Meet The Cast: Kenya Mahogany Fashaw
1) Who are you? What’s your favorite role you’ve ever played? What roles/shows might patrons have seen you in previously?
I’m an artist shaped by the sounds I was raised in. Blues and gospel aren’t just genres to me, they're my family, my history, my blood, my ancestral DNA. They’re the foundation of who I am and how I move through the world.
One of my favorite roles I’ve ever taken on is the one I’m stepping into now, because it feels like coming home to the music that built me. Patrons at Vintage may remember me from Angry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous, which debuted back in December of 2025. That production was a beautiful experience, and it’s a joy to return to this stage with something that resonates even deeper.
2) What drew you to this production?
Honestly, this piece called to me before I even said yes. The blues and gospel are part of my lineage, and any opportunity to honor that to stand inside that history and let it move through me feels sacred.
When Jonathan Underwood reached out and invited me to be part of this production, it felt like alignment. Like something I was meant to do. This show is a cultural inheritance. I’m grateful to help bring it to life.
3) What is your earliest (or favorite) memory of music impacting you?
Music has always been my release—my therapy, my refuge, my way of breathing through the world. Some of my earliest memories are of hearing gospel harmonies fill a room and feeling something in my chest shift, open, settle.
Even as a child, I understood that music could hold emotions too big for words. It gave me a place to put joy, grief, hope, frustration, everything. That’s still true today.
4) As the show journeys through Blues History and different regions, do you have a favorite region or historical moment?
It’s hard to choose, because every region carries its own heartbeat, its own story, its own struggle and triumph. But I’m especially drawn to the moments where the blues and gospel intertwine where you can feel the resilience of a people shaping sound out of survival and faith.
Those intersections remind me of my own roots, and performing them feels like honoring the voices that came before me.
5) What songs are you most excited to share with the audience?
All of them….but especially “STRANGE FRUIT”
6) Do you have any pre‑show rituals or must‑have snacks that power you through?
Absolutely. I’m very intentional about preparing my voice and my spirit. I always take time to center myself, breathe deeply, and get grounded before stepping onstage.
And then there’s my vocal ritual: throat coat tea with honey and lemon non‑negotiable. It warms everything up, keeps my voice clear, and makes sure I have the breath and strength to sing fully and freely.