…an artist to watch”

Kierran is a 20-year-old R&B artist making his way through London’s music scene. Starting out in the West End as a young Michael Jackson in Thriller, Kierran has been working professionally since he was 13. Listening to music always made him feel good, so her started making it himself, teaching himself how to play piano, guitar and produce. Growing up he was inspired by Prince, Michael Jackson and Beyonce, and now uses techniques and styles from artists such as Kehlani and Imogen Heap.

Even If by Alyssa was Kierran’s debut feature in 2019, an old school 90s inspired pop anthem which Kierran cowrote and produced. Using his trademark style of sampled sounds such as ringtones and notification drops, you can tell this is a Kierran song. “Any good musician should love collaborating”, as he describes his experience with Alyssa. The two good friends spent 2 days recording the song and playing around with ideas, until they finally found a sound that made both their voices pop.

However, some collaborations don’t always go this way, speaking from past experiences he talks about the importance to hear out each other’s ideas, and how he loves just testing harmonies and sounds out, without that exploration, the song can sometimes be bland. Unfortunately, you do get artists who want you to come in and produce or sing for them, and don’t give you that time.

But for Kierran, that session is a waste of time. “I’ve got a producer, writer and topliner all in the same room right now”, he doesn’t need help, he loves learning and bouncing off other people.

As an LGBTQ artist Kierran talks the importance of diversity in the music industry and how inspiring it is to see artists like Sam Smith evolving their music around them becoming comfortable with their sexuality and gender identity. Kierran relates so much to the struggle, he had people tell him songs would sell better if they were heterosexual. “To an extent it’s understandable, because unfortunately right now it’s the truth”. When writing a song, he’s confident in the people he works with, and knows he doesn’t have to censor his sexuality, and why this is important to him. “It gives space for artists to not care about what they’re writing about, and just write”.

Kierran’s current EP is about love, something everyone can relate to, but different aspects of love he feels no one has talked about yet. It explores heartbreak, joy and friendship but also topics like online dating and ghosting that people rarely cover in mainstream pop, but with a fresh yet old-school 90s vibe. The EP will be in two parts and will be released very soon, so make sure to go to Kierran’s Instagram page @onlykierran to stay tuned, and make sure to download Alyssa and Kierran’s song Even If on all major streaming platforms.