Wyles Daniel
Los Angeles has always been a city built on reinvention, a place where artists arrive carrying their past while chasing something larger. Dylan Baron fits naturally into that lineage. The New Zealand born, Australia raised artist, now based in LA, has just released his long-awaited single and music video, “All About Us,” a deeply personal track that doubles as a mission statement for where he’s been and where he’s headed.
The single and music video, “What About Us,” is not just another release. It’s a fully self-contained world. Baron wrote, produced, performed, mixed, and mastered the song himself, a level of creative control that reflects his wider artistic vision. Nothing about it feels outsourced or accidental.
Sonically, “What About Us” sits at the intersection of hip-hop and R&B, drifting into what many would call Alternative R&B or Alternative Hip-Hop. The production is atmospheric and understated, allowing space for the story to breathe. It’s music designed for late-night drives through the city, reflective but restless.
At its core, the song is an origin story. Baron repeatedly grounds the track in his roots with the line “Boy from the south side, Auckland city,” and the mantra “The ’09,” Auckland’s area code, which acts almost like a compass throughout the record. It’s the sound of someone who hasn’t forgotten where he came from, even as he looks beyond it.
Lyrically, Baron explores the cost of ambition. “What About Us” wrestles with the emotional fallout that comes from chasing success across borders, including the strain of distance, missed moments, and unresolved feelings. There’s a clear sense of guilt woven into the narrative, which feels directed at someone specific. The tension between becoming something bigger and holding onto love is never neatly resolved, and that ambiguity is part of what makes the track hit.
That push and pull resonates strongly in Los Angeles, a city filled with transplants navigating similar trade-offs.
Visually, Baron is just as hands-on. He’s a multidisciplinary creator whose work extends beyond his own releases, directing music videos, producing visualizers, and developing visual media for other artists as part of their official creative output.
In 2025, Baron worked in media production at two-time Grammy–nominated Steve Aoki’s Dim Mak Records, contributing as a director and visual creator on official content for artists including Ookay, Cheyenne Giles, RayRay, Z3LLA, Henry Fong, and NIIKO X SWAE. His work supported artist branding, promotional campaigns, and performance-related media for one of Los Angeles’ most influential electronic and crossover labels.
His catalog already reflects a steady evolution, with previous EPs like Haere Ra, Aotearoa, and K&D laying the groundwork for his current sound. Each project feels like a chapter rather than a detour.
Dylan Baron occupies a space that’s increasingly rare, an artist who blurs genre lines without chasing trends. His music moves between alternative rap, R&B, and even house influences, pairing introspective storytelling with left-of-center, dance-ready production. More importantly, he’s part of a new wave of self-made artists who treat visuals and sound as equal parts of the same vision.
With “What About Us,” Dylan Baron doesn’t just introduce a new single. He makes his case. From south Auckland to Los Angeles, it’s the sound of an artist turning distance, ambition, and emotional conflict into something tangible. And in a city that thrives on stories of becoming, that honesty feels right at home.