\n\t\u201cMy family lived in an American Idol<\/em> household,\u201d says Amanda Ibanez, who goes by Kiddo\u00a0A.I.; specifically, Adam Lambert was the contestant who inspired her to pursue music. \u201cI would get in front of the TV and sing and my brothers would make fun of me.\u201d But her mother believed in her and encouraged her to get involved with a local church youth group, in which she would write songs and perform. The Miami native, now 28, began self-releasing her music as a teenager, but calls her career a \u201creally slow climb.\u201d A decade in, after meeting hit-maker JKash (Charlie Puth, Morgan Wallen), she started connecting with Los Angeles-based songwriters \u2014 and even crossed paths with Max Martin at one point.<\/p>\n \n\tKiddo\u2019s \u201czero to 100\u201d moment came three years ago, when she worked with Selena Gomez on Rema\u2019s \u201cCalm Down\u201d remix, which hit No.\u00a03 on the Billboard Hot\u00a0100<\/a>. \u201cI used to watch her as a kid on Wizards of Waverly Place<\/em>, so it was very full circle,\u201d she says. That moment encouraged Kiddo to home in on songwriting for other artists instead of herself \u2014 \u201cIt\u2019s less invasive,\u201d she says with a laugh. Since then, she has worked on a number of pop hits, including several songs on Gomez and Benny Blanco\u2019s collaborative album, I Said I Love You First,<\/em> Le\u00a0Sserafim\u2019s \u201cCrazy\u201d and Tyla\u2019s \u201cBack to You.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n\n
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