New York City multi-artist artist keiyaA has returned after years of solitude spent returning to share her findings, after half a decade of navigating loss, grief, and anger, Chicago-born,unapologetic clarity. Her new single “stupid prizes,” accompanied by a self-co-directed music video with Caity Arthur, marks a new chapter. Known for her explorations of Black womanhood and liberation, and experimentation. “Stupid Prizes” is the follow-up to keiyaA’s 2020 debut Forever, Ya Girl, arriving in the wake of her first theatrical stage play, milk thot.

Earlier this year, keiyaA expanded her artistic expression with milk thot, her first full-length stage production, which premiered at Abrons Arts Center in New York City. The performance combined live music, poetry, and choreography to delve into topics such as self-image, family lineage, and societal consumption. Developed during a residency at Abrons, milk thot marked a significant evolution in her multidisciplinary approach to storytelling.

Speaking about “stupid prizes,” keiyaA says:

“i wrote, recorded, and produced “stupid prizes” all in one sitting, at home late at night in my living room in Brooklyn. i sampled Percy Faith, an orchestral composer known for creating rich and luscious scores and show tunes, helping contribute to this classic “American” sound. i sought out to create this sort of bed of irony, to speak and sing about being miserable on top of this beautiful, dreamy and romantic music. which speaks not only to what it can feel like navigating my internal and external worlds, but also what it feels like being a marginalized person in America.”

Since the release of Forever, Ya Girl, keiyaA has appeared at Solange’s El Dorado Ballroom show at BAM, Wales Bonner’s Togetherness presentation at the Guggenheim, ESSENSE’s Girls United Summit, and MoMA PS1’s Warm Up series. She walked in Telfar’s 20th-anniversary show, contributed music to the brand’s Moose Knuckles collaboration, and scored Nike’s Come Thru series. She also performed at the Bourse de Commerce in Paris, as well as in her hometown of Chicago at Pitchfork Music Festival and Theaster Gates’ Kenwood Garden community space.

In 2020, keiyaA released her self-produced debut album Forever, Ya Girl, a blend of jazz, R&B, hip-hop. It also drew praise from artists including Solange, Jay-Z, Earl Sweatshirt, Blood Orange, Kimberly Drew, and Moses Sumney.

Order “Stupid Prizes” by keiyaA HERE