KEM Talks Leaving Motown, Playing The Aretha and New Music | 105.1 The Bounce - video Dailymotion

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00:00Today is a special day. We've got an amazing icon in the building, Detroit's very own.

00:05He's definitely been the soundtrack of my life because the first song that I ever remember

00:09hearing was Love Calls and I knew that my mom was in a good mood when she was playing Love Calls,

00:14okay? So let me have the honor of introducing Kim to the building. How you doing? I'm good,

00:20Leisha. How are you? I'm doing fantastic because again, I'm making my mama's dreams come true

00:24right now. There you go. She is so upset that she can't be here. We'll call her after. We'll call

00:28her after. You're going to make her day. You're going to make her day. So how are you doing?

00:31Because you are killing it right now. Huge announcements and you're about to have an

00:35amazing show here in Detroit soon. So how are you feeling? I'm fantastic. Fantastic. Yes. Good to

00:41be in the deep. Good to be at home. The place that I love with the people that I love, you know, it's

00:47good. It's good. Life is good. So I'm a new Detroiter now. Okay. So what has been your favorite

00:53part about Detroit? Like when you come back or when you've been overseas or you've done some,

00:58a lot of press or touring, what's the one thing that you have to immediately do when you come

01:03back home? Um, I like the food. Uh, so that could be anything from, uh, greens, hamburgers and, uh,

01:12Farmington Hills to, uh, a Coney dog. And actually I was thinking about, um, Louisiana Creole after I

01:18leave here or, uh, you know, and I like the hot dogs over at Home Depot too. Look, to the Home Depot,

01:25man, look, I gotta, yeah. So the food, the people, the Midwest, you know, um, the hustle, the grind,

01:33the, uh, unpretentiousness, you know, of the people is laid back, you know? And, uh, so Detroit,

01:40Detroit is always, is always home. I've definitely noticed the grind and the fact that they are not

01:46fully like jaded by any celebrities who come around. Like everybody's a celebrity in Detroit.

01:52Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Where are you from? I'm from D.C. originally. Oh, D.C. We like D.C. I love D.C.

01:56W.W. Well, I don't know if I should say the station in here. I probably get, yeah, we love D.C.

02:02Oh, okay. I just wanted to make sure you, I was about to say, hold on now. Am I going to say

02:06something wrong? The DMV? Come on now. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. It's all love. So obviously I'm a huge fan of

02:14yours and I just wanted to dive into your music a little bit before we talk about the extravaganza you're

02:20about to do for your birthday weekend. First of all, happy upcoming birthday. Thank you. Thank you.

02:24How are you feeling about your birthday coming up? It's better to have one than not. Correct. Correct.

02:29Okay. So as you're going into this upcoming year and you've had so many albums and songs come out,

02:37I think that this is going to be a very hard question. Maybe, maybe not. What is the album

02:42that feels like you right now? Like that in your current state of life? Um, I'm rocking to the,

02:47to the music that I'm, I'm, I'm creating right now. Okay. You know, um, we've got some really

02:52exciting things happening, you know, as you know, and, uh, I'm in a real creative space. Um,

02:59so we're releasing new music, uh, on, uh, on my label chemistry records and, uh, we're really,

03:05really, really excited about it. So I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, uh, I'm locked into, um, you know,

03:11this season, I call this season, the return to love, you know, it's a return to love. It's a

03:17return to all of the things that, uh, make me want to do what I do and that have motivated me,

03:23you know, for, for all these music, the music has motivated me since I was a kid. You know,

03:27so I'm, I'm, I'm returning to that, to that space creatively and, uh, and it feels really good.

03:33Love in all of its facets, all of its facets.

03:36I love that. So you already brought it up. We heard the amazing announcement that you are now

03:41officially bringing back chemistry records. Yeah. How are you feeling about this new venture?

03:47What are you looking forward to for the new revitalization of chemistry records? Um,

03:52it's amazing for me and it's, uh, and it's amazing for, for my fans. Um, you know, the, the,

03:59the industry has, has undergone a sea change over the last 10, 15 years and people are,

04:06listening to music differently. You know, um, you got to fight for the attention of your, of,

04:11of, of your listener. Uh, radio has always been a great partner for me and, and, uh, and I'm happy

04:17about that. Um, but we'll be able to put music out, you know, when, when, when I want to, if I got

04:22something hot, which, which I do right now, but when I got something hot, I can put it out

04:27immediately. And there are, there are so many, uh, vehicles to exploit your music, to put your music

04:33out into the world from social media, content creators, licensing sync. Um, you know, so it's,

04:40it's, it's an exciting time, you know, and I'm, and I'm really, really happy about it.

04:43And I know that you've already kind of talked about how you've been doing this for a very long

04:48time, because I have a quote that even though you're signed, you're still independent. And I

04:53feel like people really needed to hear that. So I wanted to bring up that quote again, because

04:57when you put out chemistry, you put out 17,000 units independently. Am I correct?

05:03Yes. Yes. Yes.

05:04So now you're bringing this into a whole new venture just for yourself, or are you going

05:08to open this up to other people potentially sometime in the near future?

05:12Well, right now it's just the, the, the label, um, is a, is just a vehicle for me, you know,

05:17and we'll see what the, we'll see what the future holds. You know, I think that, um, um, you

05:23know, and, and yeah, when you're assigned to a label, you are, you are an independent. There's

05:26nobody who's going to come into your, you know, to all the artists out there, aspiring artists,

05:30there's nobody who's going to come, you know, you, there, there are opportunities that will

05:34come, but ultimately you're always responsible for, for carrying the narrative of, of your career

05:40and your business. You're responsible for that because everybody is, you know, in, in all business

05:45and all walks of life, all related, everybody's trying to do what's best for them, right? You

05:49know, and, uh, and there's a place for that. So you need to be mindful and cosmic cog cognizant

05:55of what's going on so that you can make the right moves for you.

05:59So now that you are officially independent, and even though you've been doing this on your

06:03own for quite some time, what keeps you motivated in those moments where everything just feels

06:08like it's piling up? Cause I can only imagine what you have to deal with on a day-to-day

06:12paces just as an artist, but now you also have more of the business side that you also have

06:18to decide on. So how do you keep focused and like motivated to keep pushing?

06:21Um, I've assembled a great team of, uh, industry professionals, you know, um, I don't, uh, claim

06:29to, you know, be, um, doing, doing it all by myself. I was talking to somebody earlier

06:37today, you know, we always talk about when we're talking about our kids, we say that it

06:40takes a village, but for grown folks too, it takes a village, you know, so I'm, I don't,

06:45I don't operate alone. I am surrounded by great people and, uh, and we just get it done.

06:50I love that. So I know that you already mentioned that music has saved your life.

06:56Music and your specific music has definitely touched people's lives. I mean, like I said

07:01earlier, when I knew my mom was in a good mood was when she was rotating Kim's albums, like

07:06clockwork. So how do you feel when people come up to you and they say that they've used your

07:10songs at weddings or that your songs healed them in a really broken time? Like how does that feel

07:15that your music has now become the soundtrack to people's lives? Like the Stevie Wonders and the

07:21Marvin Gaye's music made soundtrack to your life. You know, I, that, that it's a very, it's very

07:25humbling. Um, and it is, uh, you know, I look at what I do is in a way it's, it's sort of like

07:33ministry, you know, um, this, this music, this message of, of love. And, uh, I'm always, I talk

07:40about faith and, and redemption, all of those things that, that we're all in need of and looking

07:47and looking for. Um, so yeah, so people are getting married to the music. They're cleaning their house

07:53to the music. They're, they're on road trips, listening to the music. They, they, they're, um,

07:57getting chemo, chemotherapy treatment, listening to the music, you know, they're grieving the loss

08:03of a loved one listening to the music, you know? So it is, is really something that I don't take

08:08for granted to be, as you say, so eloquently, uh, the soundtrack, you know, to, to people's lives.

08:15It's a blessing. Yes. There's definitely one song that I think hits even more today in 2025.

08:22You performed it on your tiny desk home performance friend today. Oh yeah. Incredible. Yeah. We need

08:29to do something with that record. Yes, please. Can we say it right now? Yes, please. We need to do

08:35something with that record. I think that that song resonated with me so well because, um, I listened

08:41to it first when I was in college and I was going through trying to figure out what I wanted to do

08:45with my life and how I can be a vessel to other people and how that looked like. And seeing that song,

08:50especially in 2020 was such a moving moment, but how do you feel like that song in any of your songs

08:58managed today? Like, how does that make you feel when you listen to friend today in 2025?

09:04Um, those, uh, the, you know, the message in friend today is still relevant, right? You know,

09:08it's more relevant now than it, than, than it was then. I mean, these times that, uh, that we're living

09:13in with the divisiveness that is in, in the country and, uh, and, you know, the political divide,

09:20the cultural divide, you know, um, you know, ultimately we're all, you know, we're all in

09:25this thing together. Right. And, um, yeah. So I think that, that those messages are, are more,

09:30those, those messages are, they're evergreen, you know, cause we're always going to be up against,

09:37uh, the, you know, up against the, the human condition, you know? So, so yes, it's relevant.

09:44I'm glad you mentioned that song. Friend today is a, it's a good one. That's definitely one of my

09:48favorite deep cuts. Like I love the hits and I love the singles. Something about friend today

09:53with, with that sultry voice that we all know that we have the iconic baby. Yeah. I can't do it. I can't,

10:01I'm gonna let you do that. But when it comes to music, I've always wondered this too. A lot of times

10:06there's songs that don't make the record or songs that almost didn't, but made it. Are there any

10:11songs that throughout your 22 years since chemistry came out that almost didn't make the cut that

10:17people would have been like, Whoa, what do you mean that almost didn't make the album? Yeah,

10:21my first Grammy nomination, uh, was for a song called, Why Would You Stay? And, uh, it almost,

10:27it almost didn't make the cut. Wow. It was on the shelf until, uh, a producer friend of mine,

10:33Rex Rideout. He heard it and, um, and convinced me to, you know, to see it, to see it through. Yeah.

10:42Well, shout out to the producer Rex because come on now you wouldn't have that first Grammy.

10:47Nah, there you go. Right. And I think that happens a lot in your life. Like when things are about to

10:53change for you, there's always some like moment that sets into place. You mentioned that

11:00you did the part of Tina Turner and we are the world at your high school. Well, not at, yeah,

11:07at your high school graduation, you didn't get a diploma. Yes. But then that unlocked the doors for

11:11so much more. Yeah. So in moments where you were, I guess, not really realizing what was up next for

11:18you and then to see it, how you've transitioned and become this, in my eyes, legend in the world,

11:25how does it feel coming from, you know, the streets of Pontiac, streets of Southfield,

11:29like how does it feel now walking these streets, knowing how much purpose you have changed into the

11:34world? Um, you know, I think, uh, one of the, one of the challenging things about nurturing your, uh,

11:42your dream and, uh, nurturing your passion is, you know, you don't always have, um,

11:52you don't always, there's, there's not a lot, there's not always a lot of evidence.

12:04There's not always a lot of evidence and I'm talking to somebody right now,

12:09there's not always a lot of evidence there. You know, there are times when you will be,

12:12uh, where, where your dream, where it will be, it will be quiet. A lot of times when you'll be by

12:22yourself, a lot of times when there, you will, you will, you will doubt. And I tell people like,

12:27I always knew what I wanted to do. Right. But I always, you don't always, you know, but there's,

12:34but there's doubt along the way, you know? And, but there are all these little, these little

12:39glimpses of these little, uh, God winks, these moments, you know, like me singing, uh,

12:47Tina Turner's part in We Are The World. There are all these little winks that like, yeah, this is,

12:52this is for you, but there's preparation and there's work that needs to be done before,

12:56before it's there. So it's going to be quiet for a while. Right. You know, um, I was making

13:01music in the nineties and, and, uh, I was signed to this independent label and the label packed up and

13:07moved to Atlanta, you know, and, and I was going to pack up and move. I'm, I was going to, you know,

13:13right. That was my circle, my circle of cats, you know, but I also had a daughter here who was,

13:18who had just been born. It was like 19, 1995. And, uh, you know, I didn't, um, I didn't, uh,

13:27I thought that I had this plan in my head that I would, I would go to Atlanta and I would come back

13:33every couple of weeks and like see my daughter. Right. And, uh, you know, but ultimately, I mean,

13:38but deep down, like I knew that that, that wasn't going to happen, you know? And, uh, and I, and I

13:43didn't follow, I didn't follow my friends, you know, your dream will couples, your dream will set you

13:49apart, you know? And, um, you know, so, and though, and it was a quiet time, there was no music being

13:56written. Right. You know, there was no, you know, it was a long time before I, I had my own keyboard,

14:02you know? And, uh, but the dream is still there. Like it don't go nowhere. Right. You know what I

14:07mean? So, um, to everybody who's nurturing something, who's holding onto something, you

14:13hold onto it, you know, you hold onto it. The only way out is through. And, uh, if it's for you,

14:19it is for you. And just because you don't, you don't see the evidence doesn't mean that it's not

14:24there. You know, faith is, faith is, is, is, is, uh, the, the evidence of what's not seen,

14:32you know? So, so, you know, so there you go. Now I'm gonna ask the ushers to come forward.

14:40Start paying for tithes and offerings. I appreciate that because you were definitely speaking to me.

14:46I appreciated everything that you just spoke about, but before we get into what you are here to talk

14:53about the concert and everything, I want to play a little game. It's called Chemistry Match.

14:57Oh, here we go. It's a little this or that. It's just real quick. So, ballad or mid-tempo?

15:05What's better for you? Your personal favorite?

15:10Both. I love it. Marvin Gaye or Sam Cooke?

15:14Marvin. Ah, yes. Candlelight or City Lights?

15:18Uh, Candlelight. Okay. Studio or Stage?

15:25Both. You can't have one without the other. That is true. Right at night or right early morning?

15:30Uh, at night. Well, actually, no, I write all time. I mean, yeah, now we got kids running all

15:35over the house, so I have to, I have to get in when I, when I fit in, so it doesn't matter.

15:40That's true. That's true. A quick little game just to change pace, but July 25th and 26th to celebrate

15:46not only your birthday, but just to celebrate the fact that we are outside. You're going to be at the

15:51Aretha with a songstress herself, Shantae Moore. Yeah. What are we going to be expecting? What is

15:59going to be what you want people to leave from when they are there July 25th and 26th? Well,

16:04we always have a good time down at the Aretha. Uh, it's probably, you know, at the top of the list

16:11of venues that I like to perform at in, in, in the country, um, in the world, actually. Uh, one,

16:18because it's at home too, because of the, the aesthetic of being on the, on the, on the waterfront,

16:24um, you know, the boats come up behind the stage and, and, uh, you know, it's just, it's just a vibe

16:30being there, but this year, you know, and I usually close, I'm usually towards the end of the Aretha's,

16:35uh, season of shows, you know, um, but this year, I'm performing the week of my birthday. So we'll be

16:42in Detroit for the whole week, um, shooting content, video, uh, videos for, for new music. Uh, I'm,

16:49I'm probably going to perform some, some of the new music, um, you know, so it's going to be,

16:54it's going to be a good time. Lots of family and friends and, uh, uh, it's going to, it's going to be a good

17:00time. Well, I'm excited because this will be my third show of yours. Yeah. Cause I saw you in

17:05Grand Rapids when you were with music. So child. Yeah. And then my mom brought me to when you were

17:11at MGM and DC. Okay. And now I'm going to be able to see you at the Aretha. And this was my first time

17:17being at the Aretha. So I understand the aesthetics and also the fact that the crowd is just right there.

17:22So it feels like this is even more intimate, not only because it's at home, but you get to like,

17:27see the faces of people. Yeah. You get to see all your cousins and family and friends. Yeah. Right.

17:33Yeah. Yeah. So you mentioned that you're going to be performing possibly new music. Can you give us

17:38a little vibe of what it's going to sound like maybe? Um, it's going to sound good. Obviously,

17:45you ain't got no flops. What you mean? You ain't got no flops. Name a flop. Please. It's going to be,

17:50it's going to be good. You know, I'm looking forward to it. Yeah. Well, I'm excited. Thank you.

17:54Everyone needs to go ahead and grab tickets right now. The Aretha Ticketmaster, July 25th. And thank

18:00God he gave us another date, July 26th. Yeah. Tickets are on sale as we speak, at least for the 26th

18:07on Thursday. And I just want to wrap this up because obviously we know you as Kim, the artist,

18:12but I just want to get Kim, the person just quick rapid fire questions to end off. Okay.

18:17What does your perfect day look like? Um, brunch and, uh, sitting at the, uh, sitting,

18:29sitting at the pool, watching the kids swim. I love that. A simple day. And I love that you said

18:34brunch first because we don't, we don't need to get up that early. Yeah. Okay. Guilty pleasure show that

18:40you love. Guilty pleasure show that I love. What did I just get finished watching? I just finished

18:46watching, uh, the series called Mobland, which is really, really, really good. I've heard about

18:55Mobland. Okay. I need to tap in. Okay. If someone was playing you in a biopic, who are you thinking?

19:01Everybody loves Raymond. Guilty pleasure. Everybody loves Raymond. Everybody loves Raymond is a good one.

19:07Yes. I don't know why my wife thinks I'm crazy. I'm like, why are you watching these people?

19:10No, that's a good one though. Why are you watching these white people? I was like,

19:13what, what, what is happening in here? Love everybody loves Raymond. You already talked

19:18about this a little bit earlier, but go-to comfort food. Um, well, the go-to is, is, is, is soul food.

19:27You can't go wrong with soul food. Well, you can sometimes. Well, it depends on who's right.

19:32Who's cooking it. Who's making the chitlins. Exactly. Exactly. Exactly. Second to last question.

19:39If you weren't a musician, what would you be? Um, if I wasn't a musician, I would probably be, um,

19:53I would be, I would be a comedian. I would be, uh, in finance or I'd be a preacher.

20:00A comedian financial pastor. I know that's right. Give it to us. And last but certainly not least,

20:06what is something that you are especially grateful for today? Uh, sobriety.

20:14My mom has your book and we were talking about it earlier. Your story is incredible. And the fact that

20:20you wanted to share that with the world, incredible. My mom was mad that I didn't bring the book today,

20:26but it's okay. It's okay. You have any books, Risa? Yeah, we got a book for her.

20:31Oh, wow. Look at that. But thank you so much, Kim. So let me ask you a question. You put sugar in

20:35your grits? Oh, sugar in my grits? Sugar in your grits. Sugar in your grits. It's giving cheese

20:42only. It's giving cheese only. Yeah, there you go. Okay. Do you put sugar in your grits? No,

20:49no. Okay. I need to do the temperature check real quick. Yeah. Curtis does though.

20:59Putting him on blast.

21:00Hey, you eat your grits the way that you want and I'm going to eat my pot of grits.

21:05If you'd like to see Curtis, Curtis lives at 1-0-0-3-4. No, I'm just joking.

21:13I'm obsessed. Well, thank you so much for your time, Kim. Again, he'll be at the Aretha July 25th

21:19and 26th. Do you have any last words for the Detroiters? Detroit, I love you. Thank you for, uh,

21:24for, for embracing me, for rocking with me all of these years. You know, I love you. And we'll

21:30continue. All right. Thank you. Yep.

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