Daily Inspiration: Meet Kelly Kale

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelly Kale.  

Hi Kelly, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
As a 10/11-year-old, I was amazed seeing kid rappers like Lil Bow Wow emerge on the scene. Before then, I had no idea that the industry had room for kid rappers. Seeing him rapping on the level he was rapping on and being successful made me want to pick up the pen to attempt to write songs. I think I already had a thing for rap in general at that time because I had the fundamentals down where I knew a song had verses and hooks. 

Time went by, and rapping kind of took the back burner for years, where I thought it must’ve just been a phase. My junior year in college, my brother Travis made this beat that I really liked, so I told him to send it to me. It had been years since I had written a song. I wrote something and recorded it on my MacBook, and he thought it was pretty good. Then a friend from high school, Nick, got into making beats and producing. He sent me a beat, and I sent him the track back, and he was like, “Oh, this is kind of hard,” so little by little, I was gaining confidence to get back into rapping again. 

After college, I had so much free time on my hands; once I was done with work, I just started dedicating my evenings to writing, recording, and re-recording songs I thought I could perform better. I got to a point where I was like these songs are to fire to just be sitting on my MacBook, so I started going to a real studio to record what would later become my first mixtape, “The Unanticipated.” 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Hmm, at the beginning, I couldn’t get into the studio as much as I wanted to because of just not having the extra money to do so all of the time, but I was still in there like maybe two/three times a month. Enough to be productive. I didn’t drink before going, and I had my songs written all the way, so none of my studio time was wasted. 

Other than that, I would say that my road has been pretty smooth only because I didn’t come in with real expectations. It was more of just wanting to show people that I could rap. When people started showing love and gravitating towards my music, that’s when shows started happening, and more opportunities opened up. There were times that I was terrified of those opportunities, but I made sure I didn’t pass it up. 

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a music artist, mostly involved in rap. I can’t sing, but I’m open to carrying a note or two if the song calls for it :). I write all of my lyrics. I pride myself in that. I’ve released three bodies of work. One is strictly on Bandcamp. Two of them can be streamed on all platforms (including Bandcamp). One of those projects was executive produced by Jerm Scorsese. 

I was selected to participate in BET’s reboot of Freestyle Friday in 2018. That was a cool opportunity, and it was even more dope to see all of the support from everybody during that process. 

I’ve been featured on songs with some dope artists. One of the songs was G Yamazawa’s North Cack Remix. He rounded up artists from Durham that he respected, and I held it down for the ladies. Another song was Pierce Freelon’s “Attitude of Gratitude,” in which made me a Grammy-nominated artist. 

I’m very grateful for opportunities as such because it showed me that the things I saw as unreachable as a child is very much attainable once you put in the work. You cannot skip the journey. Each step will lead you to opportunities. 

What matters most to you?
God. (S)He is the one that’s guiding us, protecting us, & providing us with these talents & these experiences. 

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_kellykale/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kellykalenc?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/_kellykale
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@kellykale6940

Image Credits
@_director_e
@sheeraz.balushi