After going viral, “Mood” received treatment befitting a major tune. It hit the top of radio charts, and superstars Justin Bieber and J Balvin jumped on a remix for the song in November. Goldn says the song’s happier tone was key to its success. In a year defined by a pandemic, an uprising against racism, and a divisive presidential election, many artists looking to connect with listeners seemed to lean into the state of the world when recording new music — or they avoided it altogether.
The notoriety that can come with a Number One single so early in a career doesn’t seem to faze Goldn, who says he’s used to turning heads. “My parents named me Golden, and I had a huge afro for the first 12 years of my life,” he says. “So I kind of always stood out. I owned my swag.” “I need to know these things so I can be that wealth of resource, that wealth of knowledge that my team has been for me,” Goldn says. “I know how inefficient other labels can be, too. [RECORDS] gave me the freedom and the access to do what I needed to make shit happen. Other labels and other artists don’t. They’re kind of just floundering around trying to get a hit.
“When I was in high school, everyone called me a SoundCloud rapper, now I’m a TikTok rapper,” he says with a light chuckle. “I don’t blame the people who say that. It’s easier for people to put you in a box than accept the whole of your being. With time, people will realize I’m here to stay and that I’m a true artist, not a fad.”and pop artists of the 2000s like Kanye West and the Black Eyed Peas alongside jazz acts like Miles Davis.
Chile anyway.