If you open your Instagram, YouTube, or any other social media platform, you will see talented young people showcasing themselves all out! That’s the beauty of social media; everyone gets a chance to present their talent and many also garner a lot of appreciation and attention from the people.
One such extremely talented young singer/entertainer/musician is Vasu Kainth. Vasu is only 20 years old and has sung beautiful originals as well as cover songs. He has 115k followers on Instagram and in an exclusive interview with Team Sociobits, Vasu shares how he started singing, his journey, and what should fans look forward to.
Team Sociobits: Could you tell me how did you begin your musical journey?
Vasu Kainth: It’s actually a very interesting and I guess long story. Until the third grade, I used to dance a lot. You can imagine a chubby kid that used to dance like no one was watching. So my parents always presumed that I will be entering ‘Dance India Dance’ and for that, they took me to a dance class. After attending it for three or four days, I got bored. I thought to myself ‘No, this is not for me, I can’t do this’. My parents told me to focus on studying instead.
At that time, there used to be a Panditji near our house. My grandfather was an Urdu writer who used to write Ghazals, Bhajans, and more. In short, he was very keen on music. One day, the Panditji visited my grandfather and told him that he wanted to learn to sing. My grandfather was a very good friend of Rana Ji who was, in turn, a good friend of Jagjit Singh Ji. They went to Rana Ji and I wanted to tag along; when I saw him singing I felt a rush inside me. I was so amazed by his voice, and all the instruments and the Guruji insisted I sing. Next thing you know, I told my grandfather I want to sing as well and very shortly the Panditji stopped coming to learn but I continued to learn Indian Classical Music for the next twelve years. Hence, beginning my musical journey.
If that day I wouldn’t visit my teacher then maybe I wouldn’t be sitting here today.
My parents always presumed that I will be entering ‘Dance India Dance’ and for that, they took me to a dance class. After attending it for three or four days, I got bored. I thought to myself ‘No, this is not for me, I can’t do this’.
Team Sociobits: How did you find your niche in singing? How did you know that you want to sing a certain type of song?
Vasu Kainth: Before the tenth grade, I used to never sing Bollywood songs. Instead, I used to sing “Shaam-E-Ghazals’. A friend of mine, named Rohan introduced me to social media. I was never a social media person and I only knew how to use Facebook. He created my Instagram account and explained how I can create and upload videos on the platform. He also told me how I can make money from YouTube. I found it very fascinating. He was also a wonderful guitarist and he taught me to play the basics.
Subsequently, we started making cover videos and our channel name was ‘VR Rockers’ i.e. Vasu-Rohan Rockers. If you still play the first video on my channel, the introduction to VR Rockers plays. I entered this world through him and slowly he backed out. This is because his mom thought I am using him and encouraging him to stop studying. So, I started doing everything alone and embarked on my solo YouTube journey. I changed the channel’s name to Vasu Kainth and in 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, one of my videos blew up! That video got around one million views and gave me 40,000 – 50,000 subscribers. That’s when I received my first paycheck of $150. It was huge for me! My parents were also happy about it and that’s when started going into content creation.
Team Sociobits: How does it feel to have garnered so many eyes at the age of 20?
Vasu Kainth: I don’t think there’s any relation between what I am doing now with my age. Because even if we consider that I started out at the age of 25, there’s no guarantee that I will achieve a certain number of views after a specific number of years. If you produce good content, then people are bound to see your videos.
If you look at some of the videos I have uploaded on YouTube, I don’t think they are the best ones but the audience loved them. So, one thing is to produce top-quality content and I actually understood what kind of content the audience is looking for. I continued to make videos and it feels amazing to have achieved so much at this age, especially for my parents.
Team Sociobits: Were your parents supportive of content creation?
Vasu Kainth: My mom was very supportive. On the other hand, my father is a businessman, and somewhere he always wanted me to join the business. I remember I had fought with my family to buy a guitar and my father scolded me when I was playing it. At that time, my grandfather cried but now they are SUPER SUPPORTIVE. I have a video from yesterday where my father is playing my songs on the television and he was dancing to them. It feels great.
My mom always told me to pursue what I felt like. After the 12th standard, I convinced my mom that I want to drop out for only one year and when I was finally allowed to do that, I completely focused on content creation. I did get admitted to a college but I only attended for 3 months! I think that whatever is happening right now is going great for me.
Team Sociobits: Speaking of content creation, do you strategize the content before you upload it, or do you upload what you like?
Vasu Kainth: Sometimes I have to strategize. Most of the time, I don’t; for example, I uploaded 90 Instagram Reels in 90 days. People felt like I have already made them and I simply upload them but that’s not true. Every night I used to scroll through YouTube for ideas and coincidentally, it worked for me. At that time, I didn’t strategize but while making YouTube videos, I used to jot everything down and plan every word that I said in my videos. Now that I have built my audience, I don’t strategize.
Sometimes I have to strategize. Most of the time, I don’t; for example, I uploaded 90 Instagram Reels in 90 days. People felt like I have already made them and I simply upload them but that’s not true. Every night I used to scroll through YouTube for ideas and coincidentally, it worked for me.
Team Sociobits: Which artist do you take inspiration from and would love to collaborate with?
Vasu Kainth: I would say, Jack Harlow. For me, whenever I achieve some milestone in my life, I listen to his songs on repeat! So, I really look up to Jack Harlow and Post Malone.
Team Sociobits: Do you think social media is helping artists build a fan base without the support of mainstream media?
Vasu Kainth: I could give you an example of this. I personally never auditioned for any singing reality show but I have a song with Shreya Ghoshal and Sonu Nigam. The government reached out to my management to create a song about Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and they were a part of it too. In short, if you are a content creator and you are doing well then companies will reach out to you and also give you opportunities.
I feel that social media is now larger than industries like Bollywood because I am sure it might not be long ago when you may have seen a movie getting promoted on Social Media. Earlier, there were not many options for promotions but now everyone is on social media. Collaborating with content creators is also very easy for directors, artists, celebrities, etc. because everything is visible on their social media profiles.
Team Sociobits: If you wouldn’t have been a singer, what would you be?
Vasu Kainth: Definitely something in this industry. I am sure I wouldn’t have joined my father’s business because I always wanted to do something on my own. I could have been managing some artists or selling music production tips and tricks.
Content Creators like Vasu Kainth, who have garnered a lot of attention for their talent at a young age are commendable. This also shows us the potential that social media platforms hold when it comes to showcasing your talent.
