A Crash Course in the Longevity of Modern R&B Icon Kehlani
by Amaya Graham
A singer, dancer, activist, director and songwriter, Oakland native Kehlani has worn many hats and graced the music industry with her talents for years. Although she stepped into the spotlight by competing on Season 6 of America's Got Talent as a member of Poplyfe, Kehlani's stardom rose with her first mixtape in 2014, Cloud 19, and propelled thanks to her second mixtape, You Should Be Here.
In the near decade since she began performing as a solo artist, she has sustained an impressive career, constantly innovating and creating eclectic R&B music through each single, album and mixtape. With her fourth studio album, Crash, landing for public consumption a few months before Cloud 19's 10th anniversary, it is only right to recount highlights of this multi-talented R&B sensation's immaculate career.
(Photo credit: Israel Riqueros)
Soundcloud Days
Similar to many of her peers, Kehlani's solo career began through Soundcloud, with her 2013 debut single, "ANTISUMMERLUV," commencing her journey. To this day, her Soundcloud account is active, with her entire discography available for fans to consume.
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On Cloud 19
The popularity Kehlani has today began with Cloud 19, an independently released mixtape she created nearly a decade ago. Although Cloud 19 will be hitting its 10th anniversary on Aug. 26, the seven songs have a sense of timelessness, as they cover relatable topics including finding love, self-discovery and confidence.
'The Way'
The You Should Be Here era of Kehlani's career gifted her with one of her most successful songs to date, "The Way," with Chance The Rapper. The single has been certified platinum with over one million sales, and its music video has amassed over 90 million views, making it the most-viewed music video from You Should Be Here.
Grammy Accolades
It did not take long for the Grammys committee to recognize Kehlani's star power. Before officially releasing an album, Kehlani's second mixtape, You Should Be Here, received a Grammy nomination for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. The singer expressed gratitude and shock at being nominated for music's most prestigious award so early in her career in a 2015 interview with FADER. A few years later, she garnered another GRAMMY nomination, this time for Best R&B Performance for her 2016 hit, "Distraction."
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Suicide Squad Soundtrack Appearance
Placing a song on the soundtrack for a top 10 box office hit is no easy feat, but one Kehlani did successfully. Kehlani's first RIAA-certified platinum hit came thanks to her song on the 2016 Suicide Squad soundtrack, "Gangsta." The song is also featured on the deluxe edition of Kehlani's debut album, SweetSexySavage.
A SweetSexySavage Distraction
As her career continued to catapult, Kehlani perfectly timed the release of her 2017 debut album SweetSexySavage, attaining multiple commercially successful platinum-selling anthems, including "CRZY" and "Distraction." With SweetSexySavage, Kehlani exemplified three sides of herself, exuding sweetness on songs like "Hold Me By The Heart" and "Escape," sexiness on tracks such as "Undercover" and "Distraction" and savage energy with "Do U Dirty" and "CRZY."
While We Wait
Shifting back into her mixtape roots, Kehlani chose to release a project, appropriately titled While We Wait, in 2019 during her pregnancy with her daughter, Adeya. During that time, fans were eager for the next album, and although they did not receive the album until the following year, Kehlani delivered high-quality R&B jams, with "Nights Like This" featuring Ty Dolla $ign becoming a fan favorite.
Directing Visionary
In 2020, Kehlani established her company, Honey Shot Productions, and made her directing debut. Through Honey Shot Productions, Kehlani has directed multiple music videos, including the visuals for her 2020 sophomore album, It Was Good Until It Wasn't, and the video for her 2021 collaboration with Kiana Ledé, "Ur Best Friend."
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It Was Live Until It Wasn't
In a time when in-person concerts took a pause, it was refreshing to see artists create innovative virtual alternatives to giving fans the live music experience during the global pandemic. Unable to hit the road in 2020 to perform songs from one of her highest-streamed projects to date, Kehlani and her all-female band and dancers cultivated a virtual live music experience, It Was Live Until It Wasn't, giving captivating performances of songs like "Water," "Toxic," "Can You Blame Me" and more.
Coasting the Blue Water Road
After years in the music industry, Kehlani continually finds ways to keep her music innovative and fresh. Her critically acclaimed 2022 masterpiece, Blue Water Road, captures this in many ways, representing a serene time in her life while remaining grounded in her R&B background.
Connecting Music to Advocacy
Throughout her career, Kehlani has been adamant about using her platform to advocate for social causes she is passionate about, including human rights, equality for women, LGBTQ+ rights and more. Some campaigns she has contributed toward include donating proceeds from limited edition T-shirts for her latest single, "Next 2 U," to assist Palestine, Congo and Sudan, partnering with HeadCount and Up to Us to encourage voting through a concert ticketing raffle and performing at her late friend and rapper Lexii Alijai's benefit concert to pay tribute to Alijai and raise money for a recording arts scholarship fund.
Can't get enough of the artist? Click HERE for 25 stunning Kehlani lyrics to us as your next Instagram caption.