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Betcha
haven't heard ...
Mikail
Samuels, Youthlink Writer
Name:
Makeida Beckford
Full-time
occupation: Musician
Sign:
Virgo
High
school: St Andrew High School for Girls
Dreams
of collaborating with: Jr Gong
Two
thousand and nine was a big year for Makeida 'Keida'
Beckford. Not only did she release her first song, Jamaican
Boy, but she accepted the reality that music was something
she wanted to do full time. Influenced by many different
artistes and genres of music, Keida is on her way to
introducing her own flavour to the Jamaican music industry.
Youthlink is ready to Betcha Haven't Heard ... of Keida.
Music
and arts
Youthlink
(YL): Which genre of music are you most comfortable
singing and why?
Keida
(K): Well, ... for me it would have to be dancehall,
simply because I think I am more of a deejay than a
singjay. With dancehall, it allows me to express myself,
and I feel comfortable doing it. It comes natural to
me and I don't have a problem with it.
YL:
Your parents have made a name for themselves in the
field of visual arts. Do you find it hard to walk in
their footsteps?
K:
I would have to say no, because it's in my nature, comes
natural to me. Art is like music; it's something you
have to practise every day in order to get better at
and that's what I do, so it's not hard, really.
YL:
How different was the progression from graphic art to
music?
K:
To be honest, music came out of the blues for me. I
always sang in my bathroom, but I never thought of taking
music seriously. It is something that I would say just
came to me and the transition was OK, I guess, simply
because I already had an ear for music.
Mixing
both
YL:
You do music, you have a bachelor of fine arts degree
in visual communication and graphic design, plus you
have other interests. What are your intentions?
K:
Well, ... even though I have my BA in fine arts, I have
already done set design, so what I intend to do is to
use it in my music videos, create sets for my videos
and become interactive with my product, so that I can
help to direct my videos.
YL:
Keida's music is old school with new rules. What is
one of those rules?
K:
It's simple. It has an old-school sound fused with a
new-school mix. I intend to be different and combine
dancehall with reggae. With that, I hope to create something
new though persons would say stick to one thing; if
you're doing dancehall do dancehall, but I want to do
both.
YL:
Complete the following: In the next year Jamaica should
look out for Keida doing ...
K:
More music, more music videos and coming out with bigger
and better things in terms of developing myself in the
industry.
For
more information, check her out at www.myspace.com/keidamusic
or www.facebook.com/pages/Keida/102540277184?v=info
Our three Keida picks
Jamaican Boy
Cyaan Get Enough
Is This Really Love |