Sueco

S&S Presents
Sueco
With support from Jeris Johnson and Port London

Friday, October 16
Doors at 7:00 PM
All ages
The Grand at The Complex

As much as punk suggests a sound, it really embodies an attitude. Sporting signature spectacles under a loose mane of wild long hair, Sueco practically drips attitude. The gold-certified Los Angeles-based singer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist channels the spirit of nineties pop-punk through a 21st-century lens, tapping into the unpredictability of hyperpop, the catharsis of hardcore, and a whole lot of hip-hop finesse.

After generating nearly 1 billion streams and receiving praise from Rolling Stone, NYLON, Alternative Press, Billboard, and OnesToWatch, he encourages everyone to sing and scream along on a series of singles for Atlantic Records.

“I started writing songs, because I needed to know how I felt,” he explains. “However, I pursued music as a career in order to help people similar to how my favorite artists had always helped me.”

Growing up in Pasadena, Sueco experienced music for the first time at church, where his dad served as choir director, played guitar, and sang. After receiving Rock Band one Christmas, he mastered expert-level drums and soon found himself behind the kit at church. He drummed in jazz band and played center snare in marching band at school. Green Day’s American Idiot opened the floodgates of inspiration, and he caught A Day To Remember in concert whenever possible. At 14, he wrote his own songs on guitar. In his primarily Spanish-speaking neighborhood, he received the name “Sueco” (meaning “Swedish” in Spanish), in reference to his heritage. Around the same time, his mom passed away from breast cancer. “It was a hard thing to get through growing up.”

Influenced by DJ Mustard during college, he downloaded Reason and began making beats, eventually rapping over them while sharing original rock compositions on SoundCloud.

“I did a lot of the rap stuff for fun,” he explains. “I was fucking around in the studio, but I was still making punk-inspired tracks the whole time. It just so happened my rap songs blew up first.”

His debut single “Fast” took off in 2019, reaching #1 on TikTok, Spotify’s Viral 50 Global, and Viral 50 US, earning gold status, and attracting Offset and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie for its official remix. After his first full-length project, MISCREANT, he teamed up with Ty Dolla $ign, Wiz Khalifa, and Lil Yachty for “Speed Of Life”; Papa Roach on “Swerve” featuring FEVER 333 and Sueco; and Illenium on “Story Of My Life” featuring Sueco and Trippie Redd.

He later embraced his earliest influences, working with producers and co-writers including John Feldmann and Colin “DOC” Brittain. He released “PRIMADONA,” “SOS” featuring Travis Barker, “Sober/Hungover” featuring Arizona Zervas, and “Paralyzed.” The latter marked his first entry on Billboard and Rolling Stone charts, with 56 million Spotify streams.

“Ever since ‘Fast’ dropped, I knew I wanted to go back to my roots and do more rock-influenced material,” he says. “It was my musical upbringing and where I was going. I wanted to bridge the gap and be everything all at once.”

His lead single “Loser” pairs crunchy palm-muted guitar with a chantable chorus: “I’m such a loser, swear to God I’m the worst.” He says he wanted to write a song for his 15-year-old self and capture the feeling of listening to My Chemical Romance’s “I’m Not Okay (I Promise).”

“Honestly, I hope the music helps you get through whatever you’re going through,” he says. “That’s all I want.”