Kyler Wilkins ('09)

Musician, Performer and Educator

Born and raised in Ann Arbor to a musical family, Kyler began his musical journey at a young age by playing violin. Being the youngest of five with all of his other siblings involved in music in one way or another, it was a natural happenstance that he followed in the family’s musical footsteps. He attended RSSAA from 1999-2006 where he enjoyed the integration of music in Waldorf education through the constant practice of learning and performing many different kinds of choral music as well as playing multiple instruments.  

By 10th grade Kyler had discovered a cappella choirs, which were unlike the choirs at Steiner, and had joined one himself. From skills he learned and practiced in that first group and upon entering Michigan State University where he studied computer engineering, Kyler auditioned and got into a MSU a cappella group called State of Fifths. He served for 3 years as a co-music director and won ICCA (International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella) awards for arranging, beatboxing, and choreography. This furthered Kyler’s interest “to create and explore the human voice.”  

Upon leaving State of Fifths and feeling frustrated by the constraints of only having one voice and a guitar and being unable to bring to life the harmonies and expressive percussion that were living instead his head, Kyler purchased a BOSS RC-505 Loop Station. The loop station allowed Kyler to “release all the sounds I wanted to hear in an instant and then have them build on one another like I could with [a] room full of versatile singers.” He states that “It’s the art of leaving yourself behind to create something more beautiful in how it relates to what was there before.” Soon after he got his looping station, Kyler performed for a group of friends in a living room and Ki5 was born.  

Since April 2015 Kyler has been continually improving both his live and recorded looping styles and techniques. He performs at Southeast Michigan music venues, weddings, and schools (including at RSSAA for the High School’s Michaelmas celebrations). Kyler also is on staff at Neutral Zone, an Ann Arbor teen center. There he teaches some of the music-based programs Neutral Zone offers teens for free. He states that “one of [his] favorite things [he] gets to do now as Ki5 [is to] be in a classroom, showing young people what they didn’t know was possible,” and that his goal is for his “music to go further and enhance other art forms.” Attending RSSAA gave Kyler “an appreciation for art in all its forms from an early age,” and the opportunity “to witness a wide variety of skilled individuals who had a passion for sharing what they knew with young people.”  

For more about Kyler Wilkins aka Ki5 check out his website and find him as ki5loops on various social media and music streaming platforms.