keshi has waited for his first-ever album longer than anyone else. "It’s long overdue actually," the singer-songwriter admitted.

But like most good things in life, his first-ever album took some time to piece together. Having always dreamt of creating an album that would outlast him, keshi spent most of his musical journey building his arsenal to execute a record he knows he'll be proud of.

In the last couple of years, the 'beside you' hitmaker has been testing his skills, pushing himself creatively. After a long time coming, his debut record—titled Gabriel—is finally on its way. 

Spanning 12 tracks, the album is the embodiment of everything that keshi is as an artist.

"I have a very diverse range... With this album, I really want to make music that I want to make at this point in time and I'm very excited for everyone to hear it," he shared in a previous interview with Bandwagon. 

Ahead of the release of his debut album, Bandwagon caught up with keshi to dive deeper into Gabriel and the stories surrounding the record. 

Hi keshi, how are things going? 

It’s been really great, a little busier than usual but it’s a sign that things are finally falling  into place for the release and I couldn’t be more excited 

‘TOUCH’ is the latest single to come from your upcoming album, could you walk us through what the track is about? 

'TOUCH' is a song about two people playing pretend, indulging in each other despite both knowing they’d be better off without the unspoken tension. 

From what we’ve seen from Gabriel so far, it’s a lot more mature than your previous works and takes on a new sound. Did you have any worries or doubts about going in a new direction for this album? 

No doubts about going in a new direction, more like lost as for which direction to go towards. All I’ve ever dreamt of was making a cohesive record that would outlast me,  and starting a project with that in mind wasn’t the best for my paralysis. Madeon assured me to trust in the process, and that with time themes would start to crop up. 

Are these themes and sounds something you’d continue to pursue in the future?

I think I’ll continue to try and push the boundaries of what I can make, there’s no fun in staying exactly the same 

As a whole, what story do you want to tell through Gabriel? 

I think I just wanted to process my life at the moment, it’s very honest and candid. I’ve never really been more laid bare. I don’t really talk about Casey much, but it’s kind of all there is here.  

Gabriel is set to be your first album, is there a reason why you decided to put out a full album now? 

I think it’s long overdue actually. The early songs made keshi, the trilogy was my experiment to see how far I could take it by myself, and Gabriel is my answer to wanting to make a full-length album that I can be proud of for years to come.  

 

 

 

 

 

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You mentioned previously that Gabriel brings it back to what you intended keshi to initially be, could you elaborate on that?

I’ve always wanted to be an artist that’s on par with the artists I love and respect. All I mean with this is that I think I’ve achieved that with Gabriel. This is the kind of quality I wanted to expect of myself when I started the project. 

How do you draw the line between keshi and Casey? How do they relate or differ from one another? 

The line continues to get more and more blurry, but to be honest it just comes down to what I choose to reveal publicly. We’re the same, but I like to have a line when it comes to privacy.  

 

 

 

 

 

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For this album, you had Elie Rizk co-produce this album. This comes as the first time you’ve enlisted a collaborator for a project, what prompted that decision? What was it like bringing someone else into your music-making process? 

The creative process had started becoming stale for me while making the trilogy. It felt like rinse and repeat, and I didn’t have the growth that I wanted. I accepted that there was a plateau that I’d hit in terms of my own production reach that I didn’t have time to overcome in the scope of the artist project. It was time to let go of my hubris and try to make the best music I can. Collaborating with others has taught me so much and I’m excited for everyone to hear the results.  

What are some goals you have for yourself and your music? 

Would really love to tour the world with a full band, I think that’s step number 1 right now.

ticket presale 10am local time
pw: hellheavenhttps://t.co/UIhPMP4N7m

good luck pic.twitter.com/5Wo4ujim2M

— keshi (@keshimusic) February 8, 2022

keshi is slated to embark on his HELL/HEAVEN tour around North America and Europe later this year, find out how to get tickets here. 

Listen to keshi's 'TOUCH' here.