From Degrassi to Cass Tech: The Unexpected Influences Behind Asheville's KayeDinero

ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Rezul -- What connects Drake, Michael Jackson, Hans Zimmer, Earth, Wind & Fire, Kenny G and Detroit?

For Asheville-based artist and producer KayeDinero, they are all pieces of the same musical education.

As she prepares to release her new single "Cass Tech" on Sept. 15, KayeDinero is opening up about the unusually broad group of artists who helped shape the way she hears music.

"I've never listened by genre," KayeDinero said. "I listen for emotion, arrangement, movement and atmosphere."

From Jimmy Brooks to Drake

KayeDinero says her appreciation for Drake began before his global superstardom, when she watched Aubrey Graham portray Jimmy Brooks on Degrassi: The Next Generation.

Their paths later crossed twice: around a Drake performance at Michigan State University and, years later, during an encounter at the Beverly Center in Los Angeles.

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"What I learned from Drake is reinvention," she said. "You can keep evolving without pretending the earlier versions of yourself never existed."

That lesson resonates as KayeDinero moves between music, software, financial technology, entrepreneurship and aerial cinematography.

Detroit Still Shows Up

Her Sept. 15 single "Cass Tech" brings Detroit imagery directly back into her catalog.

KayeDinero also cites Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5, Earth, Wind & Fire, Cameo, Kanye West and Big Sean among her major popular-music influences.

But her production influences extend well beyond hip-hop.

The Cinematic Side of KayeDinero

KayeDinero points to Hans Zimmer as a major influence on her interest in scale, tension and cinematic atmosphere.

She also names Joshua Kyan Aalampour, Kenny G and violinist Josh Vietti among artists who expanded her appreciation for instrumental storytelling.

"Sometimes a saxophone, violin or score can say more than a verse," KayeDinero said. "That is probably why instrumental music became such a natural language for me."

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Those influences can be heard in a catalog that increasingly moves between hip-hop rhythm and score-like atmosphere.

Recent projects include Human Error and Kulture Metrics, the latter featuring "Red Sea," "Drone Pilot" and "One World."

Detroit Roots, Asheville Perspective

KayeDinero now creates from Asheville, where mountains, space and a slower environment have added another layer to those influences.

"Detroit gave me rhythm and ambition," she said. "Asheville gives me space to hear everything differently."

Discover "Cass Tech," Kulture Metrics, Human Error and more:
http://tiny.cc/KayeDinero

About KayeDinero

KayeDinero is a Detroit-raised, Asheville-based multidisciplinary artist, producer, software professional and entrepreneur whose work spans music, technology, financial analytics and aerial cinematography.