Sjoerd Witteveen photo
Richmond Hill brothers Daniyah and Kepha Gordon hope their new CD, True Story, imparts a positive message to their peers. They film the video for the song next week.
Richmond Hill
September 09, 2008 10:49 AM
Caroline Grech, Staff Writer
At first blush, Kepha and Daniyah Gordon look just like two regular teenagers sitting on a couch in their Richmond Hill home.
On closer inspection, though, brothers Kepha, 16, and Daniyah, 14, aren’t quite like other kids their age. For starters, they have a work schedule that would rival any business executive.
Both triple threats with singing, dancing and acting already under their belts, the brothers, who make up the group True Story, have released a CD and are set to shoot a music video next week.
Unlike the raft of troubled teenagers who dot the Hollywood and music landscape, this duo wants to show young people you don’t have to bow to peer pressure.
Through their music, the Gordons tell stories about their young lives.
“Music is very strong. Music carries a very strong message,” Daniyah says, adding that problems inspire him, not people.
“We try to inspire kids without sounding preachy. Kids need to hear our message because there’s a lot of violence and drugs and we need to make a change,” Kepha says.
Growing up in a bustling, close-knit household as two of five siblings, Kepha and Daniyah started dancing and singing simply to entertain family members. At four and five respectively, they grabbed pots and pans from the kitchen to use as instruments.
But Kepha and Daniyah’s music career started in an unorthodox fashion, according to their mother, Ariyahla.
“I would send these boys to their rooms and they would get together and write songs and harmonize. I had no idea,” Ms Gordon says, laughing at the memory.
It was only when they sang for her that she realized how talented they were.
Ms Gordon is now charged with keeping their schedules on track, which, on any given day, could include music rehearsal, acting auditions or performances. But she isn’t worried about the perils success might bring her boys.
“We’ve raised our children to be humble, but to enjoy the thrill of the moment at the same time,” she says.
Daniyah has also flourished as a young actor in TV, theatre and movies.
His latest project is a role in the film Nurse.Fighter.Boy, directed by Toronto filmmaker Charles Officer.
The film debuted at the Toronto Film Festival last night and will be screened again tomorrow.
He will also have a role in the second season of the Canadian TV show, Da Kink in My Hair.
From a very young age, Daniyah wanted to be an actor, which Ms Gordon says caught her off guard at first.
With a preference for live theatre, Daniyah hopes to one day make it to Broadway.
“I like live theatre better because it’s more natural,” Daniyah says.
Kepha, on the other hand, is a musician who can play the zylophone, piano, guitar and drums.
Spoken like a true artist, he admits when he’s had a rough day and he’s upset, he heads to his studio for comfort.
“I play the piano when I get upset, “ Kepha says.
Kepha and Daniyah aren’t the only music and dance-inclined Gordons in the house.
Older sister Sascha can also sing and Ms Gordon danced in her day. Dad Shemyah was once a breakdance star in his native Jamaica.
As the boys describe their dad’s past dancing days, he walks into the room, upon which they demand he bust a move.
Mr. Gordon responds with an embarrassed look and dismisses the idea with a swat of his hand.
But it’s not all work and no play for the Gordon brothers.
When they have some spare time, they either watch movies or play X-Box, which Daniyah says he doesn’t like losing.
While the boys are mature beyond their years, Ms Gordon insists they are more like regular teenagers than they appear to be.
“They struggle with peer pressure, too. They can relate to their peers. They’re saying to other kids that they don’t have to bow to peer pressure,” she says.
And it is not a matter of saying one thing and doing another for the boys, who say they take their lyrics seriously.
Daniyah wants to go to Broadway, for instance, but Kepha wants to design affordable housing in the community one day.
As for the music video they’re shooting next week, they hope it will bring a wider audience to their message.
“Some artists talk about gun violence, drugs and sex. We came together so people could look up to someone else,” Kepha says.
True Story’s debut CD is available at Walmart.
For more information on True Story, visit truestorymusic.com
Kepha Gordon finishes our sentences
If I could have dinner with any historical figure, living or dead, it would be ... Yahshua.
If I was stranded on a desert island, the three things I would bring with me are ... food, a piano and a TV.
The animal that best describes my spirit is a ... snake, because I know how to be smart and defensive.
If a biography were made of my life, the actor I would like to portray me is ... Taye Diggs.
Few people know that ... I’m not a very good swimmer.
I could stand to work on ... taking some of the stress off my mother.
Before the end of my days, I would like to see a day when ... everybody could solve their problems without violence, but by talking.
Daniyah Gordon finishes our sentences
If I could have dinner with any historical figure, living or dead, it would be ... Yahshua.
Few people know that I am ... a private person.
If I was stranded on a desert island, the three things I would bring with me are ... food, a phone and an emergency health pack.
If I wasn’t doing what I was doing right now, I would be ... living as a regular kid.
The animal that best describes my spirit is a ... cat, because I’m soft and gentle, but if you mess with me, I’ll snap at you.
If a biography were made of my life, the actor I would like to portray me is ... Jamie Foxx.
I could stand to work on ... taking the stress off my mom.
The thing I’d like to do before the end of my days is ... to make as many people smile as I can who aren’t as lucky as I am.