Rapping in French and English, Missy D sings of authenticity and hope
The local artist joins KeAloha as co-feature artist of Talking Stick @ The TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival
Missy Dy. Photo by Desi
Full Circle: First Nations Performance and Coastal Jazz present Missy D on June 29 at 9 pm at Ocean Art Works as part of Talking Stick @ The TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival
LOCAL HIP-HOP/rap and soul artist Missy D born in Kigali, Rwanda; grew up in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire; and went to school in Harare, Zimbabwe. She was always discovering music from around the world, thanks to her late father’s vast, eclectic CD collection and family car rides where the stereo was always on. Even if she didn’t always understand the words, she was always singing along to the melodies. Then an elementary-school teacher tuned into her class and introduced Missy D to the genre that would become her passion and focus.
“I met hip hop when I was Grade 5, and the rest was history,” Missy D shares with Stir. “I now could put words to these melodies I loved and learn how to express myself with this art form. My music teacher was kind enough to listen to our grade and change the music curriculum. We went from learning the recorder to learning the history of hip hop—all the elements, and our assignment was to write a rap. Something happened on that stage, I found myself in hip hop.”
Rapping in French and English, Missy D counts Solaar, Diams, Erykah Badu, India Arie, J.Cole, Missy Elliott, and Lauryn Hill among her influences. Following the release of her debut album, When Music Hits You Feel No Pain, Missy D was one of the winners of the 2017 Storyhive Music Video Edition for her song “XX” featuring Kimmortal; in 2018, she performed as a SXSW official artist and at JUNOFest as the opener for Maestro Fresh Wes. Missy D’s second EP, Yes Mama, dropped in 2020 as the world went into lockdown, the release exploring her journey through grief after the loss of her father. She recently released a brand new French EP, Case Départ.
Now, Missy D is co-feature artist, along with singer-songwriter-drummer-dancer KeAloha, of Full Circle: First Nations Performance and Coastal Jazz, a role that includes her upcoming performance at the 2022 TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival.
“This is an opportunity to learn alongside and from each other,” Missy D says. “At times, being an independent artist feels like a very lonely learning road. This offers room for growth, for conversation, for collaboration, and for community.”
In addition to their live performances throughout the fest, Missy D and KeAloha will be taking part in meet-ups, jams, and other outreach activities that will touch on decolonization. As part of this shared role, the artists are exploring questions such as: How do we relate to Black-rooted music on Indigenous lands? And how do we move forward in solidarity?
“The answer is still in progress as we begin the conversation,” Missy D says. “There is no Black liberation without Indigenous sovereignty. We are influenced by one another; we want to support one another. We learn, play, and perform on Indigenous lands; we want to stand together and for each other. And with music like jazz and hip hop, how do we unpack the themes of decolonization and solidarity that might show up in a classroom, in a song, on stage and in our daily lives? I believe my answer to this question will be more complete as KeAloha and I collaborate, and the answer will evolve. It could be a book, it could be further conversation, it could be a song, it could be an outreach program… More to come.”
At her Jazz Festival performance, Missy D will share songs from Case Départ, mixing in some as-yet unreleased music as well as tracks from Yes Mama. Joining her on-stage are musicians and friends Sejal Lal on violin and vocals, Vinay Lobo on guitar, Dave Taylor on bass, and Yato Noukoussi on drums.
“It will be a bilingual experience, and you will hear all my influences from jazz to Afrobeats to rock to hip hop,” Missy D says. “I am grateful. If you want some live hip hop, that jazz sample, those grooves: this is the show for you.
“The people are my driving force,” she adds. “It really does take a village to raise a child, and this music and the people have raised me. In my music, you will find messages about authenticity, expression, and hope. I hope my music reaches you when you most need it or reminds you that you can dream, you can express yourself, and you can be proud of all the features that make you you.”
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