Keshi (singer)

Keshi was born Casey Luong in Houston, Texas to Vietnamese parents and grew up in nearby Sugar Land. Despite living in an ethnically diverse community with a large Asian population, he recalls that he often felt out of place and disconnected with his heritage while growing up, as others around him were mostly ethnically Chinese.[3] When he was 13, he began learning the guitar after picking it up from his grandfather. He began teaching himself the instrument while using his grandfather's Vietnamese music book.

He graduated from Stephen F. Austin High School in Sugar Land and earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Texas at Austin.[4] He then worked as an oncology nurse at the Texas Medical Center for two years.[5]

During college, he created his moniker "Keshi", and began to share music via his SoundCloud page. He credited watching YouTube tutorials for teaching himself writing, producing, performing and engineering his own music.[4] Initially, he was in doubt of his abilities and musical direction, but slowly his distinct style garnered more attention and popularity.[3] His lo-fi productions offered him a sense of newfound musical freedom and excitement, and it wasn't long before his music took on a more solid shape. In 2017, he quit his job as a nurse and flew to New York City to sign with Island Records. His decision to quit nursing and the pursuit of music was ultimately made due to his realization that the fear of missed opportunities exceeded his fear of failure.[6] From there, his first singles attracted millions of listeners upon release.[1]

He cites John Mayer, Frank Ocean, The 1975, Drake, and Bryson Tiller as some of his greatest musical influences.[2]