Kes (band)

In 2006, Kes launched their debut album titled Three Baldheads and a Dread (a reference to the hairstyles of the band members). This album featured tracks such as "Stay with Me" and "Heads High". "Stay with Me" retained the number one position on the Toronto website charts for nine straight weeks, a new record for the band. The track, "The Calling" was featured on the soundtrack for the EA Sports FIFA 2006 Edition.[8]

Kes released their second album, Lion, in 2007. The title song was popular among fans due to its inspiring and motivational lyrics. "My Land" a collaboration with Nadia Batson was a hit during the carnival season that year. "My Land" placed Kes and Nadia second in the Trinidad and Tobago International Soca Monarch Competition. Kes released other tracks such as "Our Prayer", and reggae-influenced songs "Limin" and "Bigger Brighter Day" from this album which received heavy rotation on local radio stations. Later in 2007, Kes released tracks that were more diverse, such as "Come a Little Closer" which also dominated local radio stations. In 2008, Kes' carnival releases included "Right Dey" and "De Remedy". Kes also released their music video for the single "Lion" in May. Bandleader Kees Dieffenthaller also composed with songwriter Desmond Child, a song on American Idol alumAce Young's 2008 studio album.

Bandleader Kees Dieffenthaller composed with noted songwriter Desmond Child, a song on American Idol a lumAce Young's 2008 studio album.

The band's third album, On In 5, was released on 10 February 2009. On In 5 featured a mix of new and old releases as well as live performances. In 2010, the band's song "Let Me Know" was selected by Six Flags and was played throughout their amusement parks. "Let Me Know" was also chosen by American Airlines and was played during their programmes. In this year, Kes performed live on BBC World Channel. This was a significant achievement for the band as the programme was viewed by millions worldwide. The band acquired international attention and several awards including the USA 4 Real "Most Promising Artist" Award for their song "Stalker", a track released from On In 5.

In 2011, Kes continued to show growth with the release of their fourth album Wotless. The album's title song was one of the most popular during Trinidad and Tobago's 2011 carnival season as well as many other carnivals in the Caribbean. "Wotless" was created from a collaboration between Kes and Trinidadian-born singer/songwriter/producer Kerwin Dubios. Kees won the International Groovy Soca Monarch competition that year with "Wotless", following a performance on Carnival Friday (Fantastic Friday) at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Trinidad.

Kees and Tessanne Chin Perform at SOBs

"Wotless" was also nominated for a BET Soul Train Music Award in 2011. "Wotless" maintained a steady position on the iTunes world charts in 2011 reaching number six on the chart. In September of that year, Kes was featured on Fox5 Good Day New York making them the first Caribbean band to perform on their programme. The Wotless album produced many favourites during the carnival season such as "Where Yuh From" (an anthem piece promoting national pride) produced by Kes and Madmen Productions, "Ah Ting" featuring Kerwin Dubios and "Come Gyal" which was produced by Kes and 1st Klase Productions.

Kes released their fifth album, Stereotype, in August 2011. Stereotype was an experimental album which showcased the band's versatility. Stereotype is a combination of Caribbean rhythms, pop music and R&B. Featured tracks on the album include "Let me Know", "Take me Away" and "Loving You", a collaboration between Kes and Jamaican singer, winner of The Voice, Tessanne Chin. The album was produced alongside the Madmen Production team. The music video for "Take Me Away" was selected as a finalist in the International Song Writing Competition. In 2012, Kes collaborated with Snoop Dogg on the remix of their carnival release "Stress Away" (produced by Kes and 1st Klase). The single was well received and marked new territory for Kes. The band also began raising the bar locally with respect to music videos, with the release of the video for "Stress Away" (original version) in February 2012. Kes released their sixth album entitled Wired in February 2012, which included tracks such as "Precision Wine" "Stress Away" and "Coming Over" which were heavily rotated on local radio stations.

The music video for "Stress Away" was selected to appear in the 2013 BBC Music Video Festival. In 2013, the band released the well-received track "Tuesday on the Rocks" off the Bambino Musik's "Gyall Season Riddim". The groovy, pop-reggae inspired track remains one of the band's more popular songs, and has inspired the band's annual concert "Tuesday on the Rocks", which is held on the Tuesday before Trinidad and Tobago Carnival. The concert began in 2014 and continues to grow every year. The show features a cast of popular international and regional acts, young, up-and-coming artists, as well as local favourites.

2014 ushered in another hit for the band, by way of the Ricky Blaze-produced track "Endless Summer" on the "Uptown Julie Riddim". The Fader described "Endless Summer" as an easy-on-the-ear, yet heavy-on-the-rum soca music tune. The band collaborated with noted photographer and film director, Johnathan Mannion for the music video, which also features cameo appearances by Anya Ayoung Chee, winner of Project Runway, season nine and Major Lazer member, Jillionaire. In that year Kes, collaborated with Jamaican reggae singer Gyptian, on a track entitled "Wet Fete" which was featured on Gyptian's album, Sex Love & Reggae. Kees appeared alongside Gyptian for the music video of "Wet Fete" which was filmed in Tobago.

Carnival, proved to be another successful year for Kes, as their music was well-received locally and throughout the Caribbean. Tracks such as "Wine up", "Incredible", "How We Like it" and "Ramp Up" were in heavy rotation on local radio stations. 2017 also saw two major collaborations between Kes and Kernal Roberts on the track entitled "Shake", and "Workout" which featured Nailah Blackman. "Workout", a mixture of Soca music and Afrobeat quickly became one of the more popular songs coming out of Trinidad and Tobago Carnival 2017, generating over 3,000,000 views on YouTube. During his performance at "Tribe Ice" (Fete), Kees invited Jamaican Olympic Games gold medalist Usain Bolt on stage side during his segment with Kernal Roberts. This caused a buzz in the international community as video footage of this event was featured on popular gossip blogs.

The Florida Caribbean Students Association featured Kees as their keynote speaker at the 43rd annual Leadership Conference, which was held at the University of Florida in March 2017. Kees delivered his remarks on his life's work in music and business, and served as a guest judge at the FCSA annual Banquet and Miss FCSA Pageant.

Another artist pairing occurred at the Decibel Entertainment Exposition in Trinidad in May 2017. Will Smith, who was a featured speaker at the event, made a surprise appearance during Kes' performance. Will performed a medley of his hit songs while accompanied by Kes.