LightSkinKeisha is an Atlanta rapper, influencer, and reality star from Atlanta, Georgia. The self-proclaimed Queen of Atlanta is behind hits such as Believe Dat and Ride Good. Over the past couple of years, she has released three albums: That’s Just The Bottom Line, Act Up Szn, and Talk That Talk.
The Atlanta rapper has 2.8 million viewers on Instagram, and she recently joined the cast of the reality show Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta. LightSkinKeisha has already established herself as a fan favorite, and she hopes to emulate stars such as Cardi B, who rose from reality TV into musical superstardom. This piece will look at Keisha’s career, her insecurities, her controversies, and her relationship status.
She was a cheerleader in high school before becoming a rapper
LightSkinKeisha was born on 4th September 1994 in Atlanta. She grew up alongside seven siblings and two god-siblings, and was raised by a single mom. Keisha’s mom inspired her love for performance, and Keisha sharpened her competitive edge by being a cheerleader in school. However, she told Fader that she wasn’t good at cheerleading:
“My coaches knew to put me in the middle, period, because they knew I was gon’ fuck it up every single time with my facials, with my energy, just everything… My mom would be telling me, ‘You’re a little superstar; you need to sing.’”
Keisha drew musical inspiration from Atlanta rappers such as Lil Jon and Pastor Troy, and singers such as Destiny’s Child and Carrie Underwood. After high school, Keisha quit cheerleading and started performing on Instagram and YouTube. She recorded several viral songs on Instagram, but people saw her more as a social media model than a rapper.
As a result, people tried to take advantage of her. She told DJ Smallz Eyes that she was once offered $100,000 to participate in a sketchy nude photoshoot. Keisha persisted with her music, and it eventually paid off when she signed with L.A. Reid’s Hitco Entertainment.
She defended her rap name and denied that it was colorist
LightSkinKeisha is a unique name, and Keisha revealed that she got the name from the movie Belly. She told DJ Smallz Eyes:
“Have you ever seen the movie Belly? So you know Keisha? She is like a dark skin Keisha, like a brown skin Keisha… I just love the role that she played. Like she played the whole like boss female… She handled the business. They respected her… Everybody respected her… I’m LightSkinKeisha cause I feel like I am a boss.”
Keisha’s name is slightly different from Kisha in the movie. Keisha has been forced to defend her rap name because it sounds colorist and derogatory. Her name is a constant source of controversy, but according to Keisha, the name isn’t colorist. She told Vlad TV:
“Before you get to judging or assuming that someone is this or that… you have to understand where the meaning of that name comes from. And that name does not come from anything being colorist… I’ve never in no way shape or form – in no way period – have ever used a skin tone against somebody. Check my resume.”
Her biggest insecurity growing up was her teeth
Keisha didn’t have straight teeth growing up, and they were a significant source of insecurity for her. Keisha became famous while wearing braces, and they became part of her brand. The braces worked, and after a while, Keisha took them off and started wearing a retainer. However, the retainer was uncomfortable, and it made her talk with a lisp.
She stopped wearing the retainer, and her teeth started growing back to their earlier position. At that point, Keisha decided that it was time for cosmetic enhancement. She told DJ Smallz Eyes:
“What people don’t understand was that my teeth was like my biggest insecurity, so like when my teeth started shifting back I stopped doing as many videos that I used to do because I was so insecure and I was seeing the little comments that people make like, ‘Oh, you need your braces again.’ … Here it goes again. I’m about to goddamn through this stage where I get depressed because my teeth ain’t right.”
The cosmetic enhancement worked, and Keisha is now happy with her teeth. Keisha feels like braces are a stage that she had to go through to be the person she is today. She continued:
“Once I got my braces, it helped me gain my confidence to start talking to people even more… Braces really had a big impact on my life. People don’t understand the half of it coz I was always insecure.”
She got into trouble with Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta star Bambi over her relationship with Coco Vango
Keisha might be new to Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, but she has already made enemies. It was clear from the start that Keisha and Bambi weren’t going to get along. Bambi’s feud with Keisha concerned Keisha’s relationship with fellow rapper Coco Vango. Coco and Keisha started dating in 2018, but at first, they couldn’t stand each other. Keisha told DJ Smallz Eyes:
“When we first was around each other, we didn’t even like each other. I couldn’t stand him.”
The couple eventually got used to each other, and they have been dating for the past couple of years. Bambi revealed that her issue with Keisha was that Keisha started messing around with Coco while he was in a relationship with Bambi’s friend. According to Bambi, Keisha broke girl code by going for a man who was in a relationship.
Bambi insisted that Keisha didn’t act appropriately, but fans took Keisha’s side in this rivalry. Followers of the show were quick to point out a couple of instances when Bambi messed around with men who were in relationships. In the eyes of fans, Bambi wasn’t justified in calling out Keisha for doing something she’d previously done.