Kele Okereke released his first solo album, titled The Boxer on 21 June 2010, through Wichita / Polydor in the UK and Europe and Glassnote Records for the rest of the world. The album was released under the name Kele, dropping his surname. Okereke explained the album title, saying "as a boxer, you have to rely on nobody else but yourself to achieve what it is you want to achieve. Even though you take hits, you have to keep focus on your priorities and keep going. I thought that was an inspiring image". The first single from the album Tenderoni was released on 14 June 2010.
Okereke sees the 'Kele' brand as a way for him to embrace his interest in dance music. "I've been into clubbing for years. I've said from the beginning I'm into dance, it gets me excited and I think this record is going to go some way to prove that to people, hopefully." - Kele Okereke
In September 2011 it was announced that Kele would be releasing a follow up to The Boxer; an EP titled The Hunter.
On 23 July 2014 Kele announced his second solo album, entitled Trick, to be released on his own label Lilac Records via Kobalt Label Services on 13 October 2014.
He released his third album Fatherland on 6 October 2017 under his full name Kele Okereke. The album features the singles Streets Been Talking and Grounds For Resentment feat. Olly Alexander. Fatherland also features the duet Versions of Us with Grammy-winning English singer and songwriter Corinne Bailey Rea
In January 2019, Leave to Remain a new musical written by Okereke and Matt Jones debuted in London. Announced in September 2018, the musical about an interracial gay couple was preceded by the single Not the Drugs Talking which showed a move back towards beats following the more acoustic Fatherland. Telling a love story through the Prism of Brexit, the new show is accompanied by a tie-in album of new songs. Speaking about the subject matter and his feelings on the UK in 2019, Okereke claimed that “It’s not a time that I’ve been proud to be British. It’s an ugly time”.
www.iamkele.com
Unholy Thoughts
Kele Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And then he led me in a cab
No more coke heads, no more cocaine
You're getting sloppy and someone has
Someone has to say
Here is bad
Here is bad
Here is bad
I hear their thoughts now before they speak
I feel their eyes now go through my soul, accusing me
We're only partners, between the day
And these thoughts they multiply
And one by one become unholy
Here is bad
Here is bad
Here is bad
Here is bad
The mind is powerful
The mind is powerful
But it will not work
It will not work
In reverse
In reverse
In reverse
In reverse
The song Unholy Thoughts by Kele explores the idea of temptation and the struggle to resist it. The lyrics depict the singer meeting the devil at an after-show and being led into a cab. The devil warns the singer about the dangers of cocaine and implores them to say no to it. The singer is then haunted by the thoughts of others and becomes overwhelmed as their thoughts multiply and become unholy.
The repeated chorus of "Here is bad" emphasizes the idea of the negative influence that surrounds the singer. The mention of feeling the eyes of others going through the singer's soul highlights the scrutiny and judgment that comes with celebrity and public life. The line "the mind is powerful but it will not work" suggests that despite one's best efforts, the mind can be overpowered by temptation, leading to a downward spiral.
Through the lyrics of Unholy Thoughts, Kele highlights the difficulty of staying true to oneself in a world full of temptation and negative influences. The song serves as a warning against the dangers of succumbing to one's desires and succumbing to the darkness within.
Line by Line Meaning
I met the devil last night at an after show
I had a really bad experience last night and it felt like the devil was involved
And then he led me in a cab
Somehow I ended up in a car with him and it was really unsettling
No more coke heads, no more cocaine
I'm trying to clean up my life and avoid the things that used to give me a rush
You're getting sloppy and someone has
Your behavior is becoming dangerous and I need to speak up about it
Someone has to say
I need to be the one to address the problem
I hear their thoughts now before they speak
I'm becoming more perceptive and can tell what people are thinking before they say anything
I feel their eyes now go through my soul, accusing me
People are judging me and I feel like they're looking deep into me and finding me guilty of something
We're only partners, between the day
I'm trying to find my place in the world and figure out what my role is
And these thoughts they multiply
My negative and paranoid thoughts keep growing and multiplying
And one by one become unholy
These thoughts are corrupting me and taking me to a dark place
The mind is powerful
Our thoughts have a lot of influence over our lives
But it will not work
Sometimes trying to control our thoughts won't get us anywhere
In reverse
Maybe we need to look at things from a different perspective to make progress
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: KELE OKEREKE, ALEX XXXCHANGE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind