Music / Krush
Krush-ing it in the musical limelight
For Krush, the opportunity to join the likes of Roni Size, Ne-Yo and DJ Spoony on the BS3 Live lineup was too good to turn down.
“It was a no-brainer,” says the artist, who is due to give birth to her third child just a month before the one-day event at Ashton Gate.
With a voice that’s been compared to Mary J. Blige, Krush, whose real name is Selina Hall, is no stranger to the musical limelight, having collaborated with artists such as the Mitchell Brothers and Mike Skinner.
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But, after a rollercoaster journey, the R&B and hip hop artist believes this is the time to carve her own path – and push open doors for others to follow in her footsteps. Being offered a slot on the lineup at a major festival in her hometown isn’t a bad place to start.
“I’m going to bring a lot of Bristol eminence to it,” says Krush, of her set at BS3.
“So we’ve got the drum’n’bass, a bit of jazz, soul, rap – I’m just going to bring all the elements together – I’m gonna bring a lot of energy and love to the show.”
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The artist says she is “a bit overwhelmed and so honoured” to be on the lineup, adding: “I’m bringing out some special guests, some Bristol artists.
“It’s not just about me. If I’d had more time, I’d have loved to bring out more Bristol artists – it’s so important.”
Born in St Paul’s, Krush left with her mum when she was two and moved around a lot before returning to Bristol at the age of 14 to live with her nan. It was from there she really got into music, DJ-ing at the former Passion FM and then forming an MC group, the Female Regulators.
“From then I started taking it more seriously, I moved back to London and that’s when I started working with Adrian [producer and manager Adrian Stone].”
“I was the only female from outside of London who was able to push through the doors and get a look in,” Krush reminisces.
“I worked with a lot of different people and that opened up more doors but then I fell pregnant and that’s when I had to make a decision and I went baby-side and just got on with it and was happy to. I took a step back from music, although I was always creating but I wasn’t taking it as seriously at that point.”
Krush started working with Adrian Stone (left) when she moved to London – the pair still work together to this day – photo: Krush
The singer went through turbulent times – from moving back to Bristol as a teenager, and leaving her mum behind, who was going through her own trauma, to losing her brother, who died from kidney failure in 2018. She went on to lose both of her grandmothers and mum.
“I shied away from music because my family’s very music-orientated. There are nine of us – eight now. My brothers introduced me to real hardcore, original hip hop and my sisters the soul and r’n’b side of stuff from the 80s 90. My dad had a sound system and he was into reggae and dub. My mum was pop. So, I couldn’t listen to music, it was very hard for me to even considering writing because anything could be a trigger or reminder.”
Ultimately though, she sought solace in her music.
Krush says she “hit rock bottom” in London and was going through a real low patch when, with the support of her sons, Kali and Kyen, she made the decision to move back to Bristol.
“Since then, the music has just been taking off. It’s been nonstop and I’m so grateful for that. If I’d never moved back, we wouldn’t be in the position that we are in,” she tells Bristol24/7.
“We’ve really just sacrificed, but that’s part of not giving up … I’ve dedicated my time to raising my two boys the best way I can and making sure they don’t have to go through what I had to go through. They’ve watched me fall to rock bottom and rise up and they’re so proud of me and I’m so proud of them as well.”
“I’ve got a lot of support and I didn’t know I had it so that’s been really nice,” says Krush – photo: CMHD Visuals
After moving back to Bristol, Krush opened the new Vault stage at Boomtown in 2022, which led her to land the BS3 gig.
“I’ve got a lot of support and I didn’t know I had it so that’s been really nice,” she says.
“I’m working on new material – I’ve got so much old stuff. It evolves with the times but there are certain ones that are timeless.
“I’m trying to make sure I express a bit more about my experiences now, so a lot of it is based around darkness into light, addiction, abandonment, stuff like that – trauma and healing from it. But in the meantime, I’ve got the fun stuff as well.
“I’m a bit of an open book. If you know me, you know my story so I don’t shy away from it.”
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Krush says the support of her sons and fiance, Jordan, helps keep her grounded.
“He’s my rock,” she says of Jordan.
“I’m in a very healthy relationship for once and that feels real good. I think that helps as well. To have that best friend and somebody that supports what I do as well 100 per cent.”
With a new baby on the way, Krush has been working to get her set as tight as possible before the all-dayer at Ashton Gate on June 22.
Revealing a little of what to expect on the day, she says: “In my DJ set, there will be a segment paying homage to a lot of Bristol artists.
“We want to use this opportunity to open more doors and bring in as many people as possible so it opens doors for them too. For myself, I’m going to put out auditions for my band so we can get these bookings and get on the road.”
On going into the limelight at this stage in her career, Krush adds: “It does make me happy – I know my mum is absolutely crying her eyes are somewhere up there.”
BS3 takes place on June 22 with a lineup including Ne-Yo, Craig David, Jess Glynne and Dizzee Rascal. For more information and to buy tickets to BS3, visit www.bs3live.com.
Main photo: CMHD Visuals
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