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Making his mark on the Singaporean scene in the mid-2010s as a member of the Sony-signed four-piece The Sam Willows alongside his sister, Narelle, singer-songwriter Benjamin Kheng has since successfully springboarded a solo career, shaping a self-assured style of vibrant English-language pop. Born on August 15th, 1990 in southern Singapore, he became acquainted with various instruments in his youth including the keyboard and the guitar, juggling his musical endeavours with an impressive childhood career as a competitive swimmer. Forming The Sam Willows in 2011, he spent several years solely concentrating his musical efforts into the group before foraying into solo work for the first time in 2015 with a series of covers including renditions of Rachel Platten’s “Fight Song” and Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood”. Enjoying widespread commercial success with the group in the following years, Kheng bagged his first gold-certified album in the form of the group’s 2018 LP I Know, But Where, although the band revealed shortly thereafter that they would be taking an indefinite hiatus to prioritise their solo travails. For Kheng, this marked an opportunity to showcase a newly matured sound, signalling a departure from the bubblegum pop covers of his formative years. In November 2019, he unveiled his debut single, “Wicked”, showcasing a refined, soul-tinged vocal sensibility. The song doubled up as a precursor to his debut solo EP, A Sea That Never Stops, a sprawling, R&B-leaning project which arrived in June 2020 and spawned two more well-received singles in “Find Me” and “Lovers Forever”. Striking a balance between raw introspection and dry humour in his lyrics – a combination which extends into his career as an actor and co-host of the YouTube comedy channel The BenZi Project – Kheng has since returned in January 2021 with the gospel-inspired J.Sheon collaboration “Fresh Feelings”, a light-hearted love song underscored by staccato piano chords and bright flourishes of brass.
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