Q: I thought the lyrical flow was really good! What inspired you to write “What A Hole”?
KREUTZ: Thank you so much! The story behind the lyrics comes from an accumulation of events that took place during and after I graduated college. At the time I graduated, COVID had the world shut down, I was struggling to find a job, depressed, and just not taking care of myself. After years of “playing hard” in college, it was finally catching up to me, leaving me very disappointed with myself. Eventually, the lyric “what do you think of me now?” popped into my head and from there the rest just exploded out. It was a lot of pent-up feelings of disappointment regarding how I’ve gone about my business at school and with close ones, however I’m a happy-go-lucky guy, so I also tried to write the song with confidence in myself as well, knowing I’d be in a much better spot in a couple of years. Now releasing it 2 years later, I can already say I have grown so much from that person, however, having this song as almost like an artifact from a time capsule is really special to me.
Q: Could you walk me through your writing and production process in making “What A Hole”?
KREUTZ: For this song, I had the main chorus lyric stuck in my head, however, it was the verse melodies that I built the song around. I grabbed my dad’s acoustic guitar and started playing chords I heard while working at Sam Ash for a bit, and just started sing/rambling until it made some sense. From there I produced and arranged the entire track on my computer then wrote the rest of the song. Most of my personal favorite songs are made this way, where the chorus gets stuck in my head first.
Q: I love the soul in your voice! What first got you into music?
KREUTZ: Thank you! I do be feeling it sometimes. I’ve been involved with music for over 15 years. It started when I was a kid, I pulled out my dad’s guitar and he taught me a couple songs. Our whole family has pretty strong musical ears, so from there, I was able to noodle my way to learning other songs. It wasn’t until my brother got into drums that we really took it seriously though. Eventually, we’d end up forming a family band and since then I haven’t been able to stay away from music.
Q: Who are your biggest influences?
KREUTZ: My top would have to be my father. He can’t read music whatsoever but can find his way around almost any instrument. I find myself trying to do the same. In terms of musical influences, I really like The Backseat Lovers recently. Other artists, I try to draw inspiration from are The Beatles, Billy Joel/Elton John, Harry Styles, Post Malone, Paramore, and My Chemical Romance.
Q: What is coming up next for you?
KREUTZ: I have soooo many songs I’ve been holding onto. My plans are to just keep releasing music and start doing shows soon! I don’t really care what comes from it I honestly am just having fun and letting go of my demons through my songs.
Q: What would you like to tell your supporters out there?
KREUTZ: First off, for those that stuck with me for the past 15 years, thank you so much. I appreciate the support with all my heart. Aside from that, I just want to get everyone involved. I think of what I’m doing as a party and everyone’s invited. You got a cool idea for what I should sing about, cool, send me it let’s make some magic. Wanna come jam? I’m down. Wanna send me your favorite songs? Let’s talk about it. Wanna drink some beers, smoke a doob, and talk about life being a simulation? Chill, I’m on my way. As I said, I’m just having fun and I invite everyone and anyone with a positive can-do attitude to join!
Interviewed by Zoey King
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