The presenter at the D: lab’s maiden spring semester Content Series Episode 1: Mr. Keli'26
It was an exciting day at the Dlab on February 3rd as we hosted our first-ever Content Series episode in the Spring Semester 2023! This episode was dedicated to Design Thinking and its application in Music Production. The speaker of the episode was Mr. Keli, an aspiring music producer from the class of 2026. He has produced for a number of artists including Asian Doll and co-produced a song by Digga D that charted number one on the UK charts. Popularly known as khxnbeats, Keli engaged the audience with a fascinating discussion about the intersection of Music Production and the Design Thinking framework. It was a packed house with attendees consisting of other aspiring creatives, music lovers and design-thinking enthusiasts.
Our guest speaker delivered an icebreaker to kick off the event. Khxn Beats played music samples for the audience, and they had to identify the tracks that used the samples. We heard stories of how Design Thinking has been used and integrated into Music Production. The presentation was enlightening and inspiring, giving the participants a better understanding of how Design Thinking can be applied in everyday life. Mr. Kelly spoke on the value of Design Thinking in the creation of music and how the principles of Design Thinking might be used. During his presentation, he began by outlining the fundamentals of design thinking and how it might assist music producers in standing out and creating unique sounds. With concepts such as the ‘The Five Whys’, which he currently revisited in FDE , as well as the numerous methods, Keli was able to come up with ways to create original and redefining sounds for the Drill Music Space, a modern rap genre from Chicago is called drill music. It arrived in the UK in 2012 and has since expanded from Brixton to every region of the nation. It is distinguished by menacing beats, eerie melodies, and sinister lyrics.
Mr. Keli'26 demonstrates how he used the ‘5 WHYS’ in Music Production at the D: lab’s maiden spring semester Content Series: Episode 1
Also, Mr. Keli discussed his own personal experiences using Design Thinking and how it has assisted him in creating some of his most successful music. He spoke about the value of knowing your audience's needs and preferences and how to use this information to make music that resonates with them. Greatness, of course, is not achieved without challenges. Keli described in detail the obstacles that he faced and still continues to face in his pursuit of innovative music production. The first was general stigmatization of creatives in Ghana. Unfortunately, creatives are not given enough recognition for their various endeavors. Additionally, many Ghanaians are skeptical when it comes to the creative arts. Secondly, Keli highlighted the struggles he faced in balancing his work with his A-Levels during his last year of high school. However, now in university, Keli seeks to be as consistent with his music as possible all whilst maintaining excellent grades.
The feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, with members of the audience engaging Keli with exciting questions on his future and his plans to inspire others to also take up music production. Overall, members of the audience left not only inspired but knowledgeable in ways in which they too can apply design thinking in even the most mundane parts of life.