Khxos challenges colourism on ‘Melanin’ EP

Globally, racism is at the forefront of many conversations. While in the US issues of police brutality against African Americans and violent displays of Islamophobia are rampant, people in the Caribbean sometimes deal with an insidious attitude that pedestals those with lighter complexions. Twenty-eight-year-old US-based artiste Khxos (Oshane Logan) is adding his voice to the conversation – through music meant to appeal to women with melanin.

Earlier this month, Khxos released his début EP called Melanin – the title taken from one of the project’s tracks – featuring dancehall star Konshens. Khxos shared with The Gleaner that the inspiration behind the song came about during a regular conversation with a friend. “We were debating on the subject ‘black men prefer lighter-skin women’, and we went back and forth for hours about it. Jokingly, I said to her, ‘I’m going to do a song for you’. Then I ended up doing one the following night,” he said.

Already boasting some high ties in the industry, Khxos snagged the feature from Konshens for the titular song with relative ease. “I’m cool with Konshens, so I reached out to him and told him what I was trying to accomplish.”

Contrary to his name, Khxos seems to have a structured approach to his productions. With tracks like Jungle, Black and O2, other known and up-and-coming artistes joined the conversation. Khxos’ Melanin EP features include Royal Blu, Blvk H3ro and Zagga. “I’ve been a fan of Royal Blu for years; Blvk H3ro and Zagga likewise. They all have a unique sound and style. I shared the idea with them and they all loved it. The EP also features up-and-coming singers Kim Gebriel and Dehshh, who Khxos describes as ‘vocally gifted’.

direction

Though he reached out to a number of colleagues to add their voices to the project, Khxos relied on one producer – Sean Alaric. Khxos said he has been working with him for the past 10 years. “He’s the one who helped me to formulate my current sounds – and most of my songs’ ideas stem from his direction,” he said.

Khxos explained that his sound is a mixture of many different ones, but it’s still dancehall. He said: “It’s just a bit more smooth and sexy. I also enjoy doing songs for the ladies, so I mainly stick to topics relating to them.”

He recently visited the island, as he was scheduled to perform at 6ix Is Real, Squash’s highly anticipated and subsequently postponed concert. The performance was intended to strengthen his connection with fans at home. “My song topics are influenced by events surrounding our Jamaican culture, so having a Jamaican audience, whether at home or abroad, is very, very important to me,” he said.

Khxos’ ultimate goal is to connect with as many people as possible, and to live the dream of performing on some of the world’s biggest stages. “Reggae Sumfest, Coachella, the Grammys ... you name it! I want to represent dancehall and make my family, supporters and even other artistes in the genre proud. I want to stamp my name in the industry and be recognised among some of the greats. I want to influence a new generation of creatives. I want to push people to follow their dreams. I don’t plan to stop until I’ve accomplished these goals,” he said.