As one of Canada’s rising musical talents, EKELLE, a multi-genre artist and songwriter, began to pursue music professionally back in 2015. “I didn’t have a lot of previous experience or technical knowledge so I really had to work to get my ability and my sound up to par. After a lot of trial and error, I eventually found my sound which I call hood pop - popular music with a street edge,” she comments.
EKELLE rhymes about what she knows best: her real-life experience with money, sex, drama, and identity stir together to create a style that she calls hood pop - popular music with a street edge. Hood pop combines elements of hip hop, pop music, and R&B.
EKELLE loves music of all genres. She would listen to a lot of hip hop, especially female rappers, pop music, and rock. “I listen to current music as well as old school music from the 90s, 80s and even 70s,” she comments. Furthermore, she continues to comment that she is inspired by Nicki Minaj and Doja Cat, and she will always love Destiny’s Child.
In her music catalog, to date, EKELLE music is a mix of upbeat and down tempo songs with her rapping and singing on each track. “Some songs are just rap or just singing but I love to find ways to incorporate both. I definitely write from my own perspective so I try to empower women through my lyrics,” she comments.
EKELLE draws a lot from her own personal experiences in-turn she would want listeners to embody truth and own their stories. She tries to bring positive energy to her tracks because she wants people to feel motivated or at least bring a smile to their face after they’ve heard certain songs.
As the global pandemic of COVID-19 struck the world, when asked how this period of time helped her creative juices, EKELLE comments, “Like many people I had lost my job and that was hard to deal with. With the George Floyd killing spawning protests and racial debates all over the world I also lost a few “friends” and I’m better for it. I had a lot of emotions to work through and still do, but I love being able to work from home, I feel I have more time for creative projects.”
EKELLE’s latest single ‘Snow’ was kind of inspired by the pandemic in a sense. When she initially lost her job in 2020, she was in shock and wondered what her next move would be while wondering about her own survival and ability to make music. “I found myself drinking and smoking a lot and so were a lot of my friends. Even now I may overindulge when I’m stressed and I think others do too. I wanted to talk about that cycle in a song,” she comments.
Continuing on to discuss her latest single, EKELLE says, “During the cold months of the year, right after the holidays tends to be hard for people in general and with the added stress of the pandemic I thought it would be a good idea to speak on it. Calling it ‘Snow’ I of course had to release it in the winter. I also tried to capture this cycle in the accompanying visual.”
EKELLE’s songwriting process usually is when a lot of ideas for lyrics come to her naturally. She could get an idea walking down the street or maybe from reflecting on the past, in-turn always writing something down and seeing if she can make it into something. “Sometimes it’s best to just write out a not so great idea so that a better one can come through. When I’m writing for a project though I do like to have a theme in mind. I’m trying to be more intentional about the listener’s experience.”
When asked who she is listening to at the moment, EKELLE comments, “I’m listening to all the rap girls of today like Nicki, Cardi, City Girls, Saweetie, etc. I also like to listen to Adele, Lana Del Rey or Billy Talent on my emo days,” while checking out the charts to see what the latest craze is.
With her love to create and tell stories, EKELLE shares that working on her sound to improve her musical talents is what drives her forward as a musical artist. “I love collaborating with different types of artists and industry professionals to make something amazing,” she comments. She loves being a part of this exciting time in the music industry where different artists and new sounds are being pushed to the forefront.
EKELLE is excited to release her debut album this year. “I’ve mostly done singles and EPs so it feels good to finally have an extended body of work to share with my listeners,” she comments. With the current working title of ‘Let’s Get It’ of her debut album which is due to drop this Spring, she is excited to see where this new chapter takes her. “Once the album is out I’ll have time to work on some collabs with artists and producers that I’ve been speaking to and hopefully book a few more performances,” she closes out the interview.
WORDS BY DANIELLE HOLIAN