A Budding Acorn
It is within this story where we travel through the streets and corners of Brooklyn. Covetous corners that wish to keep gems hidden within their sly shadows. However, some gems twinkle a little brighter than others -- forcing pedestrians to check their peripheral. With fro-locks that tickle her cheeks and eyes that hold a gorgeous mystery, we cross paths with divine energy: Maassai Sade – a Brooklyn born prodigy.
‘Maassai’, is in fact the title of a warrior tribe that breathes in the depths of Kenya. That fact on its own just makes today’s artist even more sterling. One could even say she is a woman of power. A woman who breathes in strength and exhales bravery.
These traits do not only lurk within this artist’s name, but within her family. By digging into the roots of her family tree and household, we are able to see that her grandmother, aunt and mother are all women of divine power and talent. Maassai’s grandmother being a Jazz Singer, her aunt being a Visual Artist and her mother being a Rapper/Singer all have had an effect on the growth of this gem.
Maassai was quick to catch onto her embedded gift at the mere age of nine years old – where she began script writing, poetry and tales. With already such variety in our artist’s young blood, writing scripts, stories and poems soon became second nature to her. With these crafts slowly becoming so ‘normal’ for our prodigy, scribbling in books and journals was no longer enough for this potent spirit. Even though she was able to write her art, she soon realised she was able to show it through her body as well. This was how Maassai further channelled her creative juices into dancing.
It is clear that the roots of her family tree are rich with authenticity and art. This however did not make the journey to her craft(s) easy. It was in fact far from that. With a fiery, untameable essence trapped within her branches, Maassai struggled to bud out into the glorious willow tree she truly is. However, through grounding and reflecting on herself and her art – she was able to groom and grow the luscious garden that is her mind. To live in the warm fire that is her soul. Understanding those flames that coursed through her veins helped her also realise the importance of her solitude. The importance of knowing how high her flames rise as well as how they simmer within her blood.
“I just really like being alone.” She said. “Solitude is very important to me.”
Through marinating within her essence, Maassai was finally able to give her writing and dancing a sound: Music. The discovery of her sound assisted this artist in finding herself. Luring in the lost pieces within her mind with her own voice. She, is her art.
Through giving her thoughts a voice,
Through finding her muse,
Maassai Sade became:
Maassai.
This, is how our prodigy’s roots found its way through the earth’s crust and finally budding into the tree of life and power that she truly is. Her song (or should I say story), Ain’t Ready [produced by Thovo] carries her mind and emotions powerfully through the assistance of a mellow beat and the fiery tune that is her voice.
Due to both her family and name holding an abundant history – she wished to portray that old-school, classic sound within her music. Artists such as Mos Def and Lauryn Hill assisted her in her growth in perfecting this frequency.
However, even though her roots remain rich with old tunes, her leaves are changing like the seasons and are therefore wishing for something new to channel her branches of wisdom and wonder. With genres like Jazz, Fusion and Trap keeping her mind awake as well as her branches already tickling the stars, who knows what this versatile artist will sprout out next.
With spring already letting her new fruit grow, we can only be patient to whatever song her branches decide to hum and whatever fruit she decides to bare.
She has risen
She has arrived
She,
is Maassai.
