Kwn | |
|---|---|
| Born | Khyra Leah Wilson April 5, 2000 |
| Origin | Walthamstow, London |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 2022–present |
| Labels | |
Partner | Kehlani (2025–present) |
Khyra Leah Wilson, known professionally as kwn (pronounced kay-wuhn) and formerly k1, is a British singer, songwriter, rapper, and producer. [1] She is best known for her singles "Worst Behaviour", whose remix featured Kehlani, and "do what i say".
She was nominated for Best New International Act at the 2025 BET Awards, [2] was named Billboard's R&B Rookie of the Month, [3] and was included on the NME 100 list of "essential emerging artists". [4]
Kwn was born and grew up in Walthamstow, East London. [5] She has two older sisters. [6] Her father is Nigerian and her mother is Irish. [7]
She started playing piano and drums in her childhood. [6] She realized by the time she was 11 years old that she wanted to become a musician, [5] after which she started making music and releasing it on SoundCloud. [1] She was inspired in part by her father, who was at one time a DJ, [7] [1] and who exposed kwn to a wide variety of Western musical genres, including R&B, pop, garage, house, as well as various genres of African music. [6] When she was 16, she began attending the arts college East London Arts & Music, [8] [5] which pushed her to work harder at her music. [9] After college, she worked as a chef, [5] and before deciding to pursue music, she was interested in playing football professionally. [10]
Initially known as k1, she changed her stage name to kwn – incorporating the first and last letters of her last name – to avoid being mistaken for a drill rapper. [10] [11]
She began releasing music with Black Butter Records in 2022, debuting with the single, “wn way or another". [1] Her debut EP episode wn was released later in 2022. [3] She was dropped by the label shortly before the release of her single "Worst Behaviour". [12]
Kwn opened for Kehlani for some of the latter's Crash European tour dates. [3]
She was nominated for Best New International Act at the 2025 BET Awards. [2] In March 2025, she was named Billboard's R&B Rookie of the Month. [3] Billboard called her music "a moody amalgam of trap, soulful vocal stacks and splashes of dark electronic music that both captures and reimagines the post-Bryson Tiller R&B landscape." [3] When asked about her own genre placement, kwn said, "I don’t really think I could pinpoint a sound; I just do whatever feels good," though she noted R&B as a consistent influence in her music. [3] She also received a place on NME's 2025 list [13] of one hundred "essential emerging artists". [4]
Her music videos often feature one-shot filming. [10] [3]
Kwn has described herself as "literally . . . gay since [she] came out of the womb". Of her sexuality, she has said, "I’m just a girl who likes girls. I don’t like putting labels on things." [5] She is an introvert. [14] Her favorite tattoo reads "lord i've tried" in Spanish ("dios he tratado"), after her song of the same title. [10]
In October 2025, she confirmed that she was in a relationship with Kehlani, after months of speculation. [15] [16]
| Year | Title | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | "Wn Way or Another" | |
| "Nobody" | ||
| 2023 | "No Cinderella" | |
| "Five More" | ||
| "Wn Up" | ||
| 2024 | "Lord I've Tried" | |
| "Eyes Wide Open" | ||
| "Worst Behaviour" | ||
| 2025 | "Worst Behaviour" remix (featuring Kehlani) | |
| "Do What I Say" |
| Title | Music Details | Year released |
|---|---|---|
| Episode Wn |
| 2022 |
| With All Due Respect |
| 2025 |