An Interview with the della kit
Written for Unclear Magazine, July 2022
Coming from one of the most musical backgrounds imaginable, the Canadian-born singer, songwriter, producer, DJ, and voice teacher, the della kit, is taking the music world by storm with genre-bending tunes that are meant for those of all ages and musical tastes. She is deeply inspired by the world around her and is dedicated to paying tribute to those who came before her.
the della kit is honest, raw, and truly a dynamic person and performer. Entering and becoming a continuous presence in a variety of spaces, she works to empower the voices of others before tuning into her own talents. Speaking with the della kit was one of the most candid conversations I have ever been a part of. Following our interview, she performed on Electric Forest’s Honeycomb Stage, where she paid homage to the trees and nature that surrounded her to each and every person who danced and sang along to her music.
You can’t help but feel like you instantly belong in her circle of love and compassion when you hear her sing. Read more about the della kit and her journey through music, how she helps to uplift the voices and performances of others, as well as her upcoming debut album, moonbeams & frequencies below:
Photo by Isabel Dowell
You have been known under the names of both “the della kit” and “Erica Dee”, why?
the della kit: Erica Dee was my last artist name, and the della kit is my new and improved and evolved version of Erica Dee. I have been performing since I was sixteen, Erica Dee is my given name, like my birth name. As a solo, emcee, vocalist, DJ, I have toured and performed as Erica Dee until 2020 basically. 2019 is when I started making the transition from Erica Dee into the della kit. For me, that transition was about evolving my sound as an artist and also not just being a singer and an emcee. I’m also a producer, a composer, I play keys and create, so the della kit is an opportunity to have music that came from me first as opposed to walking into a studio and there’s a beat that I just sing over. This way I’m going to use my voice as an instrument and build the music outwards. I also intentionally wanted to make music that people could sit down to. It would be an all ages thing. It’s music I could see at jazz festivals and at theatres and community spaces. This process is inspired by my music workshop called “Sing for the Soul” which is a community singing workshop is made to empower people’s voice to be heard, specifically femmes, queer folks, people of color, folks who aren’t always able to have their voices be heard.
How do you balance all of that?
the della kit: For me, this is all I do. I don’t have a “regular” job. Before the pandemic, teaching and singing was my main source of income; besides, being an artist of course. It’s like teaching, and being face to face with humans, I feel so good about it. It’s more beneficial in a way to do community work and youth work. It feels like self care in a lot of ways, to feel like I’m giving back and instantly, too.
Do you ever feel like some days you want to be seen as one thing more than another? Or do you feel you have a pretty good control on everything?
the della kit: I love supporting other artists and being the person that is encouraging others. It took a lot of self love and work where I can be like “oh yeah, my voice also matters”. So if I’m having a bad day or I’m feeling down, I know it would be so much easier to support someone else’s career. With the della kit, I know the music has such a deep purpose and there’s already so much success in the music I’ve created that I don’t really have any expectation as to where it goes next. So to answer your question, I don’t know it’s a roundabout way of thinking but some days I’d rather be out with the community and other days where I’m really ready to take up space and be a rockstar.
You mentioned that you love to support other artists, how have you felt supported from them?
the della kit: When I was sixteen or seventeen, there was a stage manager from Shambhala Music Festival back in Nelson, B.C. Canada, that gave me an artist pass and she was just like perform when you want to or don’t perform when you don’t want to perform, do whatever you want. I spent that year networking and meeting new people, I ended up performing with Skream that year. I met Bassnectar, before anyone knew about Bassnectar. It was a lot of heavy electronic music people and I feel in that way they gave me a chance, and a platform and a space. I have a specific mentor who was overseeing my process and really encouraged me to go for grants, to really believe in my project, and just to do it my way. I do have such a beautiful support, and it’s interesting because there are so many men who support me as a woman which is really powerful. There's another amazing DJ, Skratch Bastid, that was offering me to join his set. As a white man, who is offering to make space for other artists, just thank you.
It’s sometimes hard if you aren’t a white, cisgender, male to find a space that will even allow you the platform to be who you are, so I’m glad you were able to find that within your community.
the della kit: When I started out as an emcee, I had to be very aggressive, literally push the men out of the way and take up space. I felt like I had to always prove it to them, whereas after a while I felt I could soften a bit and talk about things that actually came from my heart or from a deeper, more meaningingful place and I realized I didn’t have to be so aggressive. I don’t necessarily see it as good or bad, everyone has their own way of contributing and you either vibe it or don’t.
It can be really nice to have people come to you rather than feel like you forced them to.
the della kit: Yes! And for me, Erica Dee was all about hustle mentality. the della kit let me take the entire pandemic to just hone in on my skills, my music, my message, and how I wanted to perform it. I wanted the music to just ooze out of my pores instead of just being like ‘oh, I have to perform at a festival next weekend, let me write a song really quick’.
How do you feel like the pandemic helped, or even hurt your career?
the della kit: I think the singing workshops were a struggle. Nobody wanted to sing indoors with COVID and that was a huge spirit crusher. I didn’t know if we were going to be able to do the same things we did before COVID and I didn’t even know if we’d ever be able to perform again. I actually manifested a very beautiful cabins on acres and acres of land with this eldery feminist, stoner woman. I was able to be really close to the land and take those deeper looks at myself and figure out who I am and how I wanted to show up. In a lot of ways, it influenced me to be more grounded and more discerning on how I wanted to put music out, what I wanted it to feel like, what kind of gigs I wanted the play, why I want to play those gigs. As much as it was hard on my career financially, I’m lucky to be living in Canada where there was subsidy and support. We were able to acknowledge that it was really hard for a lot of people. For me, it was really positive.
You like to be close to nature and feeling grounded, where else do you like to pull inspiration from?
the della kit: I’m inspired by food! I’m inspired by visual art, people, different cultures, and really sitting and listening to nature and the land. When we speak about the land we have to think whose land is this, whose land are we on, what can we learn from this land and its history from years before we got here. It’s always inspiring and grounding to be able to listen to indigenous people. I’m also inspired by percussionists and being out in the world. I’ve toured Brazil four times and to me, some of the most generous and positive people are those that don’t have as much. To get away from commercialism, cities, urban situations, and to then just be with simple people, I’m inspired by that too. Food, community, spirituality for sure! I’m inspired by Daoism, they have a really cool way of looking at life and how the cosmos affect us. Dancers, I love dancers.
Have you always been interested in music? Do you come from a music family?
the della kit: I am really grateful, I was born to two Berkley folks. My dad and my mom actually met at Berkeley College of Music in Boston. My parents met at Berkeley and are both jazz musicians, so I grew up with a lot of jazz music. Michael Jackson, Quincey Jones, Joni Mitchell. Then, they split up and my dad remarried another singer and my mom was also with another singer, so I’ve had music around me my whole life. My name, the della kit, comes from Dellasandro, which is my mother’s maiden name on my Italian side. My uncles, Frankie and Rudy, had a big band called the Dellasandro’s in the 1950s. It was like a jazz band and I really wanted to pay homage to that side of my lineage and part of my background. I come from a lineage of jazz musicians and it’s definitely in my blood.
How early did you personally start?
the della kit: I started writing music and songs when I was sixteen. I moved from this rural town in British Columbia, I was so protected and in this nice little bubble to then suburban American, outside of Boston, to live with my mom for Grade 11. It was at that point that I was shaken up with culture shock and seeing the dirty, underbelly of society and seeing how we treat people with depression, anxiety, depression, and all these things I hadn’t really seen. That’s when I realized I had this medicine and this light, and it was important for me to share it and use my voice to do good in the world. I went back home and for Grade 12 I joined my Uncle Sonny’s live electronic band and basically started performing in clubs at the age of seventeen until now.
What other festivals have you done besides being here at Electric Forest?
the della kit: I did SXSW, Lighting in a Bottle, Shambhala, Bass Coast, I just did Toronto Jazz Fest which was a huge one on my list. I did Vancouver Jazz Fest and Burning Man. As far as raves go, I did Symbiosis back in the day. My goal is to play the New Orleans Jazz Festival and just more live music festivals. I love coming out to these spaces and I feel it’s important to have a soul in these spaces.
For somebody that might be new to your music, which song do you feel best represents you as an artist?
the della kit: Well, my debut album comes out July 8, 2022. If you’re listening to the full record, “Comfortable”. “Comfortable” is about having harder conversations and showing up to them. I feel like that’s where I’m at right now as a person and it’s hard for me to separate my person from my artists. Musically, it’s dope. Lyrically, it’s what I want to share with the world.
What was the process of writing your debut album? How long has it been in the making?
the della kit: I started writing some of these in 2018. I started on my RC-505, my looper, which is what I perform on now. There vocals and keys, then I started producing drums and even body percussions, literally just slapping on my thighs. Then I brought in my co-producer, AstroLogical, and he and I built up the tracks. We hired a bunch of amazing musicians to play on the record. It was a long, beautiful process of layers and lush, orchestral music. We have string players, we have percussion, but then having the balance of organic instrumentation over hip-hop beats, like J Dilla beats, as the foundation. Then of course, I called in some other amazing artists to be performing on the record and to co-write with me. It felt like a community project in a lot of ways.
the della kit
Listen to the della kit here.