Kenna

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Kenna


Img_capt =
Landscape =
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Kenna Zemedkun
Born =
Died =
Origin =
Genre = Alternative Rock, Electronica, Indie Rock, New Wave
Occupation = Singer-songwriter, Musician, producer
Instrument = Vocals, keyboards
Years_active = 2001–present
Label = Columbia
Star Trak Interscope
URL = [http://www.kennakenna.com/ Official website]

Kenna, born Kenna Zemedkun, is an Ethiopian-born American musician. The eldest son of an immigrant family that relocated to Cincinnati, Ohio (and later raised in Virginia Beach, VA), Kenna began to express an interest in music upon receiving a copy of U2's "The Joshua Tree". The way he was discovered and the obstacles he faced to land a record deal are briefly discussed in Malcolm Gladwell's 2005 book "Blink".

Career

"New Sacred Cow"

With the release of his first single, "Hell Bent", Kenna gained moderate popularity and an underground following of fans who eagerly awaited the release of his debut album, "New Sacred Cow". After many delays and swapping of record labels, the album was finally released under the Sony imprint Flawless in 2003. [cite web |url = http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A322894 |title = Kenna: Don't Blink |accessdate = 2008-06-16 |author = Reeves, Mosi |date = 2007-10-17 |publisher = "Creative Loafing" ] A subsequent North American tour was launched in the Summer of 2003 with Depeche Mode front man Dave Gahan.

The album, which was co-produced by Chad Hugo of The Neptunes, contained elements of electronica, synth pop, post rock, and house music. Two singles, "Sunday After You" and "Freetime" followed the release of the album; the music video of the latter, along with "Hell Bent", appeared sporadically on MTV2.

The story of Kenna's big-name supporters, test marketing, and ultimate lack of record sales is covered by a whole chapter in Malcolm Gladwell's book, "Blink," titled "Kenna's Dilemma: The Right - and Wrong - Way to Ask People What They Want"

"Make Sure They See My Face"

Kenna's second album, entitled "Make Sure They See My Face", also co-produced by Hugo, has faced delays, written over the course of three years, finishing in early 2007. [ [http://www.interscope.com/default.aspx (the album is listed near the bottom right of the page with most recent release)] on Interscope Records website] The album was originally set to be released on June 5, 2007, then pushed back to June 19, 2007, finally being released on October 16, 2007. Kenna, in an interview with Vibe magazine, cited the reason for delays as being over the video for the album's debut single. The inspiration for the album came from Kenna's attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the title, inspired from phone calls by Pharrell asking Kenna; "are you going to make sure they see your face?". Kenna's climb took him to 18,200 feet before he fell ill from taking a sulfur-based altitude medicine, one he was unaware he was allergic to. [cite web |url = http://www.vibe.com/news/news_headlines/2007/10/kenna_feature/ |title = Kenna: Feel Like I'm Nowhere |accessdate = 2008-06-16 |author = Fennessey, Sean |date = 2007-11-16 |publisher = "Vibe" ] On October 23, 2007, the album debuted at #1 on the "Billboard" Top 20 Heatseekers Chart.

An unrelated song from his second album, "Face the Gun", was released to appease his waiting fans, and initially was not to appear on "Make Sure They See My Face," missing from early promos of the album. Ultimately, it was included in the final track listing. Kenna released a track from the album, entitled "Better Wise Up", in time for the Super Bowl; this track can be found on his MySpace page, as well. A remix of "Better Wise Up" featuring Audio Imagery has been circulating the internet since August 2007. There has been no official word from Kenna or from his label about this remix.

Other works

Kenna has also contributed to many other tracks by bands associated with Chad Hugo or The Neptunes, including but not limited to "Spiral" from William Orbit's album Hello Waveforms and "Red to Black" and "The Hard Way" off of "The Rising Tied", the first album from Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda a.k.a. Fort Minor. "The Hard Way" is only available as a bonus track on the limited edition version of the album. Kenna also appears on Mark Ronson's album "Version" with a cover of the Ryan Adams song "Amy".

On October 6, 2006, the world premier of "Out of Control (State of Emotion)", from Kenna's EP entitled "Black Goodbye Ride", was played on East Village Radio on Authentic Shit with Mark Ronson; it became available on iTunes on December 19, 2006.

On July 7, 2007 Kenna opened the New Jersey portion of the Live Earth concert. He also toured with Nelly Furtado throughout various stops on her "Loose" tour.

Kenna was featured on Mae's third full length album "Singularity" on the tracks "Last Transmission II" And "Novocaine". Both tracks being bonus tracks on the iTunes Store.

Kenna has also been working with Ashlee Simpson and producing tracks for her third album "Bittersweet World".

Kenna has also worked with Lupe Fiasco on the track "Say Goodbye to Love".

Kenna has also teamed up with UK Grime artist WILEY for the track entitled "Summertime".

"Out of Control" appears in the soundtrack for the video game FIFA 08

Discography

References

External links

* [http://www.kennakenna.com/ Official website]
*MySpace|kenna
*
* [http://www.maximumfun.org/blog/2007/10/podcast-kenna.html Interview with Kenna] on public radio program "The Sound of Young America"