We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kenny Pahina. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kenny below.

Alright, Kenny thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

In the dawn of the 00’s, my heart would light up seeing videos of the pop icons like Michael Jackson; My dad had this 1991 cassette of Michael Jackson’s album “Dangerous” that I would listen to religiously with its sleek cuts of new jack swing pop tracks. At the time, the younger acts struck a chord with me. It was the spectacle of it all. I was witnessing a teen pop/r&b explosion of artists like N’Sync, Britney, Brandy, & B2K. They were taking over and I wanted to be just like them. At a young age, I knew i wanted to do fun things like that. Through my teens, I went to a performing arts school for piano; at home, I would work on my own productions and songs for fun. Although i was young, I knew the cost of doing what i wanted to do was expensive.I kept working to find a sound over the years, I practiced photography/videography for myself & recording my own songs. I knew if I could do it myself, it would save my pockets in the future. It wasnt until 2019 that i released my first single, “Are You Still In Love’ . It was a single that was very reflective of the sound that i wanted when i was a kid; A sound that was very saturated in that late 90s/ y2k pop sound. I started being a full time performer since then and its been so much fun! Then, i knew that this is very much my passion and exactly what i want to do.

Kenny, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Kenny Pahina! I’m a singer-songwriter/producer hailing from Jackson, MS. Pop music is everything to me and I always have strived provide a musical safe space for everybody in music versatility, positive energy, and pushing the envelope of what creatives can do. When people listen to my music, I hope to spark a feeling of excitement and to let go of today’s stressors. We all, at times, need an escape; for a lot of people, music is that escape they need. If you’re ever down here in the dirty-dirty, You’ll probably catching singing on stage (with my lil’ headset mic), a couple of backup dancers, (a.k.a. my homies), and DJ Freddy Lee (my brother) tearing it up for whatever venue is down to have us!

I was raised by a hardworking Navy Retiree father and an ever-so-resilient mother who moved from Tacloban City, Philippines with my older brother in 1991. Being raised in the hood, near my dad’s childhood home, I had a wonderful childhood. My dad was deacon and sang in the choir, with a rich baritone voice. He & my grandmother would have me singing church hymns while my brother played piano. I would enjoy dancing with my mom (even to this day). She’s a big disco fan; She recalls how popular “Do the Hustle” was as a line dance while she was in high school. I would say, My parents definitely had a big hand in my music development.

Before I moved back to Jackson, MS, there wasn’t some big pop music artist to really look up to. It was a bit scary, that I wouldnt have an audience but I went for it (I was down to at least start something fun and new here). I was getting all walks of life coming to hang and see my perform. Black creatives, White creatives, LGBTQ+ creatives having a great time because pop music is such a spectrum; There is no limit…just as long as the formula is right. As of now, I feel like I’m seeing a shift of pop music artists in our area that are hungry and ready to thrive. I love to see it.

Right as I was getting started, The pandemic happened. So, that was a bummer but at least i could spend time with family and focus on creating and building an artillery. Although i lost out on some opportunities (as many people did), I was able to land an opportunity to work on Samsung’s Awesome Is For Everyone/Galaxy A series 2020 campaign with artists like BLACKPINK involved. Now, THAT was super cool!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

As independent artists starting out, we are followers. When i say we are followers, i mean, We have artists that we look up to. A lot of those are MAJOR LABEL recording artists! I was so obsessed with doing the 1,2,3 step process of how they would drop a song or how the would do this or that. What i had to realize is that “I can do whatever i want”. If I have song I released from an album 5 years ago and i want to do a video for it, why not ? I do agree there are some guidelines as in for publishing, copyright, and all that jazz but seriously, I had to learn that I can do anything i want to do. There’s no rush over here, they will be ready when it is time. I was stressing myself out so much over my first music video like i had an intense deadline; but when things are ready, Its funny how sometime we put crazy pressure on ourselves for no reason. I’m not being forced to do anything, I’m doing things my way because I love this.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Wooh! I’m on the journey of FINISHING a DEBUT album, set to release 2024! I absolutely despise giving dates but haha that is my goal! Again, I was so tied up on “Oh gad, should i do an EP/ Release a remix/ I’m losing traction” Since, the pandemic, i have mellowed out and just narrowed in on what i want the sound of this album to be and I’m absolutely loving where it is going! Since 2019, I have been working on this album and I don’t ever beat myself up about it because HEY its not easy to build a Time Traveling machine…And thats what this album feels like. I have been writing alongside my good friend, Vershaune (songwriter, vocalist) and having some amazing collaborations that i am so excited to share with the WORLD.

I have a new single, that is a collaboration with an amazing time-warping Japanese producer, Initial Talk (known for the w/ retro remixes for Dua Lipa & many more). I know the beginning of this 2020 decade was tough, but things are just starting to heat up. I feel it. I know i am very new and unknown to a lot, but i’m here to show a good time to anyone is willing to listen. I am so grateful to do what i do. I guess we’ll have to find out if the world is ready to jam out with someone who may not be the average boy next door…

Contact Info:

• Website: www.kennypahina.net
• Instagram: @kennypahina
• Facebook: @kennypahina
• Twitter: @kennypahina
• Youtube: @kennypahina

Image Credits
@by.snave // @lasanmuse // @village.prod