Trevor Hutchens may not yet be a household name, but as the emerging Long Beach producer, better known as veggi, continues to fine-tune his sound, expect that to change—quickly. The 24-year-old beatsmith recently released a six-track LIQUID EP that blends indie, disco-house, electronica, and hip-hop in a tasty cacophony of genres; a sonic salad if you will. Inspired by the likes of Kaytranada, Toro Y Moi, Flume, Neon Indian, and SG Lewis to name a few, veggi’s dexterous affinity for an amalgam of genres comes through within seconds of hearing his work. Dancing Astronaut connected with veggi to learn more about his Lowly.-backed sophomore EP, finding viral success on TikTok, and more.

LIQUID is yet another COVID lockdown-fueled success story; a diamond of inspiration in the rough. “Every collaborator I worked with for [the] project was pretty much all done remotely. It was a sign of the times, but also really pushed me a lot as a producer because I wasn’t able to be in the room with the artists,” explains Hutchens. Officially, the up-and-comer has been putting out music as veggi since 2019, and like the title of his EP, his sound is still very much a fluid entity looking to take shape. “All of the tracks on ‘LIQUID’ incorporate a new avenue for my sound, and it was a fun journey creating it, says veggi, while expressing concern for the process of collaboration.

“[Wanting] consistency in my own sound while also being able to flow harmoniously with my collaborators’ sounds, and this project was the discovery of that,” admits Hutchens.

On the streaming front, veggi is an emerging force to be reckoned with. Hutchens has amassed considerable streaming figures behind his standout single “EXCEPTIONAL” with DijahSB, which has pulled in millions of plays since its release. The feeling of not only obtaining commercial success, but striking the collaborative sweet spot, isn’t one that’s lost on Hutchens as he continues carving his upward trajectory. “Shoutout DijahSB for crushing it on ‘EXCEPTIONAL.’ They’re such an amazing artist and collaborator and killed that vocal.” During the conversation, the gratitude and excitement of a young producer just now finding his footing is palpable, though Hutchens manages to stay cool as a cucumber as he describes the feeling of his music touching fans the world over. “It feels as if we’re now seeing the hard work pay off,” says Hutchens; a triumphant optimism in his voice.

As for his eclectic fusion of genres, veggi says it’s right in line with his own personal music interests. “[My] Spotify Wrapped [is] all over the place in a beautifully chaotic way,” says Hutchens. His background in classical music informs his production methods, while his high school and college days found him experimenting in indie bands, which offered a natural progression to electronic genres and hip-hop.

“I find my sound now fitting into this niche indie-dance/electronic world which is injected with hip-hop. I love seeing, working with, and supporting other artists pushing this sound forward. I have a lot of faith in where my sound is headed, and feel super inspired by not being boxed into one sub-genre or niche,” says Hutchens. “I think in the electronic music scene there are so many caveats and nuances to genres. From an outsider perspective it may all be EDM, but I feel like [certain] artists don’t necessarily categorize themselves as EDM. However, dance and electronic elements are essential to their sound and they all have roots in dance, indie, and even hip-hop. I’m super inspired by their versatility.”

Part of veggi’s meteoric rise is due to his success on TikTok, where he’s amassed more than 1.2 million followers and 22 million likes on the platform largely behind his beloved “mashups that should be illegal” series. Like many others, veggi’s social media fame came about quite innocuously as, “it all started with having fun and just trial and error. I had a bit more time on my hands during quarantine. I was already doing tons of content for my music and productions leading up to 2020, but TikTok is where things really started to take off,” concedes veggi.

@veggibeats

I’m on my emotional shit with this one 🥲

♬ original sound – veggibeats

When asked about how he balances his work on TikTok with his work producing and making music, veggi describes, “a healthy relationship between TikTok and my music. My content is all based around DJing, production, performance, and my personality. It’s one of the only apps that is designed to make anyone blow up organically. That type of organic growth is so beneficial to an artist who is starting from the ground up,” explains Hutchens. And while TikTok has been crucial to veggi’s ascent, he’s backed his upward trajectory up every step of the way with top-notch production acumen that churns out outstanding original works like, “EXCEPTIONAL,” “RAINCLOUDS,” and “THINKING” from LIQUID.

What’s next for veggi? If anything, we learned over an extensive discussion that Hutchens is a creature of consistency. So expect a steady stream of music to come from the veggi camp throughout the rest of the year. His newest single with Stevedreez dropped on June 10 via Too Future, with additional material expected to surface throughout the summer. Hutchens also be working towards a follow up EP to LIQUID. “The new stuff is a big evolution in the veggi project sonically, and I think it’s really going to solidify where I’m going next.”

Featured image: Jack Frisbie

Tags: ep, interview, lowly., TikTok, veggi, viral

Categories: Features