Mishti:
MISHTI, a singer-songwriter-guitarist with the lyricism of Jeff Buckley and the badassness of Slash demands the ear of any listener with her fresh take on post-pop rock music. The New York-based artist’s latest singles, “Weight of My Heart” and “Obsessed” are fun, sexy, dark anthems to taboo love, unapologetic flirting and crushing hard. Continually shaped by idols Prince and Kate Bush, Mishti has carved out her own sound distinguished by vocals that soar to the rafters and guitar solos that bring back the guitar solo.

Born in Tokyo, Mishti was raised in both Hong Kong and New Delhi before making herself at home in Westchester, New York. Inspired by a hearty obsession with Michael Jackson, she set her sights on becoming a rock star tackling not only vocals and guitar, but songwriting as well. Mishti’s early appetite for pop and rock & roll remained steadfast as she explored the tunes of various cultures, even happily landing herself in a Klezmer (Jewish music of Eastern Europe) band during her college years. With such a rich, cultural upbringing and array of sonic influence, Mishti has been able to create music that provides listeners a multifaceted experience.

Though Mishti has performed throughout New York on stages including Rockwood Music Hall and Daryl’s House, one of her most treasured appearances was as a featured artist in Toshi Reagon’s annual show, “Word*Rock* & Sword”. “Everyone there, audience, band and staff, are there to connect, emote and like become better people, so it’s a very inspired vibe” recalls Mishti. In 2018, Toshi invited Mishti once again to share the stage with a star-studded lineup of women musicians at the esteemed Joe’s Pub.

While finishing touches of her debut EP (produced by Cyndi Lauper’s guitarist Alex Nolan) are fine-tuned, Mishti continues to write songs for the unrequited and fantasize the next performance: “I want to create music that transforms people’s moods the same way music I love transforms mine... and changes my life in those 4 minutes… and then ‘replay’.”

Blak Emoji:
Multi-musician, songwriter and producer Kelsey has been around the block, having fronted a long-running, successful rock band based in NYC’s Lower East Side. But Blak Emoji, the current face of Kelsey Warren, is something entirely different and new--both for Warren himself and for the listener weary of monotonous music trends.
Blak Emoji is where he blends together current and classic pop inspiration, mixing his tendencies as a brainy, substantive and complex writer with a fixation on synth sounds. Tying together his longtime interest in alt-rock (think Nine Inch Nails, Bjork) with a more recently kindled romance with modern and retro dance beats and in between (Phantogram, Little Dragon, Childish Gambino), Warren has found his niche.
Blak Emoji, which Warren began in late 2015, released its debut EP, INTRO in January 2017. INTRO received acclaim from AfroPunk, The Line Of Best Fit, Atwood, Popmuzik and BUST Magazine's 23 best New Albums To Discover. Two singles, "Poison To Medicine" and "Velvet Ropes & Dive Bars" were licensed in the ABC television show Quantico the same year. Another single, the electro hard rocker "Sapiosexual" was also used in the indie documentary Saving Mandyland. Soon after, the band toured and also supported artists such as Fantastic Negrito, Justina Valentine and Dorothy to name a few.
The band's full debut album, KUMI, was released late February 2019 spearheaded with it's captivating first single "Lust Love Above". In July, the video for "Lust Love Above" directed by Jasin Cadic was released and featured on Vampire Freaks blog/site. KUMI is likely to be music which you haven’t heard in some time, if ever -- and that’s precisely how Blak Emoji wants it.