By RON FANFAIR
Musicians derive inspiration for their work in different ways.
For Keysha Freshh, the loss of two close friends – one of whom was tragically killed in an accident in Florida – and the break-up with a boyfriend because of long distance are the motivation behind her second album, ‘Pretty Boys Break My Heart’.
“It is about some of the heartbreak I have gone through in my life,” she said. “It has to do with relationships and losing very close friends who were young and had a lot to offer. Many can relate to the album’s lyrics because the underlying theme is grit and perseverance. I was thinking about it for a while to express myself.”
The 12-track album features several notable Canadian musicians, including Ray Robinson and Maestro Fresh Wes, the first Canadian hip-hop artiste inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame last March.
This is Keysha Freshh’s second album. The seven-track ‘Field Trip’ was released on her 26th birthday in the summer of 2019.
The Canadian hip-hop artiste was a member of ‘The Sorority’ which emerged after an all-female cypher, which is a freestyle jam session, on International Women’s Day in 2016 when a video of their spontaneous collaboration went viral with thousands of hits.
The Juno Award nominee is a guest lecturer at Seneca College where she completed the Independent Music Program in 2012.
Last April, Keysha Freshh assumed the position of Chair of Seneca’s Independent Music Production & Independent Songwriting & Performance Committee.
“We want the students to get the best out of the program,” she said. “We will look at how we can improve the program and new board members with fresh and innovative ideas will be brought on board to add value.”
More than just performing, Keysha Freshh enjoys teaching the history of hip-hop.
“For me, knowledge is the most important thing about any practice you are involved in,” she said. “As a hip-hop lover, I spent a lot of time reading books and researching the music genre. When you enter certain rooms, you should be able to have conversations based on facts to gain the respect of those who are well-versed in the subject matter.”
Keysha Freshh created ‘Bridging the Gap: The History of Hip-Hop Then & Now’ and ‘The Art of Songwriting in Hip-Hop’.
She taught the programs at the East Scarborough Boys & Girls Club where she also co-ordinated music productions and writing programs for young people, and at Seneca, Toronto Metropolitan University and Trinity University in Hartford, Connecticut.
“Teaching this program in some spaces allows me to interact with a wider range of artistes,” Keysha Freshh said. “Some may be acoustic or rock artistes with no interest in hip hop. After participating in the program, they will get a sense of how similar genres can be if you take the time to learn about something outside your comfort zone.”
What makes hip-hop so appealing?
“The way you can express yourself,” she said. “It is such a free form of expression. I am not a top-class singer and I don’t play musical instruments. This is my way of expressing myself with the tools I have. It allows me to expand my vocabulary by learning new words that I can use in my songs.”
At age five, Keysha Freshh penned her first song which was published in some community newspapers.
The former Toronto Children’s Choir (TC3) member sung at cultural shows across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and performed the Canadian anthem at several community events.
With the encouragement of Canadian hip-hop and R&B producer T-Minus, Keysha Freshh’s first full-length rap song, ‘Pardon My Swag’, was released in August 2008 (ironically, eight is Keysha’s favourite number).
The following year, the artiste – who enjoys writing – penned several songs and, in 2010, released her first single, ‘Hollywood Fresh’ which received significant airplay on commercial radio stations.
A few months later, the video and remix for ‘Hollywood Fresh’ were released, both of which featured a cameo and verse from popular American hip-hop artiste Mims.
Another single, ‘Make it Look Easy’, featuring Bassline & JB (a project put together by P-Reign) was instantly picked up by commercial radio stations, making her one of the youngest Canadian female artistes to have three songs in 12 months on the airwaves.
In addition to Maestro Fresh Wes, Ray Robinson and Mims, Keysha Freshh has collaborated with P-Reign, Darryl Riley, The Reeza Brothers and Doug E Fresh who is considered the pioneer of 20th-century American Beatboxing.
“It was such a privilege to sit in Doug E Fresh’s studio and listen to him and Hank Shocklee talk for hours about what it was like coming up in the music scene in the 80s and 90s,” Keysha Freshh said. “I was still very young and I knew my place was to listen and soak everything up from these two hip-hop heavyweights.”
The name Keysha Freshh was conceived in Doug E Fresh’s Harlem studio.
“When I met him for the first time, he said ‘Keysha Freshh’ and I loved it,” she said. “We joked about it. After I did my video shoot and returned to his studio, he was doing some drops for a radio station to promote the song and he again said ‘Keysha Freshh’ on the drops. At that moment, I said that will be my stage name.”
She also teamed up with Saukrates and DJ Nana on ‘Bessie’ which addressed gun violence plaguing Toronto and other major cities.
Some of Keysha Freshh’s favourite music artistes are the late Bob Marley and Maestro Fresh Wes who is considered ‘The Godfather of Canadian Hip Hop’.
“I appreciate Bob’s artistry and prophecy,” she said. “When it comes to Maestro, his work ethic is unbelievable. Even at this stage of his career, he outworks all of us. He is also really good at time management and he is the artiste that reached back and pulled me up. It is such a privilege to be in his company and converse with him.”
She collaborated with Maestro Fresh Wes on ‘The Young Maestro Presents’ series for which he was nominated for Junos.
In 2019, Keysha Freshh was among seven Durham Catholic School graduates honoured with Distinguished Awards. She graduated from Archbishop Denis O’Connor Catholic (DOC) High School in Ajax in 2011.
Previous winners include Etalk senior correspondent Traci Melchor who is also a DOC graduate.
