You got a maan, but who do you fancy?” he candidly questions. KhakidKid continues to build on humour as a device to tackle relatable life circumstances, canvassing his successes and failures in matters of the heart in real time.

Even on his latest single “Don’t Touch The CDJ”, KhakiKid pushes himself further, this time utilising the likes of house and electronica. “I’m doing what I’m drawn to, when the time feels right,” he admits. A growing fan of the singles featured artist Aki Oke, the synths take him back to his teenage years, finally getting to enjoy genres he didn’t take to during his adolescence. “It’s so late 2000s and 2010s, I love it now.” Racy, high octave and thrilling, “Don’t Touch The CDJ” feels like an immersive east London night out. Thumpingly loud and beguiling across the ear drum. “Baby I just need you to know, I’ve been thinking about you all alone,” he says across the singles lethal synths.