The Rise & Fall:  Keite Young

In a crowd, he'd be easy to spot: He's the one standing just apart from the pack, inquisitive and meditative, his quiet interrupted by his own deafening thoughts. And, oh yeah: He'd be the one discreetly observing YOU.

That's who Keite Young is, a zealous voyeur awestruck by the parade of humanity called life. The burning interpretation of his sensitive, poignant annotations comes out in, as he wryly puts it, The Wash--which, in this case, is his music.

During "The Rise and Fall of Keite Young", Keite Young, singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist channels the musical passion and adventure of Al Green, Muddy Waters, Sly Stone and the Beatles to artfully create his own singular, dynamic space of storied, gospel-tinged, soul barn-burning and unrelenting live rock and funktified grooves.

Born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Young's dichotomy is rooted in a large family ruled by spirituality and music. His mother and father both sang and toured in fellow Texan Kirk Franklins group The Family . Young himself sang lead vocal on Let My People Go, Franklin/Family's contribution to 1998s The Prince of Egypt soundtrack, and he joined his parents as a performer during Franklins Nu Nation Tour.

Listen up and bear witness to The Rise and Fall of Keite Young, current emphasis being the rise. As for the fall, don't hold your breath.....In Stores NOW!!

Keite Young isn’t like most R&B singers—it’s Valentine’s Day, yet he’d rather not talk about women or relationships.

“Music is my love,” says Young, 29. “Let’s talk about that instead.” Fair enough. Growing up in a family where his maternal grandfather was a blues singer and mother a member of Kirk Franklin’s choir, it’s easy to understand Young’s affinity for music. But Young (his first name is pronounced “keet”) will be the first to tell you music wasn’t his primary calling.

His deep religious upbringing conflicted with the secular tunes he loved so much. And to begin with, Young turned to the pulpit—he was ordained as a minister at 15—before realizing that secularity and spirituality can coexist. After touring with Kirk Franklin’s choir in 1997, Young began to blend gospel with funky inspiration from Prince, Sly, and Stevie.

Five years later, Young’s soul-stirring fusion of genres caught the ear of his great uncle Waymon Tisdale, the former NBA baller and renowned smooth jazz guitarist, who passed a demo on to Hidden Beach CEO Steve McKeever. Impressed, McKeever signed Young immediately. “I don’t compare him to anyone, but I put Keite on a pedestal with those greats like Prince, D’Angelo, and Al Green,” says Tisdale.

“John Legend paved the way for this kind of music to be popular today, and Keite is the next voice.” Young is motivated to reach his own legendary status with his forthcoming debut, The Rise & Fall of Keite Young.

The album deliberately toes that fine line between good and evil. From the uplifting “Pray” to the sultry “The Way You Love Me,” Young takes listeners on a lyrical rollercoaster through heaven and hell. “Preachers and pimps have the same oratory gift,” he explains. “They have the same ability to incite emotion.”

As Young wraps up his sermon on life being a constant battle between the spirit and the flesh, he brings it all full circle: “I like having a conversation that results from music,” he says. “By just focusing on music, I can bring together my spiritual side and my sensual side. It’s all beautiful, and I hope listeners understand that.” Chuuch!

Vibe Magazine Excerpt