Artist of the Month is a feature where we put the spotlight on the incredible work of one of our members.
Our Artist of the Month is Rightkeysonly, an E.D.M. artist, known for bringing experimental beats and heavy baselines to the music sector of Wales.
Since her start as a busker, Keys has gone on to bring live drum and bass to the gardens of Cardiff Castle, techno-grime to the grassy hills of Powys, and electro-metal to the airwaves of BBC Introducing Wales.
But working in music didn’t always feel like an option to Keys.
With Erbs Palsy and ADHD, Keys grew up feeling like every music teacher’s biggest fear. This was alongside caring for her mother and living in rural Wales, with few time and resources to engage in music at any level. In fact, it wasn’t until she was in her 20’s, when she was accepted on to the Disability Arts Cymru: Modulate project, that she began to realise that the music sector needed to adapt to suit the needs of Disabled people, not Disabled people adapting to suit the demands of the music sector.
Now, as Keys is an extreme overachiever she has done A LOT since then.
So, here are her top three highlights:
· Setting up Amplifying Accessibility - a project supporting Disabled music industry workers to feel empowered in their career and encouraging non-Disabled individuals to confidently engage in accessible practises. This was funded by Arts Council Wales and now has a board of 7 music industry workers across Wales. Keys has also taken Amplifying Accessibility to work with places like Sony, BiMM University, and Anthem. Music Fund Wales.
· Starting a PhD in music – This year, Keys starts her PhD, ‘Bridging the Gap’. This 6-year journey involves investigating the experiences of Disabled artists working within the music industry of Wales and the potential barriers to diversifying representation. Her aim is to bring together Disabled and non-Disabled people to explore what accessibility in music truly means for its workers and ensure more young Disabled people see role models representative of them in the world – because we all need someone to show us our dreams are possible.
· Releasing mega cool music (obviously) – In 2024, Keys had her first BBC Introducing Wales radio play and was featured as the Radio Platfform: Artist Of The Week. This came after the release of her unapologetically aggressive dance track, dRip. This track was the first Keys had ever independently produced, mastered, and released, and explored what it was like growing up as a young carer. It even featured a Monsters can as one of its experimental instruments.
What next?
Keys has just released her second single and self-made music video, IDK, kicking off a year FULL of new, independent music, including Welsh language techno collabs and post-apocalyptic house tunes - yeah, it’s gonna get wild.
If you want to check out more of Rightkeysonly and her work, you can here:
