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TRADING SLAM DUNKS FOR SMASH HITS,
THE 21-YEAR-OLD MICHIGAN-BASED POP SINGER’S
UPLIFTING NEW SINGLE ‘MY ANOTHER DAY’ IS
A TOP FIVE HIT ON FMQB’S AC40, SHARING CHART
SPACE WITH PHARRELL WILLIAMS, DAUGHTRY,
PAUL RODGERS, ONEREPUBLIC AND AMERICAN AUTHORS
Produced By Robyn Robins, Longtime Keyboardist for
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band, The Fast-Rising Track
Is The Follow Up to Kanisha’s First Top Ten Single,
“I Found Love (Just In Time For Christmas)”
Fast emerging as a fresh and explosive new presence on the pop scene with her infectious breakout hit “My Another Day,” Kanisha K (www.kanishakmusic.com) is living the dream of every small town girl with a powerhouse voice.
Just a few years ago, a video of her singing at the Tulip Festival in her hometown of Holland, Mich. caught the attention of producer Robyn Robins – and now she’s keeping company with Pharrell Williams on the FMQB AC40 Chart. At #5 with a bullet, her new single is creating a joyful buzz four slots above the worldwide sensation “Happy.”
The uplifting and empowering track from the multi-talented 21-year-old singer/songwriter’s self-titled full length album is quickly rising in the chart’s Top Ten. In addition to Williams, it’s sharing the upper reaches of the list with superstars Passenger, legendary rocker Paul Rodgers, OneRepublic and American Authors. Just below “My Another Day” are the latest hits by Daughtry, Frank D’Angelo, The Fray, One Direction and Imagine Dragons. It’s also in the same neighborhood as Katy Perry and Lorde.
“My Another Day,” which is also up to #36 on the Mediabase A/C chart, was conceived as a healing post-breakup song but adopted by many of Kanisha’s fans as an anthem about overcoming addiction. It’s the follow-up to her first Top Ten single, “I Found Love (Just In Time For Christmas).”
For an emerging artist who was enrolled in a local cosmetology school during the development and recording process, Kanisha’s keeping some incredible company – not just on the charts but also in the studio. In addition to Robins, longtime keyboardist of Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band, her debut album features guitarists Drew Abbott (Bob Seger) and Mark Goldenberg (Jackson Browne); bassist Bob Glaub (Browne, Warren Zevon); saxman Jim Horn, and renowned backup singers Kate Markowitz and Arnold McCuller, renowned for their years performing with legendary singer/songwriter James Taylor.
Also appearing is David Lasley, a veteran backup singer and artist who co-wrote two of the songs on the album: “Lead Me On” and “I Found Love…” He and McCuller recently appeared in the Oscar winning documentary “20 Feet From Stardom.”
A fan of classic rock since her dad took her to see The Who, Aerosmith and Red Hot Chili Peppers when she was a kid, Kanisha – also a huge fan of the Rolling Stones – was super-excited to vibe with musicians who worked with many of her heroes.
On the personal side, Kanisha loves to talk about the special love she has for animals, and is proud to live in a family that has a total of six pets – two dogs (a yorkie-poo and maltese-shitzu mix), two cats, a bird and a rabbit. With her rising visibility in the music industry, she and her family are currently looking into doing promotional charity work with pet and animal foundations.
Kanisha also wants take her family’s longtime community involvement in hunger related projects to the next level via her music career. They have had weekly food projects in their area for eight years and sponsor an orphanage that feeds 125 children a day in Kenya, plus others in Haiti and Uganda, among other countries.
The wildest part of Kanisha’s story is that had she made a different decision about her future at a crucial moment during high school, she might be a women’s basketball star at Michigan State now instead of a budding pop sensation.
Music was always a foundational part of the singer’s life. She remembers singing and playing the piano to “Can You Feel The Love Tonight?” from “The Lion King” at age four. In sixth grade, facing a choice between band or choir, she chose band and began playing the sax; while blowing steadily for a few years, she also dabbled in guitar. She started taking vocal lessons in eighth grade and joined her high school’s choir the next year. She also got involved in local community theater, playing a major role in “Alice” and later playing a “Sharpette” in a production of “High School Musical.”
But then there was her equal passion for hoops, which she began playing and soon excelling at in sixth grade. Starting out on her school’s team, the Little Panthers, she soon joined year round leagues that were part of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and American Youth Basketball Tour (AYBT) and traveled around the state playing games and various tournaments. She started out as point guard because of her dribbling skills but soon found her niche as a shooting guard. She saw parallels to music in that there was both instant gratification (if you played a great game) and a chance to make up for any mistakes in the next game.
In eighth grade, Kanisha went to a Michigan State basketball camp and a coach there saw potential and let her play with older girls. He said if she kept coming back and improving, one day she could perhaps play for the MSU Spartans. She balanced music and basketball efficiently during high school, but in 11th grade, she auditioned for one of the most prestigious choirs at school – one with a national ranking that sang in numerous competitions.
“Considering the time commitments, there was no way I could do both,” Kanisha says. “Basketball competitions would have taken me out of town on weekends when I was scheduled to perform at various community functions. The rule in basketball was, if you miss practice, you don’t play. It was a tough choice, so I sat down with my parents and thought hard about my future. If I decided to play college basketball, I knew I would be going to school year round because there is so much classwork to make up. I felt like the focus wouldn’t be on college itself. I wanted a route that would lead me to a job after I graduated. For me to just leave…all my coaches were shocked. It was not an easy decision. Not long after, I auditioned and got picked for the Collage show and that performance led to others, which ultimately led me to work with Robyn. I love the way things have worked out.”
When she’s not recording or entertaining, Kanisha’s like a lot of 21 year old girls, loving all things Disney and has made several outings to Disney World with her family. She enjoys watching movies (the “Batman” and “Pirates of the Caribbean” films are favorites) and TV (“Vampire Diaries”), shopping and vintage and exotic cars (even though she doesn’t yet own one). More impressed with style than specific designers, she also has a thing for watches and shoes – especially platforms, though she can’t currently wear them because she just had foot surgery.
“Music is a way for people to get acquainted with me, but I really want people who like my songs to get to know me in a more intimate way,” says Kanisha. “I love being able to do what I love and to inspire people who think that their dreams can’t come true. All of this is hard to believe for me sometimes, but I think everything boils down to focusing on your passion and working hard. I’m excited about the way music travels. Thanks to many online radio outlets around the world, I’m able to connect with fans in places like India and Honduras and throughout Europe. But at home, I’m just me and I love singing for the locals too. I’ve got some out of town gigs coming up, but I’m equally excited about singing the National Anthem this season for the Detroit Tigers Single A minor league team, the West Michigan Whitecaps.”
