Willow Kayne

Willow Katherine Kayne is a British singer. She won an Ivor Novello Rising Star Award in 2021. She is a member of Loud LDN.

Willow Katherine Kayne
Birth nameWillow Katherine Kayne
BornBristol
Occupation(s)Musician
Years active2020–present
Member ofLoud LDN
Websitehttp://www.willowkayne.com

Early life

Willow Katherine Kayne[1] was born to Toploader's Dancing in the Moonlight.[2] Her sister makes classical music,[3] and her mother, Emma, was a teaching assistant at St Patrick's Catholic Primary School in Corsham,[4] who had previously produced music videos by The Prodigy, Nick Cave,[5] and Erasure.[6] In 2011, the Wiltshire Times noted that a "ten-year-old" Willow and a classmate had addressed Wiltshire Council, following threats to withdraw the subsidised bus she was travelling to St. Patrick's from; the same article noted that she travelled there "from Melksham".[4] She also attended Wiltshire College & University Centre.[7]

When she was fifteen, she temporarily lost the sight in her left eye, and permanently in her right;[8] she had contracted acanthamoeba, which ate three out of four layers of her cornea.[7] At the time, she was interested in a career in graphics, but changed course after listening to her favourite songs while blind and hearing things she had not heard before.[8] She started making music in 2018, after receiving a new computer bundled with GarageBand; she would later make music with a torrented version of Logic Pro. Early tracks were released on SoundCloud.[3]

Career

2019–2022: Playground Antics

In 2019, she and Kenya Grace made the Top 21 in ISawItFirst,[9] a nationwide search in collaboration with Capital Xtra intended to find new women musicians, winning a music video for "Ctrl Alt Dlt".[10] On 28 April 2021, she released her début single, "Two Seater";[11] the song had been written a year earlier. After being used in a TikTok advert, the song received over 1,000 abusive comments,[8] which Kayne responded to by writing her second single, "I Don't Wanna Know",[12] which she released on 22 July 2021.[13] In September,[3] she won an Ivor Novello Rising Star Award in 2021, along with mentorship from Nile Rodgers,[14] and later that month "Two Seater" turned up on the FIFA 22 soundtrack.[3] On 2 November 2021, she released a third single, "Opinion",[15] which had been written the year before, and about abusive comments she had received.[16] On 1 February 2022, she released the EP Playground Antics, which featured "Two Seater", "I Don't Wanna Know", and "Opinion".[17]

2022–present: Mr Universe, Loud LDN and "Cola Head"

On 5 May 2022, Kayne released the single "Final Notice",[17] a commentary on her experience as a woman in the music industry, which was released alongside a Human Traffic-inspired music video.[6] On 1 July that year, she released another single, "White City",[17] an ode to inequality in White City, London,[18] which featured "Final Notice". On 22 August, she released "Rat Race",[17] which was also about her experiences of living in London,[19] and which featured "White City" and "Final Notice". On 23 September that year, she released the four-track Mr Universe EP,[17] the title track for which featured General Levy and was produced by Toddla T,[20] and which featured "Rat Race", "White City", and "Final Notice".[17]

In November 2022, Venbee used a November 2022 NME article to point out that she, Piri, Kayne, Charlotte Plank, A Little Sound, and Charlotte Haining were members of Loud LDN.[21] On 19 May 2023, she released "Cola Head",[17] a song about infidelity,[22] as an independent artist.[23]

Artistry

Kayne's primary influences are Pharrell Williams, British rave culture, and Bristol,[2] although when "Mr Universe" came out, she cited M-Beat and E-Z Rollers as inspirations,[20] and when "Cola Head" came out, she cited the Neptunes.[22]

References
  1. "MR UNIVERSE". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  2. "Willow Kayne is the 90s-obsessed rapper making videos like Uncut Gems". Vice. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  3. "Willow Kayne: "This record was me hitting back to the doubters – it's absolute revenge"". NME. 15 February 2022. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  4. "Wiltshire schools told to run their own buses". Gazette and Herald. 16 September 2011. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  5. "Willow Kayne is making nex-gen pop with a throwback aesthetic". The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  6. "WILLOW KAYNE: 'FINAL NOTICE' (New Release)". New Wave. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  7. "Willow Kayne is planning to record in Los Angeles next July". Wiltshire Times. 23 December 2019. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  8. "Willow Kayne: "I Know I'm Not Sh*T"". Notion. 27 August 2021. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  9. "First Look – I SAW IT FIRST". 27 September 2021. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  10. "ACM Alumni Reach Final of Nationwide Music Competition Hosted by Top Fashion Brand". ACM. 18 December 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  11. "Two Seater". Spotify. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  12. ""I Don't Wanna Know" is the unfiltered new single from Willow Kayne". The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  13. "I Don't Wanna Know". Spotify. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  14. "Bristol Ivor Novello winner says her music was 'accidental'". BBC News. NME. 29 September 2021. Archived from the original on 17 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  15. "Opinion". Spotify. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  16. "Willow Kayne pushes back against stupid comments with her assertive new single, 'Opinion'". Dork. 2 November 2021. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  17. "Willow Kayne - Discography". Spotify. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  18. "Willow Kayne delivers new song "White City"". The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  19. "Listen to Willow Kayne's jagged new track 'Rat Race'". NME. 23 August 2022. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  20. "Willow Kayne teams up with General Levy and Toddla T for 'Mr Universe'". DIY. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  21. Jolley, Ben (2 November 2022). "Venbee: thrilling, cathartic drum 'n' bass from 'Messy In Heaven' hitmaker". NME. Archived from the original on 24 January 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  22. "Track Of The Day 19/5 – Willow Kayne". Clash. 19 May 2023. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  23. "Nieuwe single Willow Kayne – "cola head"". Dansendeberen.be. 18 May 2023. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
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