New York, NY (Top40 Charts) keshi - the
Houston alternative newcomer who already has one billion plus streams under his belt and is the rising star to watch - releases "SOMEBODY," the first single and music video from his upcoming, debut studio album. Out today via Island Records/Universal Music, "SOMEBODY" is an accumulation of what makes keshi a special, generational artist. The perfect equilibrium between lo-fi and pop, with a touch of 832, the track is powered by layers of keshi harmonies, but is also a new venture into edgier territories. "With 'SOMEBODY' and the upcoming album as a whole, I felt like it was time to shift the tone to something more well rounded," keshi said. "It all exudes a newfound confidence that I think fans will be refreshed to hear and see in all the new videos." Co-produced with Elie Rizk, "SOMEBODY" comes a day before the one year anniversary of keshi's latest project, always.
Monikered as keshi (stylized), a phonetic play on his name, Casey Luong broke into the scene with his 2018 project, The Reaper, earning early recognition for shaping the lo-fi discourse that's flanking pop music. "keshi is now part of a peer group consisting of
Flying Lotus and Joji and has proven to be a key voice in the internet-led genre," PAPER declared, while VICE said, "the rawness that underpins keshi's sound keeps fans coming back for more." Though the alternative artist from Houston,
Texas first made waves in the lofi-hip hop/study beats community, his powerful songwriting and vocal tone quickly gained him a mainstream following.
With over a billion listens worldwide, keshi has gone on to become a streaming force with his acclaimed trilogy of EPs - Skeletons (2019), Bandaids (2020), and Always (2020). A self-reliant artist, keshi wrote, produced, engineered and played all the instrumentation on the projects, which when pieced together, the names of the three EPs describes the cycle of a relationship. His initial success includes making his Billboard debut when skeletons hit #59 on the Top Album Sales chart, and generating 1M plus streams on Spotify in 24 hours for "drunk," a single off of always. Most recently, keshi appeared on the 88rising-curated Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings: The Album for his song "War With Heaven."
It adds to a growingly impressive resume that includes getting co-signs by BTS members Jungkook and RM on their personal Spotify playlists, collaborating with producer
Madeon on "beside you" and with DAY's Jae on "Pillows," and serving as an official Fender brand partner. Earlier this summer, keshi was also YSL's special guest at their Venice show and currently, he is on a cross country tour with LANY. With no signs of winding down, keshi is laser focused on the mark he wants to leave behind. In past interviews, keshi has stated he wants to be remembered as an artist. And while he has high expectations for himself at 26, he is confident that his upcoming studio album will have a longer shelf life.
"I think the biggest goal for me right now is to create a record that will outlast me," keshi says. "I always talk about it as an opus record. I see Blonde as an opus record. I see Continuum as an opus record. I feel like I'm in a constant search to make something on that sort of scale. I strive for that."
