Brenda Mensah known professionally as Bree Runway, is an English singer, rapper and songwriter born and raised in Hackney, London. Mensah was signed to EMI Records in 2018 after the release of single "What Do I Tell My Friends?" and consequently released the EPBe Runway in late 2019. In early 2020, Mensah released singles "Apeshit" and "Damn Daniel", the latter being a collaboration with Yung Baby Tate. These singles were followed by the release of the song "Gucci" with Maliibu Miitch, on July 23, 2020.
Early life
Mensah grew up in Hackney, residing on a street given the nickname "Murder mile" due to high rates of crime and conflict. Mensah views her upbringing and experiences as her having to have "thick skin", resilience and "having instilled a fight in me" which she is thankful for. At the age of 9, Mensah experienced bullying and colorism which caused her to bleach her skin and have a negative chemical reaction to the product. Mensah credits those moments as shaping her both as a person and an artist. Mensah discussed the positive shift in attitude regarding her skin when she went to a college in south London where she met model Leomie Anderson who encouraged Mensah to take pictures of herself and "take charge of our situations". Mensah disclosed that she was only interested in music at school but never thought of herself as a musician. She enrolled in a Music technology subject which taught her the basics of music production. As a result, Mensah started making beats and freestyling with her friends. Mensah discussed that she purchased a "DIY home studio" setup with her first pay cheque which was where she was singing over self-produced beats and writing her own songs. Earlier material such as RNWY 01 was recorded with her DIY setup and explained that the self-sufficiency taught her what musical sound she wanted to pursue. Mensah revealed that Former First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, once visited her school where she performed for her and was told to keep pursuing a musical career and that she wanted to see her performing at the White House to which Mensah responded "Invite me then!"
Career
2015-2019: Career beginnings and ''Be Runway''
Bree Runway would emerge onto the music scene with the self-released EPs titled RNWY 01 and Bouji being released on November 28, 2015 and May 9, 2016 respectively. Runway released her debut single "Butterfly" on November 14, 2016. A music video was released alongside the song, which was shot in Dubai, by model Leomie Anderson and directed by Mensah herself. On September 21, 2017, Mensah released "What Do I Tell My Friends?" which debuted alongside a music video. The video would gather major attention, being Mensah's first to pass overone hundred thousand views, and praise due to its serious message of exploitation of young females in the fashion industry. Bree Runway was featured on Metroplane's single "Word of Mouth" which was released on February 23, 2018. Bree Runway would sign to Virgin EMI Records in 2018. On May 24, 2019, Mensah released the single "2ON". The track would be the first single of Mensah's to be released under a major label and would later be included on Paper Magazine's Top 50 Songs of 2019. The song would also be featured in an advertisement for car company Toyota. On July 5, 2019, "Big Racks" featuring Brooke Candy was released. Both singles were debuted with accompanying music videos. Mensah released her label debut EP Be Runway on August 16, 2019 which was preceded by singles "2ON" and "Big Racks" featuring Brooke Candy. A video for "All Night" was released 5 days later.
2020-present: Singles and upcoming EPs
On March 5, 2020, Mensah released the single "Apeshit" which was met with critical acclaim and drew immediate comparisons to Missy Elliott who would later co-sign the track on Twitter. American singer and rapper Doja Cat would also show support by encouraging fans to watch the music video and Google Mensah. During April 2020, Bree Runway was featured on the cover of Issue 87 of Notion Magazine. On April 28, 2020, Mensah announced that her next single would be titled "Damn Daniel" and would be a collaboration with American singer and rapper Yung Baby Tate. A teaser was released which included a preview of the music video. The single was released on April 30, alongside a "quarantine edition" music video. The song was featured on Annie Mac's Future Sounds show on BBC Radio 1 as the "Hottest Record in the World" on April 30. On July 10, 2020, Mensah was featured on a remix of Rina Sawayama’s single "XS". On July 19, 2020, Mensah announced the release of the single "Gucci" with American rapper Maliibu Miitch. The single was revealed alongside it's cover art by having fans enter the song’s title into her website as a password. The song was released on July 23, 2020. When asked in an interview what is coming up next for Bree Runway, she discussed the intentions of releasing two more EPs followed later by an album.
Artistry
Bree Runway has expressed her sound as "genre-bending" as well as "genre fluid" with her material experimenting with a multitude of genres including; pop, trap, dance, R&B, rock, PC Music and country. Despite being signed to a major label, Mensah revealed that she is entirely in charge of her creative process. Mensah explains that she tries to study genres that she doesn't listen to on a daily basis quoting that there is "inspiration everywhere". She cites Lil' Kim, Britney Spears, Madonna, Missy Elliott, Pharrell, Kelis, Lady Gaga and The Neptunes as her biggest influences.
