Exposed Vocals just caught an interview with Colt.45

Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?

Colt.45: Well lemme start by saying my real name is Colton Cummings. Im an 18 year old kid who’s coming out of Long Island, New York. I just graduated from Longwood High School and plan to attend Suffolk Community College in the fall. Ever since I was young I always loved music whether it was vocals or instruments. I guess I’ve always been fascinated by how music can affect peoples emotions. I learned guitar when I was young and played a few gigs with my guitar teacher’s band around the time I was 13. After that I fell in love with hiphop at age 14 and I’ve been diving deeper into the music ever since. I see the art of hiphop and rap as very powerful and I want to use my music to affect as many listeners lives in a positive way as I can.

Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?

Colt.45: Well one my friends started calling me “4-5” or just “4” as a nickname due to my names similarity to the name of a pistol. It probably also has something to do with a brand of 40 oz. that he likes to drink. Shoutout my boy Blacky better known as Marc Patten haha. I think I’ll change it in the future but I’ll keep the nickname for now.

Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?

Colt.45: I think online sharing can be good and bad. Its good for fans because it makes the artists’ music more accessible to them but its bad for the artist because it makes it harder to sell records. Seems to me artists like myself just have to find a way to use online sharing to our advantage. Im currently giving away all my music for free to help start up a fanbase. Kind of like letting a customer try it before they buy it. Easiest way to get exposure for now as well.

Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?

Colt.45: Well actually I would consider myself in the same boat as these people. Open mics are a great place to start performing and getting gigs. As for airplay I’d say make sure your production is on point and try putting songs on as many platforms and websites as possible. Always look for new opportunities and take them if you find them. Im still doing all this myself dont get it twisted.

Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?

Colt.45: I get my inspiration from other artists as well as current events and emotions I may be feeling. Some of my biggest inspirations are Tupac, Nas, Tribe Called Quest, Kanye West, Jay-Z, J.Cole, Kendrick Lamar and Drake and thats just a few. We got alot of kids coming up on the island putting out great music too like my long time friend Jordan Richter. I usually sit some where in my house, gather my thoughts and start writing in my notebook or if quick ideas come to me i type them in my phone. Sometimes I’ll rewrite a few words or lines or whole verses or piece together songs from older things I’ve wrote.

Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?

Colt.45: Currently Im just on SoundCloud but I should have all my songs on Youtube by next week. Here’s a link to my most recent song on SoundCloud

https://soundcloud.com/layichardz/catch-ya-later-married-to-the-game-remix

Eventually I would like to get on DatPiff, Spinrilla, Spotify and even Apple Music or Tidal. All of these platforms are great. Basically I want to get on every major platform within 2 years.

Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?

Colt.45: I would buy a car and set aside enough for my college tution. Then I would invest a large chunk into my own studio and producing my first major album as well as promotion and marketing for that project. If any money was left over I’d just save it. I guess that’s not really a year off but I aint got time for just wasting time as I like to say.

Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?

 Colt.45: Honestly my best bet so far has been word of mouth. If I can just go person to person creating fans that will share my music with their friends and family I cant go wrong. Once I get my money up more I can start thinking about new ways to promote my products and market them effectively.

Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?

 Colt.45: Well Im always working on new material so you guys will just have to keep an eye on my SoundCloud for now. Im planning to start creating my first fully mixed and mastered project soon and like I said be on every major music platform in 2 years. Definitely going into grind mode for the next few years.

Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?

Colt.45: As cliche as it sounds, in all honesty I cant see myself doing anything else. Cant think of a better use of my labor and time than to spread peace, love & happiness through music.

Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?

 Colt.45: Planning my time is key. Its hard to follow a schedule sometimes because life happens but basically Im using every free second I have to write or record or gather inspiration for my next song.

Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in 2016?

Colt.45: In 2016 my fans should look forward to more improvement in my musical abilities and my sound and more free music!

I just want to thank Exposed Vocals for showing interest in me! And give a shoutout to my friends Ben, Harrison, Jalarris and Tim.

One Love