Kesha

Background

Kesha Rose Sebert or more popularly known as just Kesha, born March 1, 1987, is a singer, songwriter, and actress from Los Angeles, California. She lived in Nashville, Tennessee, until she was 18 when she returned to her hometown, where she currently resides.

Kesha used to accompany her mother in her early teens. Noticing Kesha’s interest in music, her mother encouraged her to sing, allowing her to work on some music demos. Her breakthrough came in early 2009 after she made a cameo in the song ‘Right Round,’ by rapper Flo Rida. ‘Tik Tok,’ her debut single, was released on August 7, 2009, and reached number one in eleven countries and became certified platinum in Australia, Canada, Germany, and New Zealand. In the U.S., the song topped the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for nine consecutive weeks. Her debut album, “Animal,” released in January 2010, topped the charts in Canada, Greece, and the United States, and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. 152,000 copies of the album were sold and in its opening week, it spawned four singles. ‘Tik Tok,’ her debut single, which was released on August 7, 2009, reached number one in eleven countries and was certified platinum in Australia, Canada, Germany, and New Zealand. In the U.S., the song topped the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for nine consecutive weeks. The song sold over five million copies in the U.S. within a few months and was certified platinum five times by the Recording Industry Association of America. Other singles from the album, ‘Blah Blah Blah,’ ‘Your Love Is My Drug’ and ‘Take It Off,’ charted in the top 10 in several countries and received gold and platinum certifications in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States.

At age 18, Kesha signed with the record label Kemosabe Records and music advertising company Prescription Songs. Kesha was given the opportunity to do backing vocals for Paris Hilton’s single ‘Nothing in This World.’ In 2006, she signed with the company DAS Communications Inc. Kesha has scored songs on shows like “My Super Sweet 16” and “The Hills,” co-wrote the song ‘This Love’ for The Veronicas, provided backing vocals for Britney Spears and appeared in the music video for ‘I Kissed a Girl’ by Katy Perry. She also wrote the song ‘The Time of Our Lives’ for Miley Cyrus and ‘Disgusting’ for Miranda Cosgrove.

On November 19, Kesha released her first extended play (E.P.) “Cannibal.” The E.P. is a re-release of her previous album “Animal.” Initially, it would’ve just been a re-release of the first album, but in addition to being released as an E.P., it was also released as a deluxe edition. Kesha has worked with several producers such as Dr. Luke as executive producer, Benny Blanco, Ammo, Max Martin, and Bangladesh, among others. In November 2012, Kesha released her second album “Warrior.” In July 2017, Kesha released the single ‘Praying’ after years of not being able to release new music due to her legal dispute with Dr. Luke. The single received positive reviews from critics.

Kesha is influenced by a variety of different genres and artists such as Beck Hansen, Queen, Madonna, Beastie Boys, The Velvet Underground, and Blondie. But her biggest influence is Beastie Boys. She has already said that she always wanted to be like them and also paid homage to Beastie Boys’ “Licensed to Ill” album with her first album.