“Originally I wanted to make a project dedicated to SEGA,” KILLY tells Apple Music, referring to his late friend and frequent collaborator. “I really wanted to take my time with it, because that's what that subject deserves, and that's what he deserves.” And while the Toronto native’s K3 is not the record he started out making, it nonetheless exists with that spirit in mind. The third volume of the “Killamonjaro” hitmaker’s series features his fellow SSC rapper posthumously on “LOOK AT WHAT WE STARTED,” and addresses his personal pain more directly on closer “Mind.” Containing new songs and unreleased tracks recorded in previous years, K3 gives KILLY’s fans a follow-up to 2022’s Crazy Life of Sin well worth their time, no matter how long they’ve been rocking with him. “Every artist has their whole life to make their first project,” he says. “I'm always trying to capture that feeling that gave me, creatively or inspiration-wise.” Read more about K3 below—in his own words. “LOOK AT WHAT WE STARTED” “Me and SEGA, we started in music together, this journey of trying to accomplish our dreams. That was—since we were kids—something we did collectively. Now that's my life, my job. It feels almost like I'm missing half, with him passing away. It’s like a big portion and a big part of my life, essentially, because he was my best friend. I felt like it would be fitting as an intro for all those reasons combined.” “Same Energy” “I was doing a collaborative album with Boi-1da, but that's up in the air right now so I released it on this. The song is mainly just about: Keep that same energy, that same hustle, that same grind, that same diligence. I'm talking about maintaining that and keeping that regardless of the lifestyle changes, the monetary changes, everything. I'm not sure about other artists, but a lot of what fuels me is pain and life experience, trauma, and a lot of the negatives in life—or in my life, at least. ‘Same Energy’ talks a lot about that.” “Top Down” “This is a song that I wrote when I was feeling myself. I recorded this in Toronto. We've been seeing a lot of our favorite artists die or get injured within their home city. It's always where they're from. So on the song I'm being braggadocious and talking about how I'm doing everything I'm doing, but then also riding through the city just with my top down.” “Cut Em Off” “I was really trying to float over the beat. I talk about people that did me wrong in the past. The song actually used to be longer; it used to be three verses. I cut it down to one verse now, just because I was just going in on it, and I think it's better this way. When I'm recording, I find the cadence, I find the flow, even just by hums. On a song like ‘Cut Em Off,’ I'm for sure punching in. It will always start with gibberish, mumble flows. Then, once I find that, I can just plug the words in.” “Addicting” “I made it a long time ago, I believe in 2020 or maybe even 2019. I would call it a sonic depiction of the trials and tribulations of being a successful artist. I’m talking about the fast life. I'm talking about how it's easy to get caught up. Fast life is addicting. It was also fresh to me, my experience of what I was going through. But for the listener, I still feel like it's refreshing and it's new. Everyone can relate to that in their type of way.” “No Saving” “‘No Saving’ is similar to ‘Addicting.’ I actually recorded them around the same time. It's the same theme. I’m talking about how deep that I've gotten into this lifestyle, this fast life I was talking about on ‘Addicting.’ I’m trying to remain unfazed while maneuvering through what was going on in my life as an artist—and as an artist that was blowing up too.” “Mind” “The first time I recorded after he passed away, that was the song I recorded. It starts off with me saying I'm not able to celebrate because it doesn't feel the same, which is still true to this day. Every highlight and good moment of the consequence of music and this journey is always matched with a thought of SEGA. Without us being together all those times, us grinding those times, there would be no anything. That's something that I think will stay with me for a long time.”