Meet Singapore R&B singer Keyana, who is full of soul and fire

She was only 17 when she released her first single, Save It, and has gone on to release other tender, soulful hits like Scorpio, Afterglow, and Trade My Heart, the latter recorded with prominent local musician Charlie Lim. Her first album, Her Purple Room, is set to drop this August. But she never would have found herself on the path of a musician if it weren’t for her first love — dance.

“Dance created me. It’s fundamental to my identity and it’s the reason I am creative today,” she says, sharing how her mother enrolled her in ballet, tap, and jazz classes when she was three. “Anyone who met me could tell I loved moving, but I always knew ballet wasn’t my thing. In primary school I met a dance teacher who suggested I try hip- hop. When I started, I felt that this was it. It was second nature to me and that formed my love of music.”

Modelling led her to a producer who wanted her to dance in one of his music videos. Instead of paying her in cash, she asked if he could help her produce her first single instead.

Keyana’s voice, silky smooth and dripping with rhythmic honey, caught the attention of jazz and Mandopop singer Joanna Dong, who introduced her to the Foundation for the Arts & Social Enterprise.

The foundation’s mission is to propel up-and-coming artists to international recognition by connecting them with industry players and change-makers. It has worked with headlining names, such as Charlie Lim, Aisyah Aziz, Joanna Dong, and Shigga Shay. As a result of this access, Keyana, already performing in local events, opened for LA-based soul jazz trio Moonchild in Singapore last year.

Says Foundation for the Arts & Social Enterprise founder director Michael Tay: “Keyana’s love and passion for music comes through clearly. She is strongly invested in carving out a path as an artiste. These attributes, combined with her sense of herself, led us to support her. We believe she has the ability to go very far.”

Despite the support, Keyana has worked hard to get her music out there, judiciously saving up for three years to produce Her Purple Room. “This album is more descriptive and personal compared to my previous releases. I used to write about things that pained me, but I didn’t want to be remembered as the girl who only sings about heartbreak,” she says. “I didn’t just want to fixate on the pain in my life. I wanted to be seen as a whole.”

However, it has been difficult for people to see past her atypical appearance. “I feel Chinese but I don’t look it, so it’s been a journey of trying to find myself in other people,” she shares, revealing how her father leaving the family when she was little slowed down the process of gaining confidence in her looks.

It was also the reason why her mother encouraged her to try modelling. “I didn’t see what she saw in me for a very long time, but I’m glad she did, and it’s the reason I’m doing well in my life now.”

Athirah Annissa

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Despite Singapore’s multiculturalism, Keyana was bullied and called names as a child. “I think I’ve given a lot of different answers in the past when people asked me how I got past it, but I realised that there is no other way to live. I can’t get up every day, look in the mirror, and tell myself that I don’t belong or that I’m not ‘correct’. I just cannot do that.”

Her insecurities didn’t vanish right away, even after she found success in her musical career. “I feel so connected to Afro culture even though I’m not African-American, nor have I been to Africa.

“I felt weird about it at first, like I needed to justify why I chose hip-hop and R&B as my genres,” she reveals. “But I realised that I can just be comfortable with things that come naturally to me.

“Just do the things you like, lah, or you’re never going to be happy.”