At the age of 22, it is already evident that David Kushner is going to be something special in the music business. His track Daylight continues to rise, climbing up charts around the world. Kushner is praised for his songwriting skills, while his voice has also been a revelation among the fans.
As we're going to reveal in the following, despite his potential, Kushner was turned down by significant names for Daylight. We'll reveal who said no to the collab, while revealing the person that gave Kushner a chance, and how they likely don't regret the decision...
In addition, we'll take a look at Kushner's inspirations along the way, including Eminem. We'll reveal the major way Eminem impacted Kushner's career. We'll also reveal the person that had Kushner starstruck the most, after there brief exchange on Instagram.
Hozier Declined A Collaboration With David Kushner's Breakout Song, Daylight
It is an understatement to say that David Kushner's career is off to a promising start. At the age of 22, the musician already has a smash hit with more than 74 million views on YouTube, the hit single, Daylight.
Manager Brent Shows was present when the song was being written. Watching the process go down, Shows knew Kushner was something special. “I was in the room when ‘Daylight’ was written and watched the entire process from the first melody that was sung to the last submission to [Virgin]. Just seeing that whole process, you realize the talent the kid has.”
However, like other artists, Kushner faced rejection despite his promise. When previewing the Daylight track, Kushner was instantly compared to Hozier. Fans wanted to see a colab between the two sides by according to Yahoo, the interest just wasn't there.
"It wasn’t until he began tagging Hozier in his social media posts about the song — encouraged, in part, by comparisons from fans — that it started to go viral."
"Though Hozier declined a collaboration, Shows reached out to another key player in the Irish singer-songwriter’s rise: Rob Kirwan, who produced Hozier’s breakthrough 2014 self-titled album. After hearing the “Daylight” demo, Kirwan agreed to produce it."
What makes the partnership between Kirwan and Kushner that much better is the fact that Rob wasn't even aware of Kushner's TikTok success, he just genuinely loved the song. His intuition was certainly correct...
Eminem Inspired David Kushner To Write His First Lyrics When He Was In School
Breaking through on charts around the world, Kushner took things a step backwards alongside GQ, detailing the first time he ever wrote lyrics. According to the star, it all started because of his love for Eminem. Kushner had memorized The Eminem Show, and used it as inspiration for his own lyrics and troubling times from his youth.
Kushner tells GQ, "When I was in school I loved Eminem. I loved a lot of hip-hop but I memorised the whole of The Eminem Show. I tried to write lyrics of things that my parents were going through; they were going through a really bad time."
It was quite the journey for Kushner, who finally played publicly just a year ago. The artist detailed the experience, and the circumstances were made difficult given his lack of experience in such a spot.
“It was 116 degrees outside and I was sweating in every nook and cranny of my body,” he tells GQ. “I was so nervous. I didn’t perform as a kid. I thought the theatre kids were weird, but I always kind of regretted not doing choir.”
It all worked out in the end, and it seems like Kushner is catching the attention of other major artists as well, including Justin Bieber.
David Kushner Got Justin Bieber's Attention In The Most Unlikely Way
David Kushner is starting to realize a thing or two about his newfound fame. New doors are opening, however, it doesn't mean that Kushner isn't starstruck by other artists. We assume he'd be starstruck after meeting Eminem, but by all accounts, we assume that hasn't happened yet.
When asked by GQ which celebrity shocked him the most, he didn't hesitate by responding Justin Bieber. Kushner had sent the artist a message on Instagram, not expecting the Biebs to answer given his insane following. However, Kushner couldn't believe when his message was not only seen, but also replied to.
He recalls the moment, "Justin Bieber responded to my DMs on Instagram. I was like: “Oh, I bet you five mill you won't respond to me”. Out of nowhere, he did."
We assume Bieber didn't take the $5 million... Without a doubt it was a crazy experience for the artist and one that shows his rise in the music business. Given his obvious talent, it seems like he'll only continue on such a trajectory and who knows, maybe an Eminem collaboration can take place down the road...
