Fully Vetted: Kwn Has a Fan in Monica and a Sydney Opera House Show Under Her Belt

Kwn’s philosophy when it comes to her music is pretty simple: “Either hate it or love it.”

It’s a fitting introduction to the East London singer, who is the latest artist featured in Okayplayer’s Fully Vetted series. She may pull sonic inspiration from R&B, jazz, soul, U.K. garage and more, but she isn't particularly interested in making herself easier to define. Instead, she uses those sounds as building blocks and relies on her vocals and melodies to make sure the finished product is still distinctly her own.

“I include different genres instrumentally and sonically,” Kwn tells Okayplayer. “And then my vocal choices and melody choices is what keeps me focused on my brand.”

That attention to detail is essential to nearly every part of her creative process. Ask Kwn how she knows when a song is finished and that answer is simple, too: when there’s nothing left for her to add. Harmonies, backgrounds, ad-libs, beat drops — if there’s room, she’ll probably find something to put there.

It’s an approach that has helped turn the London artist into one of R&B’s names to watch. Her 2025 project, with all due respect, introduced a wider audience to her intimate take on R&B. In June, she followed it with and all pride aside, an 11-track project that builds on what she started with its predecessor.

And lately, there’s been plenty of evidence that people are tapped in to Kwn and her growing movement.

During her first trip to Australia, Kwn found herself headlining the Sydney Opera House — something she didn't even realize was happening until about a week before the show. Back in the States, an Atlanta performance brought another surprise when R&B veteran Monica showed up and later met Kwn backstage.

We could tell you how both stories played out, but that would ruin the fun.

In the latest episode of Fully Vetted, Kwn tells Okayplayer about the Pretty Ricky song that became one of her earliest music memories, the surprising Sydney Opera House story and what happened when she realized Monica had come to see her perform. She also gets into her songwriting process, the music she’s working on now and why she hopes to visit Nigeria to learn more about her Nigerian heritage after growing up more connected to Jamaican culture.

And if you’re wondering which Kwn record she thinks you should hear first, she has an answer for that, too.

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