Nicole Brice
Sep 2, 2024
Kyle Pfeiffer is a visionary creating a culture of acceptance for future generations of fans.
From the depths of personal tragedy to the triumphs of renewal, Blacklite District, aka Kyle Pfeiffer, is on a path to becoming the Trent Reznor of his generation with his one-man approach to making music. Since the early 2010s, Kyle has crafted a well-known brand with a loyal fanbase on social media and YouTube because of his impactful music videos referencing gaming culture, mainly Minecraft. Most known for the songs ‘Cold as Ice,’ ‘Living in a Nightmare,’ and ‘Goodbye,’ Blacklite District has had four Billboard Top 40 hits and is currently averaging over 242k monthly listeners on Spotify and over 65 million views on YouTube and has been granted a Grammy nomination in 2025 for Best Alternative Performance. For those who have never listened to Blacklite District’s music, it is a bit of hip-hop mixed with alt-rock and a little pop at times. It has a little something for every taste but remains dark and heavy at its core, just as Kyle Pfeiffer always intended.
A visionary creating a culture of acceptance for future generations of fans, Kyle hopes his music will continue to be the soundtrack for kids who need uplifting positivity to feel like they matter and belong. Devoted to making his shows accessible for all, Pfeiffer has become known for offering earlier start times, and because of this, entire families sometimes travel many hours to catch a live performance.
Set to embark on a new tour this fall, dubbed The Red Carpet Tour, in support of his latest album titled ‘You Can Do Better,’ we were able to catch up with Kyle Pfeiffer of Blacklite District recently as he gets ready to hit the road. Read on to learn more about this musical creative and the legacy he is creating.
MaM: You have an impressive career, and I want to discuss your legacy so far. I read that you started in 2002. Is that correct?
KP: 2011-12 was when I started getting attention, but 2002 or so was when I started jamming in my garage with friends. I was only 12 years old. I even started a band in 5th grade, too. All these years later, and here we are.
MaM: So, what was the official year Blacklite District formed as a “band”? Take us through a bit of band history.
KP: There’s been so much stuff over the years. It’s just been my project since the first day. It’s my brainchild.
MaM: Like Trent Reznor with Nine Inch Nails?
KP: Exactly. I’ve had different members over the years, but then there have been shows where it has just been me on stage. My guitarist is Justin Sundlin. He’s been with me for almost three years now. My bass player is a guy named Clinton Cunanan. He’s also on my management team. Been working with him for a long time. We’re having fun.
MaM: That’s awesome. So, do you have a drummer right now?
KP: In an official sense, we don’t have a permanent member who is the drummer, but Chance Jones from No Resolve comes out and plays often for us.
MaM: The new album was just released on May 3rd. How’s that going so far?
KP: I love it. I’m happy with it. If the fan base likes it, then I’m good. The response we have been getting has been incredible. We’re about to release the second animated video, which we do these Minecraft videos, and it should be in the next couple of weeks. The momentum is just considerable, and streaming has doubled this week alone since the announcement of the new video. I think something has occurred with me as an artist, though I’m 34 now – I’ve been doing this consistently for the past decade or so, but something about this last project makes me feel so complete that I’m in a different headspace. It’s cool, though.
The thing I love about music is that the journey can take you through many places, emotionally and even physically. It’s cool to see the growth and to feel that evolution through all of this.
MaM: Yeah, just the creative journey. I’ve had a similar journey, so I get it. I’ve read that you’ve shifted genres a bit here and there. Have you noticed any differences in how your music was perceived when doing that?
KP: You know, not really. It’s hard to say. I never came out and said I was changing my style to pop. When COVID happened, and the year before that, there was a slight switch in styles, but it was that it just didn’t have as heavy of guitars and was more beat-driven, but the melodies and vibes of the songs have always been dark. Even if there isn’t a guitar in the music, I still find heaviness.
In 2021, I went to rehab and got into this new era of life where I wanted to return to my rock roots by having a full live band. Having some minor success with rock radio and then seeing these younger kids start blowing up with hip-hop and stuff made me have, I guess, like an identity crisis, and then all this hardcore stuff started happening to me personally, so coming out the other end was almost like I didn’t care anymore about being the next big thing. I decided I just wanted to make music that I’ve always loved, which has been rock music. That’s kind of where I’m at now.
MaM: I’ve read that Ozzy Osbourne has been one of your biggest musical influences. I’m a huge Black Sabbath and Ozzy fan, but tell us more about that.
KP: I actually have the tattoo right here, and the song ‘No More Tears’ just did it for me.
MaM: Yes! I love that song! Even today, the beginning of ‘No More Tears’ gets me so pumped. I crank it up in the car. Do you think that song was the key factor in pursuing the type of music you play, or were there other things?
KP: I always go back to the period when my mom passed away because it wasn’t just the music in the song but the message of no more tears and trying to move on. It was what I needed as a ten-year-old kid to feel strong. The second I heard it, I was hooked and asked my uncle to play the song again after it finished. That song made me know that any music I played had to be rock and roll because of how the music made me feel strong as a small kid going through so much. That’s the beauty of music.
MaM: What do you think it is about music that makes you feel so passionate?
KP: I always try to think about this, and it’s hard, but as a young kid who was afraid and shy growing up, it was a way I could say the things I wanted about people without actually saying it directly to them. If I wasn’t around and people wanted to know things about me, it’s all in the music.
MaM: How are you approaching writing new songs these days?
KP: It can be many ways. Sometimes, I’ll hum a tune and put it in my voice notes to save it. The title of this new album, ‘You Can Do Better,’ is a simple melody that popped into my head. My guitar player came up with some chords, and then eight months later, we started working on it after stumbling upon the voice notes. The ones that stick with me months later are the ones we tend to work on. That’s a good sign to me that something is there. Or, sometimes, we’ll write a song in ten minutes, and it’ll be great. It just all depends.
MaM: Tell us a little about The Red Carpet Tour you have this fall. I heard that you’re doing some unique things for the fans.
KP: We are! My audience includes many young YouTube kids who come out as families to see our shows, for which I am so grateful. These kids are so passionate about my music. It’s crazy that they are also discovering my music in different ways, like YouTube, but we’re doing these shows differently for this tour. We’re starting the shows at 6 p.m. to get the families out there. We’re making it more intimate for the fans. We’re also booking smaller venues, so it’s perfect.
MaM: That’s incredible! That’s your audience, and you’re embracing it. I love it. Do you have a favorite song to perform these days?
KP: Well, I have so many, and the cliché saying is they’re like my kids, and I love all of them, but ‘Cold as Ice’ is one of my most famous songs, and we’re looking to have it certified platinum because it has well over the number of streams. I look at that song as one that has changed my career. Another song of mine, ‘The Struggle,’ is my second most popular song and resonates well with fans. They’re also fun to play.
MaM: You know how to connect with your audience, which is excellent. Tell us about your best and worst performance so far.
(laughter)
KP: I love that. Well, there have been some bad ones over the years. I'm not going to lie about that, but one time … this was back when I was in my early 20s; we would play in this town called Deadwood. On the night of the show, it looked like it wouldn’t be a good show because we didn’t sell that many tickets, but about twenty minutes before we were set to go on, my bass player and I decided it was a good idea to start chugging beers and smoking a little. We got messed up in a short amount of time. So, we went to go back in, and the venue ended up being packed, and we did not have the experience to play drunk, and it just turned into a shitshow.
(laughter)
In terms of the best, it’s been these smaller shows I’ve been doing because of the audience's passion. I spent so many years playing where I was the opener, and no one would come to see us, so now, when I see a line of kids out the door to see us play, it’s remarkable. It’s like a dream come true. That vibe is what I’m so grateful for.
MaM: Over the years, have you ever received a good piece of advice from a fellow musician that you’ve carried with you?
KP: You know, that’s a great question, and over the years, I’ve tried to sponge up anything I could. On my first tour, I opened for Saving Abel, and I remember being in awe of being on tour with bands I had heard on the radio. I remember the singer of Art of Dying telling me they could be opening for me a year from now, and I just thought that was the coolest thing ever. They ingrained in me that you never know whom you will encounter on the way up and how the roles may be changed or reversed quickly.
MaM: Any plans or aspirations for collaborations in the future?
KP: I always wanted to collaborate with Ozzy, but he’s not doing his best. I also want to collaborate with Jelly Roll, but it hasn’t happened yet. I would love to do something with Post Malone, too. I love how Post Malone is doing this sort of country thing, and even Jelly Roll has shifted to that, too. It’s almost as if hip-hop culture is shifting to more of a country culture right now.
MaM: Outlaw country in a way.
KP: This shift could lead to more guitar-driven stuff. It could be great for the rock stuff in the future.
MaM: I agree. Last question for you. Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
KP: That’s a great question. I have a decade’s worth of music now and several hits that the fans love online, so I am just focused on growing with these tours and doubling and tripling the ticket sales. I would like to see in the next five years that I can keep the momentum going, continue expanding on the fanbase, and build that real core audience that connects with me and the music, just as I’ve always done. I hope you and I can talk five years from now and be on different levels, just doing our thing, because I genuinely believe that the vibe and work you put out there is how you get there.
Insightful, charismatic, and driven with many years of success and many more to come, Blacklite District hits the road on September 6 in Des Moines, IA, and wraps its tour on November 2 in Atlanta, GA. Be sure to catch a date if it comes near you. In the meantime, check out the latest, 'You Can Do Better,' on all streaming platforms.
Questions or comments? Reach out to mixedalternativemag@gmail.com.