Kevin Li's first musical interest was the oboe. "It just seemed interesting to play the oboe since it's a funny looking instrument (and a) funny sounding name," he said. For practical reasons he started on clarinet — and it was a match.
"I liked how it sounded (and) the music that we played in middle school."
Like so many kids, the pandemic derailed group music making, but after returning to in-person school, things took off for Li.
"After getting back into it, like, getting the actual high school band experience as well and just playing more clarinet in person competitions and things like that, I just started to do a lot more stuff with music," he reflects.
Even as he grows as a classical musician, Li has other outlets including producing and making hip-hop beats. Even so, he hopes to combine these varied interests one day.
"The the world is changing and you should go explore different aspects of pop culture and different genres," says Li, "which I think is a good thing since it opens your view to a ton of different perspectives."
Hear our full conversation with Kevin Li via the audio player above.
