Louis York, Otis Kane

About Otis Kane

Los Angeles-based producer and multi-instrumentalist Anthony Vasquez (aka Otis Kane) may have started out behind the mixing desk, but he soon stepped out as a vocalist and R&B artist in his own right. His sound is funky, organic, and highly detailed from years of work as a producer. Kane honed this sound with early singles, his 2021 debut album Purple BLUE, the EP release November Love Notes, and subsequent singles.

Vasquez took an interest in music at a young age and started singing by the age of 10. It wasn’t until his football coach — who had industry connections — arranged some studio time for him that he caught onto producing. He started studying as a music major but dropped out when given the opportunity to work for Nellee Hooper (Soul II Soul, Björk, No Doubt). From there, he forged his own network, which led him to becoming the keyboard player for Lolene’s live band. After a round of touring, he opened his own studio, STRZ Enterprises, working with artists including Nick Jonas, Wiz Khalifa, and Julia Michaels. He eventually handed over the reins of the studio to focus on production full-time while also taking up singing again under the name Otis Kane. His first songs were released in 2019, and previously released and unreleased singles were issued on EPs like 2020’s Therapy and 2021’s Growing Pains. His debut album, Purple BLUE, arrived in June of 2021 and included guest appearances from Chloe Angelides and KALLITECHNIS. A few months later, the EP release November Love Notes offered an addendum of sorts to Purple BLUE, with seven more tracks cut from a similar cloth as the album. November Love Notes was heavier on collaborations, however, with guest spots from India Shawn, Krysten Simone, and KALLITECHNIS. Over the next few years Kane released several stand-alone tracks, among them 2022’s “Free” and the 2023 CLAY collaboration “Good Life.”

Connect with Otis Kane

Website | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok

About Louis York

Louis York is the creation of multi-GRAMMY nominated songwriting and production duo Claude Kelly and Chuck Harmony who left the City of Angels for Music City to open Weirdo Workshop, their company and label that produces music for other artists and musicians, including themselves, as well as all-female band The Shindellas.

With a discography that covers multiple genres, including Pop, R&B, Gospel, and Country, Kelly and Harmony have created music for icons like Michael & Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston and Celine Dion; Chart toppers Rihanna, Bruno Mars and Miley Cyrus; R&B Divas Fantasia, Ledisi, Jazmine Sullivan and K. Michelle; along with Christina Aguilera, Ne-Yo, Mary J Blige, John Legend, PJ Morton, Anthony Hamilton, Pit Bull, Jason Derulo and many more.

It doesn’t matter how long, how many transitions or how many genres they have experienced, Kelly and Harmony found themselves searching for one thing, and one thing alone – GREAT ART. As self-proclaimed “Weirdos” (an affectionate name they and their followers call themselves), Louis York has pushed the envelope with their music to include themes of love, acceptance and social awareness that culminated into an EP trilogy called Masterpiece Theater: Act I, Act II, Act III. Their first song “Clair Huxtable,” an ode to black women, quickly became a fan favorite along with other releases “Things I Should Have Said,” “Slow Motion,” “Don’t Play,” and many others.

With the release of their debut album American Griots, Louis York challenges what two black men making music in today’s musical climate are capable of achieving. Their Weirdo Workshop umbrella, which is making waves in Nashville and diversifying Music City, is developing signees The Shindellas, all while bringing their vision as Louis York to the
masses.

Performing as Louis York, they have played across the U.S. in New York, Los Angeles, Nashville, Atlanta, D.C., just to name a few packing venues and leaving attendees hungry for more and in amazement over the group’s creativity, energy and stage presence. They are also highly sought after by local and national organizations as speakers and panelists for hosted events for GRAMMY-U, the National Museum of African American Music, Leadership Music and Leadership Nashville, and many others. Through their own Weirdo Workshop programs, Deep Fried Veggies, the two are intently focused on speaking to high school and college students about music, business and life; and Tiny Book Club develops and engages discussion that broadens perspectives, creates cultural awareness and provides human connections and interaction around impactful pieces of literature.

Connect with Louis York

Website | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok