A new singing sensation is set to take over the airwaves by storm while serenading us with her angelic voice. Keamogetswe Molefe also known as Keamo is a 25-year-old R&B singer, who caught many people’s attention including global music sensation Uncle Waffles with her sweet melodic voice.
Growing up in a music-loving family fuelled Keamo’s love for the craft. She also confidently shares that she has never shied from standing in front of a crowd and performing, even as a child. Being a daughter of parents who love music played a huge role in the singer’s love for jazz and contemporary music, as they listened to South African jazz legends such as the late Hugh Masekela and Jonas Gwangwa.
This music seed was paired with piano lessons around the age of 12, leading to Keamo’s interest in taking music as a subject in high school and later at university.
An older sister to her 20-year-old brother, Keamo acknowledges her family’s constant support as a major influence that got her to pursue her first love, music, even though she initially did a medical-related course.
After dropping out in her second year of her BSc Biological Sciences degree, the singer later followed her passion, enrolling for a Bachelor of Music majoring in Jazz Performance Voice at Wits University. Keamo shares that from an early age, she enjoyed music by Lira who has hit songs such as “Feel Good” and “Ixesha”. The late Sibongile Khumalo was also one of her favourite artists, she shares. It comes as no shock that she enrolled in the same degree as the “Mayihlome” hitmaker.
Expressing her love for the late Sibongile Khumalo she shares, “She (Sibongile) also has a classical voice background, and she uses her classic voice in these jazz ballads, even though her voice is big, classic and operatic she uses her harmonies, when you listen to her you can hear that she’s pushing the classical boundaries and the jazz boundaries because she’s using classical ways to showoff these jazz errs”. Another influence in her choice of music genre she states is her church. She notes that her church songs have a bit of an R&B influence.
Sharing how her current single Unfold Me came about, the muso added that she is a big fan of love and detailed that the song was more about allowing the person you are with to unfold you emotionally.
“When I wrote that song, it was really for emotional unfolding, when you’re with someone and love someone, it feels so safe to be able to unfold parts of myself and put my world down and expose myself thoroughly, we need to feel held, that’s really what the song is about. It’s about being held and being seen by your partner.”
Her new single Falling is set for release on Valentine’s Day, a day that represents the opposite of what the song is about. As Valentine’s Day is about celebrating love, the song “mourns the loss of love.” The reason for the Valentine’s Day release date Keamo shares is to include and celebrate those who are not in relationships due to breakups or the loss of their partners.
Keamo is currently unsigned and has no plans to join a record label thus far. She adds that she plans to do things by herself as it is easier these days for music to reach greater heights with the right marketing and exposure. She does, however, acknowledge that the country has some amazing record labels.
In future, the singing sensation adds that we should expect music with a “heavy influence of jazz.” An album is also in the pipeline, a year or so from now. Her wish is to someday collaborate with a few artists, including R&B singer and former SA-Idols contestant Shekinah.
Her video teaser of the upcoming song Falling featuring Cheryl Zondi that was posted just a little over a week ago blew up receiving almost three million views on TikTok alone and over five million when combining other social media platforms.
It also got a repost from global music sensation DJ Uncle Waffles, a gesture that Keamo feels is a gift from God.
“I felt very seen by that repost, it felt like a sign from God, from the higher powers, saying that I am doing the right thing and that I should just continue. If I continue on the path that He laid out for me I can do anything but fall, there won’t be an option to fall, she shares.
