Dec 2022 – Feb 2023
Nairobi, Kenya
Kenyan born and raised Kash Kaaria is an emerging artist based in Nairobi. She has been involved in music on a professional basis for around 4 years.
While influenced by a number of music genres her sound is all her own. Kash has a number of strings to her bow. Aside from previously producing a highly respected fashion blog, she is also a graduate in biotechnology.
AGN; How did your stage name come about?
KK; Kash is a nickname that was given to me by my father. It is derived from my first name. In our language it denotes a person who has many cows and signifies they are
hardworking.
AGN; When did you start your musical journey?
KK; I started out when I was a teenager around 2011/2012 with some of my school mates.
We formed our own rock music group called ‘The Towels’. The name came about because we used to sing in the showers at school and after we had finished showering we would still continue singing while we were drying off with our towels, hence the name.
AGN; Is rock music still something you are into?
KK; Yes. I still retain aspects of rock in some of my songs.
AGN; What musical styles are big in Kenya at present?
KK; There are a number of styles that are popular. Genge Tone is one such style. It is a mix of Swahili and Sheng (a local slang); it has hip hop and dance hall influences. Afrobeats, Rumba and Afro pop are also big here as well as RnB.
AGN; What message do you wish to convey through your music and the image you portray?
KK; My music is heavy on affirmation. I want my music to make people feel confident and empowered. Modesty is very important to me. There are specific values that were instilled in me through my upbringing and I like to convey this through my music and image.
While some styles of portraying one’s image may garner a lot of attention, if they are what I would consider to be over the top, I will not adopt such an approach. Aside from how I feel about myself in relation to the type of person I wish to be, I would also be conscious of what my parents or gran and other friends and family would think. In any case, if you are not modest in the way you conduct yourself you won’t get corporate work. This market segment is also important to me.
AGN; What are the biggest challenges you find in the music business?
KK; It galls me that male artists tend to be paid more. It is not clear why that is still the case or how greater parity can be achieved.
AGN; How do you feel about Kenyan music?
KK; It frustrates me that music from my country and indeed my region is not gaining as much traction internationally as I would like. West Africa has ‘Afrobeats’, North Africa has Chabbi/Shabbi and South Africa has Amapiano. Kenya and for that matter East Africa doesn’t really have anything comparable as yet.
AGN; How do you go about writing your songs?
KK; Up to now I have always written the lyrics for my songs. In terms of creating the backing music, there are a number of approaches.
I have basic piano playing skills and sometimes I put chords together on the piano that will work well with the song’s melody. I can then give this to my pianist and/or producer to refine, at other times my producer will play some chords and I will vibe off of that to create a melody and some lyrics. I have a mini studio at home and I use Logic Pro to song write and record demos.
AGN; You involved in a number of things i.e. music, fashion, biotechnology. Do you envisage having a mainstay?
KK; I want music to be my main thing. In the next 10 years I would like to have my own record label. Having said that, I still intend to be involved in other things. I am passionate about biotechnology and fashion. I would also like to have my own beauty product line and fashion label in future.
AGN; How important is family to you?
KK; Family is super important to me. They were my first fans and supported me before anyone else knew of me. I really value family time.
AGN; What hobbies do you have?
KK; I like to dance and write. My writing interests encompass creative writing such as poetry through to content creation. I also love to travel. So far I have been to Canada, Italy, Ethiopia, Uganda and Dubai. There are many more countries I want to visit.
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Kash Kaaria, check out her groovy Afro sound on Spotify or Youtube. You won’t be disappointed!
Previous ‘Arts View’ interviews are available here; archive
Editor:
Ri Iyovwaye
© 2022 All rights reserved
on behalf of African Global Networks (AGN) – Dec 2022