Steve Kurz’s music career started with a doodle. 

In spring 2020, the singer-songwriter came across a cartoon by artist Bjenny Montero depicting a dog playing an electronic keyboard on the ground, with colorful thought bubbles coming from his head. Thus, Keyboard Dog was born. Quarantined and bored, Kurz spent the long days in his room making music, and then listening to the songs he had made while riding his bike around his neighborhood in Rochester, New York. 

Kurz’s inclination toward music has lasted for as long as he can remember, but his passion was sparked in his sophomore year while watching a guest folk band perform at his high school. He was awestruck and found his passion: he wanted to pursue music for the rest of his life.

Fourth year music industry major Kurz stepped onto Northeastern’s campus in 2019 eager to discover his sound, and his enthusiasm for his music has never wavered. 

His first song, “Cutout Model,” was an assignment for his first-year “Music Recording 2” class. Since then, Kurz has been writing and producing non-stop. Now, at 22 years old, Keyboard Dog has released six more songs on his debut EP, “throw your soul.”

For Kurz, writing songs is his therapy.

“Once I start to write, things kind of unravel. The phrases that come out — I won’t always know what they mean at first — but then once I look back on them, once I’ve given it a little space to breathe, I’ll go back and be like, ‘Oh, that’s what I was talking about,’” Kurz said.

When it came to producing his bandmate Max Morton’s EP, “a few songs,” the process flowed naturally. The two went to Vermont and spent four days bouncing ideas and recording. 

Morton, a third-year music major, emphasized that Kurz understood his music and what it meant to him more than anyone — Kurz is the only person that Morton would trust to bring his songs to life. 

“He loves music on a very personal level and it shines through in his music. It’s more than just writing a song for him,” Morton said. “When he’s working on someone else’s music, he puts himself in that place with that other person.”

Several friends, including his longtime mentor and friend, fifth-year physics and philosophy combined major Justin Vega, noted his unique ability to understand exactly what an unfinished song needs and how to get it there. His attentiveness to emotions translates clearly in the lyrics that he writes.

Kurz released his song “amsterdam” Feb. 18, 2022. True to his style, “amsterdam” embraces a folky, indie-rock sound. The song hit 500,000 streams on Spotify less than a year later and was featured on Spotify’s “Ultimate Indie” playlist. To Kurz, though, these milestones are not goals that he has set for his career, but are merely accessories to it. 

At his core, he is passionate about maintaining the integrity of his music and creating things he loves. Indeed, as a listener, he seeks to find music he identifies with to share it with friends. The idea that people would do the same with his music is a simultaneously weird and wonderful feeling for him. Moreover, Kurz cited his live shows as the most gratifying element of his journey as a musician.

“One thing that always gets me is when we’re playing live shows and people are singing along. It’s one thing to see a number of streams go up, but it feels like a whole other thing to see that person in front of you singing and resonating with it. And I’m like, ‘Oh my god — you’re real.’ It’s really surreal every time,” Kurz said.

His friends and colleagues show their support for his career through streaming his music and attending these shows. 

“I play his stuff for everyone all the time. Anytime anybody talks about him, I’m like, ‘I know him. I sang with him.’ He’s just my favorite person in the entire world,” said his friend Natalie Walsh, a third-year mechanical engineering and design major.

Kurz is graduating in the spring, but has no intention of moving away. He plans to stay in the Boston area, focusing on his next big project, as his fans anticipate new music. Loyal Keyboard Dog fans can continue to support Kurz by streaming his EP on Spotify or going to see his shows at local venues around Boston.