Meet Kesley Bou: Singer/Songwriter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kesley Bou and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kesley, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
Taking risks is SO SCARY! BUT! It is essential to leveling up. If you don’t take a risk every now and then you don’t move forward. It’s scary to take a risk because the thought of failure is scary. BUT! I like to think that there is no such thing as failure, because one thing always leads to the next, and there is always a lesson. My life motto is “live and learn.” Make mistakes, have grace and figure it out. My husband and I took a big risk when moved away from our families in 2018 to live in ATL. We didn’t have jobs and barely knew anyone. We moved in with an amazing couple that we barely knew, and lived with them for free for 8 months while we went to EVERY open mic in the city until we were gigging enough to get our own apartment. When you throw yourself into the deep end your desperation to survive breads the creativity you need to succeed. Everything you want is on the other side of your fear. If you don’t take the risk you’ll never find out the good waiting for you. I really believe in following my gut and going for what feels right. I always seek advice from people I trust before making a life changing decision, but most of the time your gut feeling is your next move. I feel like my entire career as a micro influencer, and singer/songwriter has been all built on taking risks, and going with my gut. Every year I get closer to where/who I want to be. Success doesn’t happen over night, but I’m hoping that I’ll be ready to ride the wave when the wave comes.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am MOST proud of my music. I have never been more connected to anything else that I’ve ever worked on or created. I am first and foremost a singer/songwriter, but I am also a micro influencer. Influencing as a career came first last summer when one of my TikTok videos went viral reaching almost 40M views. My following grew to 1.2M in a month, and I was able to build my music career from there. Still in the beginning stages with my debut single, gulf blvd, dropping on May 7th, 2021. It’s out now! I started singing when I was a kid, and wrote my first real song at 17. I am 26 now so it has taken a long time to get to where I am today. Building a career as an artist is hard work. You have to be extremely dedicated or extremely lucky I guess… otherwise it’s not happening… lol. I still feel like I’m not working hard enough most of the time and that’s when I pull a few all nighters, and completely exhaust myself into a puddle of tears on the floor… but I’m working on it. I’ve learned that what’s mine is mine, and there’s nothing I can do to mess it up. I’ve also learned that it’s good to celebrate wins big or small, but if you dwell on what you’ve achieved in the past, you’ll never achieve anything in the present/future… scary right? I’ve always had a hard time giving myself permission to be myself, to know what I want, and what I like. I want my music and my art to encourage people to be their authentic selves. I think that is something that Billie Eilish does really well, and it’s one of the reasons she inspires me so much.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my besties were visiting ATL for the first time I would say, Sunday afternoons at Piedmont park are the best if you like to people watch, and maybe make new friends! I’m also obsessed with dogs so I love seeing everyone out with their fur babies. The pancakes at Pancake Social at Ponce are literally my favorite pancakes on the planet! Role Call, right next door, is a great place to find local talent in the improve/comedy world. I think karaoke is really fun so I would definitely take my friends to Dark Horse which has a cool underground stage and a rock/hardcore live band. I also love discovering new bands at Smith’s Old Bar. The dirtier the bar the better the bands…sometimes lol. If we are feeling boujee than I would definitely do brunch at Breakfast at Barneys. Nothing beats the nighttime view of the city from the top of the ferris wheel so that’s a must. Last I would say, a Saturday morning bike ride on the Beltline is such a vibe. You can rent bikes at the Atlanta Bicycle Barn. Oh! and the Bar Taco at Inman Park is my favorite! I love getting a bunch of dishes to share, and their marg is BOMB! Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to shout out my husband Trey for pushing me to be a strong and independent woman. I would not have taken half of the risks that I have taken with out his encouragement. I also want to shout out Shy Suber of Sushi Roll Records for writing and producing several songs with me which ultimately helped me get my foot in the door. He has taught me SO much. I would not have taken the other half of the risks I have taken with out his encouragement, hard work and creative mind. Shout out to my manager, Eva, with FATA booking. She is such a BAD ASS!!!! She inspires me, and keeps me on top of everything. Her hard work is unmatched. I have to shout out Don Miggs for producing and co-writing several of my songs coming out this summer. He’s a genius, a talented musician and way cooler than me… AND shout out to all my girls for being my biggest cheerleaders!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kesleybou/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KesleyBou

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Kesleybou

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC84sl1vnXlOZxTdDLH192pw

Image Credits
Ali Turgeon