Kehlani Ashley Parrish

### Third

Associated acts: Poplyfe, HBK Gang, G-Eazy, Ella Mai, Lexii Aliijai, Tory Lanez, Cardi B, Hayley Kiyoko

## Early Life

Kehlani Ashley Parrish was born in Oakland, California on April 24 in 1995. She has described her ethnicity as a mixture of "Black, white, Native American, Filipino, and Spanish." Both of her parents suffered from drug addiction in her younger years. When she was a teenager she attended Oakland School of the Arts where she studied dance, more specifically ballet and modern dance. She aspired to dance at the Julliard school but had a knee injury which turned her in the direction of singing. When she was a teenager she lived with her aunt, they exclusively listened to R&B as well as neo-soul which helps to explain her music style now.

## Career

At 14 years old Kehlani was recruited into a pop cover band called Poplyfe, she became the lead vocalist. They performed all over the Bay Area and in surrounding towns. In 2011 Poplyfe auditioned for America's Got Talent and ended up getting fourth place, gaining them exposure but at the very end of the season Kehlani was told by one of the judges, Piers Morgan, that she did not need the group.

After contractual conflicts Khelani left Poplyfe and became homeless during 2012 and 2013, she was scared to make music because of the possible conflict with Poplyfe management. But finally in 2013, Nick Cannon offered her a spot in a rap group, which she initially said yes to but once she got to LA she realized she didn't like the way the group was going and went back to Oakland. This is where she released her first Soundcloud song, "ANTISUMMERLUV". Nick Cannon heard the song and set her up with an apartment in LA as well as studio time.

In 2014 she got the studio time she needed to release her first mixtape, Cloud 19, it ended up ranking twenty-eighth in Complex's "50 Best Albums of 2014". Cloud 19 was also listed in Pitchfork's "Overlooked Mixtapes of 2014". Soon after in 2015, she released You Should Be Here which got her a deal with Atlantic Records. She was nominated for a Grammy in 2014 for "Best Urban Contemporary Album". Her third album SweetSexySavage was released in 2017. In 2018 she was the opening act for Demi Lavato's tour Tell Me You Love Me World Tour. After that, she opened for Halsey's Hopeless Fountain Kingdom World Tour in Oceana.

## Personal Life

In January 2016 it was confirmed that Khelani and NBA point guard, Kyrie Irving were dating through Instagram. Later in the year, March, a Candian Musician posted a picture of Kehlani's hand on Instagram alluding to the idea that they might be together. This sparked controversy and many people thought that Kehlani was cheating on Irving. People sent death threats and hatred, thousands of posts on twitter about Kehlani. This drove Kehlani to attempt suicide, but she survived, she worked on an album that helped her through.

In 2017 she began making posts about gender identity and love. While she was on her SweetSexySavage World Tour she posted a picture with her girlfriend Shaina Negron. In April 2018 she came out on twitter calling herself "queer" and claiming that the word gay still had too much restriction.

## Criticism

There has been some criticism of Kehlani coming from the queer community more recently. She posted on Twitter saying, "not bi, not straight. i’m attracted to women, men, REALLY attracted to queer men, non binary people, intersex people, trans people. lil poly pansexual papi hello good morning. does that answer your questions?" This caused controversy because many fans thought that she did not understand some of the words she was using. They responded with hundreds of tweets correcting her vocabulary. She did end up replying back and said that she would work on what she says, she says she is willing to learn and listen.

## Citations

“About.” *Kehlani*, www.kehlanimusic.com/bio/.

account, KehlaniVerified. “Kehlani (@Kehlani).” *Twitter*, Twitter, 10 May 2018, twitter.com/Kehlani.

Ahmed, Insanul. “The 50 Best Albums of 2014Kehlani, *Cloud 19*.” *Complex*, Complex, 26 June 2017, www.complex.com/music/2014/12/best-albums-2014/kehlani-cloud-19.

ByDavid DrakeFreelance writer living in Chicago. Follow him on Twitter. “Kehlani Talks About the Making of ‘Cloud 19," the Tutelage of Lauryn Hill, and Getting a Hand From Nick Cannon.” *Complex*, Complex, 3 Dec. 2014, www.complex.com/music/2014/12/kehlani-parrish-interview.

HHL. “Kehlani Attempts Suicide After PARTYNEXTDOOR/Kyrie Irving Controversy.” *Hip-Hop Lately*, Hip-Hop Lately, 29 Mar. 2016, www.hiphoplately.com/kehlani-attempts-suicide-after-partynextdoorkyrie-irving-controversy/.

“Kehlani Answers Questions About Her Sexuality on Twitter: 'I'm Queer'.” *Billboard*, Billboard, www.billboard.com/articles/news/pride/8367038/kehlani-sexuality-queer-twitter.

Pitchfork. “Overlooked Mixtapes 2014.” *Kali Uchis: Isolation Album Review | Pitchfork*, Pitchfork, 22 Dec. 2014, pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9565-overlooked-mixtapes-2014/.

Zeichner, Naomi. “Kehlani Earned This.” *The FADER*, www.thefader.com/2015/08/04/kehlani-cover-story-interview.