Willow Kayne

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

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

Early life[edit]

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[edit]

2019–2022: Playground Antics[edit]

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"[edit]

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] and then the following April she released "Robot Lovers", about the effects of technology on love.[24]

Artistry[edit]

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[edit]

  1. ^ "MR UNIVERSE". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  2. ^ a b "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. ^ a b c d "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. ^ a b "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. ^ a b "WILLOW KAYNE: 'FINAL NOTICE' (New Release)". New Wave. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  7. ^ a b "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. ^ a b c "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. ^ a b c d e f g "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. ^ a b "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. ^ a b "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.
  24. ^ "Willow Kayne returns with the new single, "Robot Lovers"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
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