Lost love and melancholy are such prevalent themes in the indie folk scene that it’s wildly refreshing to hear a different narrative. Toronto’s Sumaroo pulls us in with scratched acoustic guitar over a familiar beat, but creates what is almost a ballad for the song itself on “No One Likes The Kid.” The song progresses with tasteful horn lines and keyboard textures into a lighthearted story about the struggles of being a somber songwriter. He sings, “No one likes the kid who sings soft and slow/everybody’s wishing he would up the tempo” with an air of humor and understanding that makes for a road trip playlist addition.
“When people heard my songs, they sometimes said, “You have a beautiful voice and a nice song, but could you make it more upbeat? ”. Having performed in shows where I felt the audience was looking forward to the more up-tempo ones, I felt the same thing. The song just came to me one night. “Nobody likes the kid who sings sorrow songs”. I kept wondering, am I in the wrong place or is it me? I wrote this song in 10 minutes and thought it was one of the most truthful songs I’ve ever written,” says Sumaroo.
“After letting the song sit in my mind for a year, I contacted my producer to begin work on it. To keep the vocals front and center, I kept guitars, drums, and horns at a distance from the vocals. Secondly, I wanted it to be less experimental because I wanted the audience to focus on the lyrics and hopefully relate to them.”