Biography
Om’Mas Keith entered the world in Hollis, Queens, already steeped in music as the son of jazz instrumentalist Michael Keith and vocalist Mekea Keith. He began his journey on drums yet rapidly broadened his command of multiple instruments while absorbing the full spectrum of record-making, from tracking sessions onward. During his teenage years he interned at RCA, studied under Max Roach at the University of Massachusetts, and assisted Run-D.M.C.’s Jam Master Jay. One of his first major credits arrived via the L.A.-based collective Raw Breed, whose Blood, Sweat & Tears album incorporated his contributions.
In 2000 Keith joined forces with Shafiq Husayn and Taz Arnold—both connected to Raw Breed—to form Sa-Ra Creative Partners. The trio crafted material for Bilal, Pharoahe Monch, and Jurassic 5, then issued their own debut singles on ABB and Ubiquity in 2004. While the group issued full-length projects through Babygrande and Ubiquity, its members also worked individually and collectively on numerous releases, among them Jay-Z's Kingdom Come, Rick Ross' Rise to Power, Jill Scott's Real Thing, Erykah Badu's New Amerykah, Pt. 1, and Husayn’s own Shafiq En’ A-Free-Ka. On a more underground plane Keith joined Africa Hitech’s Mark Pritchard for the 2009 Hyperdub single “Wind It Up” and linked with Subeena and Jamie Woon on a 2009 Planet Mu release. Shortly after contributing to Diddy’s Making His Band series and Last Train to Paris album in late 2010 and early 2011, Keith issued his first solo effort, the limited-edition single “Uh Oh It's Love.” Around that period Fall Out Boy’s Patrick Stump dropped the EP Truant Wave, which included Keith’s production and vocals. Following his co-production of Frank Ocean’s Grammy-nominated 2012 album Channel Orange, Keith self-released his own album, the freaky City Pulse, as a free digital download in January 2013.
In 2000 Keith joined forces with Shafiq Husayn and Taz Arnold—both connected to Raw Breed—to form Sa-Ra Creative Partners. The trio crafted material for Bilal, Pharoahe Monch, and Jurassic 5, then issued their own debut singles on ABB and Ubiquity in 2004. While the group issued full-length projects through Babygrande and Ubiquity, its members also worked individually and collectively on numerous releases, among them Jay-Z's Kingdom Come, Rick Ross' Rise to Power, Jill Scott's Real Thing, Erykah Badu's New Amerykah, Pt. 1, and Husayn’s own Shafiq En’ A-Free-Ka. On a more underground plane Keith joined Africa Hitech’s Mark Pritchard for the 2009 Hyperdub single “Wind It Up” and linked with Subeena and Jamie Woon on a 2009 Planet Mu release. Shortly after contributing to Diddy’s Making His Band series and Last Train to Paris album in late 2010 and early 2011, Keith issued his first solo effort, the limited-edition single “Uh Oh It's Love.” Around that period Fall Out Boy’s Patrick Stump dropped the EP Truant Wave, which included Keith’s production and vocals. Following his co-production of Frank Ocean’s Grammy-nominated 2012 album Channel Orange, Keith self-released his own album, the freaky City Pulse, as a free digital download in January 2013.
Singles