Kesha Rose Sebert, also known as Ke$ha, was born in Los Angeles, California. She is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and actress. Kesha is best known for her music, and her genres of music are pop, electropop, pop rock, hip hop, etc.
At just 4 years old, Kesha moved to Nashville with her mother, Pebe, and her older brother, Lagan. Not only was Pebe a single mother, but also she was a singer-songwriter. Pebe could barely afford to raise Kesha and Lagan, so she often relied on food stamps and welfare payments to get by. Because Kesha’s mother had a career in music, she often brought Kesha to recording studios and encouraged her to sing when she noticed her vocal talent. Personally, I think that Kesha’s mother helped to spark Kesha’s interest in music because she exposed her to the art of music at such a young age. When she was a teenager, she was in a band with her brother, Lagan. She also co-wrote “Stephen” with her mother when she was just 16 years old.
Kesha went to a music school where she learned a lot about songwriting; unfortunately, she did not “fit in” in high school because her peers were not fond of her unique style. During high school, Kesha played the trumpet and saxophone for her school’s marching band. At the age of 17, Kesha dropped out of high school to pursue her music career.
Before her career took off, she paid a gardener to go inside of music legend Prince’s house and drop off one of her demos. At 18 years old, she signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first huge success was four years later when she was featured in Flo Rida’s song, “Right Round.” Within the next decade she had earned two #1 albums on the US Billboard 200, which were Animal (2010) and Rainbow (2017). Also, she has had ten top 10 singles on the US Billboard Hot 100, and some of these songs included “Blah Blah Blah,” “Your Love Is My Drug,” “Take It Off,” “Blow,” “Die Young,” “Tik Tok,” and “We R Who We R.” “Tik Tok” was her first big hit, and it sold over 16.5 million units internationally. She has also written songs for other big artists like Britney Spears, specifically “Till The World Ends.”
In the mid-2010’s, Kesha seemed to slow down her music career. However, her fans did not know what was happening behind closed doors. In 2014, Kesha sued her producer, Dr. Luke, for sexual assault and battery, sexual harrassment, gender violence, and emotional abuse. These series of lawsuits have come to be known as Kesha v. Dr. Luke. She also accused him of bullying and date rape. Kesha suffered both physically and emotionally while working with her former producer, and she claims that it led to a severe eating disorder that almost took her life. Kesha explained that she was not active in music because she was receiving treatment for her eating disorder. Dr. Luke responded by claiming breach of contract and defamation by her and her mother. Eventually, her case was dismissed. The court refused to grant her an injunction that would have freed her from her contract to Dr. Luke’s label at Sony Music. During her legal struggles, Kesha’s album, Rainbow, was released. Although she was going through a rough time, she wanted her album to show that “you do not have to be defined by something that was done to you.”
Kesha has opened up about her battle with anxiety and depression, and Kesha said that “finding the strength to come forward about those things is not easy. But maybe, by telling my story, I can help someone else going through tough times… [I’m working on new music that will] showcase my vulnerabilities as a strength and not as a weakness.” This supports the idea that those who are creative have more ties to mental illness, and we have read about this topic in several articles this semester. Although some people would let their mental illnesses consume them, Kesha refuses to be defined by what was done to her by her abuser. Now, Kesha says she is “healthier than ever,” and all she wants to do is write happy songs and inspire joy.
Kesha speaks about her creative process, and she finds it “cathartic.” She says, "music is something that almost gets channeled through me. You never know if you're going to lose it, like I'll wake up one day and I won't have my magic power… I love knowing that as a woman I can be self-sufficient. Something nobody can ever take away from me is my ability to write. That makes me feel safe." At birth, Kesha was exposed to music by her mother. As a teenager, she attended a music school and was in a band with her brother. This early exposure to music certainly helped spark her passion for it. When Kesha writes her music now, her creative process consists of thinking about her own struggles and deciding what message she wants to send to her fans. Not only does this provide her with psychological relief, but also it allows her to feel secure. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.
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Hello Karolina,
ReplyDeleteI think that Kesha is an interesting artist. Her struggle with her mental health, and how it plays into her artistic identity is inspiring. It seems that her unique aesthetic that she exhibited not only as a child, but even as a singer in the lats 2000s displays a kind of isolation from others, which is a common event for creatives. The way that she uses music as a type of "medicine" or treatment for herself is definitely reflective of a creative.
Kesha's motivations, it seems to me, have always been intrinsic. She went into music because she grew up with it and consequently loved it. She persisted despite others not appreciating her unique sense of music, which one may argue was just unrecognized creativity. Now, her creative process is cathartic for her, giving her personal and individual relief. On top of all this, she wants to use her story to inspire and empower those who suffered in similar ways to herself. All of this together makes her a little c creative, as well as someone who I have gained a newfound respect for.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, I remembered Kesha as a wild soul who seemed like a "trashier" Lady Gaga. She embodied the life of a teenage party and was the epitome of rebellion. However after suffering such traumatic abuse from her producer, her music has matured and has become more solemn. Her creative product now is a reflection of her life and I can't imagine her going back to the rambunctious style she was known for back in the 2000s. What she went through was awful and she will carry it around with her for the rest of her life, but I am glad that she is able to let out that pain in a positive manner through her music.
ReplyDeleteI remember growing up with Kesha's music, and it seemed to be a reflection of an image that her producers thought would resonate. Her newer music seems to be much more authentic and a more accurate representation of who she is. I agree with the above commenter though that Kesha's true motivations always seemed to be intrinsic, as she seemed to truly be producing music for the love of it.
ReplyDeleteKesha is an artist a lot of us knew about when we were younger and I remember a lot of parents weren't too happy with her music, thinking she was too provocative or the messages in her songs were encouraging teenagers to do drugs, go to parties, and have sex. As someone said above, this was the epitome of rebellion. A decent amount of 2010's culture featured Kesha and I think it's unfortunate that such an aspiring artist had to halt their process due to an abuser. She's evolved in that sense and shown others that you can still flourish after trauma and bounce back with the support of those around you. I agree that her motivation is intrinsic, and I hope she continues making music because it's a passion of hers and is a positive output for what she has been through.
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