Kehlani

Born in Oakland, California, Kehlani initially trained in dance before turning to singing in adolescence. Her career began with the local pop group PopLyfe, a finalist on America's Got Talent in 2011, and then took on a solo dimension with the mixtapes Cloud 19 (2014) and You Should Be Here (2015), which established a direct, intimate songwriting style at the intersection of contemporary R&B, neo-soul, pop and hip-hop inflections. Signed to Atlantic thereafter, Kehlani developed a fluid, melodic sound centered on the voice, clear hooks and productions ranging from slow R&B to more uptempo tracks. This evolution is evident on SweetSexySavage (2017), While We Wait (2019), It Was Good Until It Wasn’t (2020), Blue Water Road (2022) and Crash (2024). Over the years, Kehlani has moved between various American pop and R&B scenes, collaborating with artists such as Zayn, Cardi B, Charlie Puth and Justin Bieber, while maintaining strong Bay Area roots and a personal approach to songwriting.