Sebastian Kole: Where I’m From...How I Got Here
I’ve always been a songwriter. My mom says that I wrote my first song when I was three years old. I don’t remember that. The first one I remember writing was at five years old. Living in Birmingham Alabama, music was my way of expression. I loved everything about it. I especially fell in love with lyrics.
I grew up as the son of two preachers. I watched, week in and week out, as people’s lives were literally altered by words, and I wanted to be a part of that. It seemed magical to me. I watched moods change. I watched tears fall. I watched hope imparted. Lyrics gave me a way to participate in that magic. I had no idea just how magical it really was.
Songwriting became a way for me to communicate my feelings, but even more importantly, it allowed me to help others communicate theirs as well. When I first moved to L.A. to pursue my career, I was shocked that I could even hold my own in writing rooms. People would always compliment me on how well I said what they were thinking. I used that to help me while writing “Know-it-all” with Alessia Cara. That was my first chance to really display what I’d learned about listening to others, and helping them express their feelings.
A lot of people are really surprised to find out a big bearded bear looking man wrote in that project, but that project opened so many more doors to help people express their feelings. I’ve been able to musically tackle lots of tough issues. From helping 5th Harmony discuss civil unrest and xenophobia on the song “Bridges”, to more recently helping Alicia Keys discuss racial injustice in the song “Perfect Way To Die”.
Yes, music has been magical for me, but when you’re from the “Magic City”, what else did I expect, right?