N.W.T. rapper Crook the Kid is releasing music on his own terms. Here's why he wants to keep it free

A Yellowkniferapper recently released newmusic under his own terms andhe'sdedicated to keeping the rest he releasestrue to the North, he said.

Last year, Dylan Jones also known as Crook the Kid releasedhis latest single Too Lost.He saidhe was pressured to do itby others who helped manage his music.

But as of Friday, he saidhe officially bought back that song from the agent representing him at the time, along with 11 other songsthat were previously released. It cost him $500 a song, he added.

Now, he saidhe's free to do what he wants with them, and his choice? Give themaway for free to whoever asksfor them, the way he originally intended.

The artist, originally from Fort Good Hope, N.W.T., hashad growing success over the years as an artist. In 2019, hehad a huge break when he performed at OttawaBluesfest, an event that attracts about 300,000 people each year. It features performances by musical giants that range from Foo Fighters to Kanye West.

After that show, Jones saidhe received some 400 Facebook notifications and his phone wasringing nonstop.

The song Too Lostwas written in Ottawa, just beforeBluesfest and just after his brother had died, Jonessaid.

"I was simultaneously experiencing one of the best things in my life with one of the worst," he said.

One night,he couldn't sleep and ended up writing out the song inan hour.

"Instead of going to sleep I laid on the floor and I was just thinking and thinking and I grabbed a piece of paper," he said.

"I don't know what it was about. I was confused and thinking how could this be happening Why is it that every time there's a little good there has to be so much bad."

Jones saidhe wants to keep his music free rather than make money off ofit nor let others profit from it. While the songs still appearon music platforms likeSpotify(which is not managed by him, Jones said), he owns the right to the songs.

"Art's just going to be art," he said.

Staying in the North

Jones saidit's partly why he chooses not to leave the North, as he doesn't agree with "shiny" people in the South, where he thinks too much emphasis is placed on the monetary value of art.

In the North, he saidcommunity is strong, whereas in the South, despite a higher population, he never felt more alone.

"There's a million people around me and not one person said hi to another, it's crazy," he said. "I'd rather know my neighbour."

Jones said he didn't consider the selling feature or an overarching meaning to his latest album, whichhe'll release in pieces.

"I'll still never leave the North. This music is still inspired by us and our way of life and that's how we're going to keep it," he said.

"Though our story is hard to hear sometimes, it's ours."

Jones saidhegraduated from the environmental and natural resources technology program at Aurora College in Fort Smith a feathe didn't realize he was capable of.

He then spent the summer fire fighting and nowhe has a position as a lands co-ordinator for the Smith's LandingFirst Nation.

"That was an incredible honour," he said. "I feel like a lucky person."