“There’s a genuine feeling in my music,” he exclaims. “It’s a mix of everything I grew up on—from rock to pop. You hear the guitars and real drum sounds with modern day elements and weird samples. It’s odd and different. It’s got a swag and flow, but you’re in this fantasy world at the same time.”
Bazzi was born and raised in Canton, MI until moving out to LA to make his dreams a reality. Born to a Lebanese immigrant father and American mother, he shares stories of dressing up as Elvis to perform in front of the neighbors and dancing to Ricky Martin across the living room with a comb doubling for a microphone. Returning from a trip to Lebanon, Dad brought home an Oud, and a four-year-old Bazzi immediately took to the instrument. By the age of six, he picked up a traditional acoustic.
Fascinated by music, the budding talent devoted his high school years to uploading tracks online as he obsessed over diverse influences ranging from Justin Timberlake and Bryson Tiller to Duran Duran and Guns N’ Roses. During senior year, he and his father moved to LA so Bazzi could properly pursue a career in music. While finishing high school on the West Coast, he constantly wrote and produced, creating his own soundscapes by hand on guitar, piano, and drums.
It was the hit single release, “Mine,” that quickly solidified him as one of 2018’s breakthrough artists. Over a sultry and simmering beat punctuated by the magical pluck of a heart and video game warbles, he croons intoxicating lines like, “You so f**king precious when you smile.”
“We were hanging in the pool at my friend’s house,” he states. “I went in the kitchen to grab a water, and ‘Mine’ literally hit me. I rocked that beat with my boys Rice N Peas and went for it.”
Following incredible editorial support from Apple Music, the track hit #1 on their Pop Streaming chart and soon-after climbed to #1 on Shazam’s Global Top 100 and both Spotify’s US Viral 50 and Global Viral 50 charts. “Mine” marked Bazzi’s debut on the Billboard Hot 100 along with both Top 40 and Rhythmic radio, proving to be an unprecedented favorite.
Of his debut album COSMIC, Bazzi describes the project as “honesty.” “It’s truthful, every single song is an extension of me and a truthful piece of inspiration from my past or something I’m currently going through.”
Ultimately, Bazzi is one of the next big stars and we are excited to see his journey.
Here is the full interview we had with him:
Here are some shots before his first big stage
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Photo Cred: Brandon Nagy
Bazzi is currently on tour with Camila Cabello. On Wednesday, April 25 he performed at The Fillmore Detroit in front of his hometown. As you can see below, Detroit shows major love to Bazzi. His first big stage show and everyone sang the lyrics to his songs.
Watch the music video to his hit single, "Mine"