Meet Kanysha

We recently connected with Kanysha and have shared our conversation below.

Kanysha, so many exciting things to discuss, we can’t wait. Thanks for joining us and we appreciate you sharing your wisdom with our readers. So, maybe we can start by discussing optimism and where your optimism comes from?

Honestly, I have to fight for it.

I’ve always been a dreamer. I was that little kid who ran around the playground making up songs and pretending to be on stage, I made a girl group with my friends in elementary school and fully took on the pop star persona (despite being 10 years old and having no idea what that meant). The dream was (and is) boldly imprinted in my mind, and I’ve been committed to it my entire life.

However, little girls grow up into adult women, and life isn’t always kind. As I’ve grown and learned to maneuver through life’s challenges, it is that same dream that keeps me hopeful. I can combat obstacles and hurdles with the belief that “everything always works out for me”, which is one of my personal mantras.

When you allow yourself to be fueled by your beliefs, you can see how every rejection, every challenge, even disappointments, are the very bricks that pave the road to your success.

I am still the little girl on the playground that believes in her dream, and I know that I’m on my unique, complex, adventurous path to get there. I believe in the destination, so I embrace the journey that’s taking me there.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

KANYSHA is a Washington DC area singer, songwriter, actress and performer. As an artist who refuses to be confined by the boundaries of genre limitations, she is inspired by the extraordinary lessons hidden within life’s ordinary moments.

Native to the Washington DC Metropolitan area, Kanysha began her formal voice training at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington DC. Upon graduating from Ellington, Kanysha continued her musical training at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and received her Bachelor of Music Degree from George Mason University in Fairfax, VA.

Kanysha has had the honor of performing in the country’s most famous venues such as New York City’s Carnegie Hall and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC. Recently, Kanysha has been prominently featured in the Washington DC theater community and has graced the area’s most prominent stages including Arena Stage, Signature Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, Shakespeare Theatre Company, ArtsCentric, Round House Theatre and more!

Kanysha is also a singer/songwriter and podcaster; her music is available on all streaming platforms and her podcast, Downstage Center, is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! Currently, Kanysha works as a singer, actress, performer, and music educator in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

1. Empathy

I believe that it’s extremely important for an artist to be able to empathize with their audience. As someone who views music as a tool to connect with people, it’s probably a good idea to have a general sense of how people…tick. Understanding people’s thoughts and feelings provides inspiration to create from and insight into how you want to approach things.

Let’s come up with an example: Let’s say, I’m headlining a concert, in the middle of the winter, and it’s 18 degrees out. There’s a line of people wrapped around the block to get in and everyone is freezing and miserable from waiting outside.

When they finally get inside and the show begins, I notice that there’s a dip in the energy level of the crowd and as the artist, I’m doing the work to get people excited again. I look out into the audience and see everyone bundled up with hats, gloves, coats and scarves, and realize that it’s only been a few moments since everyone was out in the cold. I can exercise my empathetic skills and address the situation with the audience, maybe even make up a few jokes about it. I could take the opportunity to further connect with the audience by talking with them, validating them, and knowing myself, I’d probably do a group “warm-up” or dance with the crowd to literally get some heat and good vibes in the room.

This is an exaggerated scenario, but the lesson remains the same: paying attention to how people feel creates opportunities to connect with them. Music is my method of connection, so I intentionally spend time looking beyond the surface so that I can best be of service to those who seek it.

2. Music Education

In the simplest of terms, it’s hard to create something you know nothing about. That isn’t to say that you have to be a master of music theory, notation and sight-reading to make music, but it’s important to learn and grow along the way.

According to Stevie Wonder, “Music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand…” and learning to speak that language enhances your ability to create. Learning the “language” helps you understand why certain things feel a certain way, why some music makes us dance, while other music makes us cry. Music education gives us a “behind-the scenes” look at how music works, and gives musicians the tools to add their unique sound to the “world within itself”.

Getting to know something gives you an enhanced appreciation of it, and music is no exception. Take the opportunity to listen to as much as you can, watch breakdowns of your favorite songs and learn how the artists put them together, go to a concert that you may never have considered and see what feelings are inspired in you. And of course, YouTube University is a fantastic platform to learn music theory. Happy Learning!

3. Social Awareness Skills

Onstage, off, and in everyday life, it’s important to be able to “read the room”. Similar to empathy, social skills are valuable in performance, personal, and business settings. But where empathy focuses in on people’s feelings, social skills zoom in on how your personality, platform, and offerings interact with and potentially benefit others. It’s about recognizing what you have to contribute, and figuring out how your contributions effect the environment you’re in.

This can be difficult to master, as every situation requires a different response, but the best way to practice is to simply be. Pay attention to body language, verbal and non-verbal responses, and analyze how your unique skills and strengths can enhance your environment. Observation is key.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

The beginning of the year brings about resolutions, time to reflect, and a painfully difficult realization of what has yet to be achieved. I’ve recently found myself frustrated by my seemingly never-ending list of goals and my failure to complete them.

I acknowledge that I’m a bit of a perfectionist, and I put a lot of effort into producing music, videos, and experiences of quality. However, quality comes at a cost, and I often sacrifice productivity because I feel that I don’t have the resources that I need to create high-quality content.

What I’m working through now, is the idea that “I HAVE MORE THAN I THINK, AND I HAVE EVERYTHING THAT I NEED.”

Recently, I put out a Christmas single, “Oh Christmas Tree”, and I was concerned about having the perfect marketing and visuals to accompany the single’s release. I worried myself trying to find collaborators and finding the funds to get it all done in the middle of the holidays.

After speaking with a friend, I realized that although I didn’t have a marketing/visuals budget, I did have a Canva account, and thus I had everything that I needed. I got to work using my own videos, my own photos, and my obsession with Christmas magic to create visuals, videos, reels, and content to accompany the song. Not only was I able to do everything I needed myself, I actually ENJOYED DOING IT.

I’m keeping this example (and others) close to my heart as I work on other projects, and I’m reminding myself that more often than not, the solutions we seek can be found within ourselves.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Photographers:

– Kellie Finch
– Danielle Finney

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Leadership Development
Empathy Unlocked: Understanding how to Develop Emotional Intelligence

“Empathy is the starting point for creating a community and taking action. It’s the impetus

Productivity
Where do you get your work ethic from?

We’ve all heard the phrase “work hard, play hard,” but where does our work ethic

Productivity
Boosting Productivity Through Self-Care

When you have a never-ending to-do list it can feel irresponsible to engage in self-care,