Kehlani

Kehlani rolls in on an ocean breeze, three syllables warm as sand underfoot. From the Hawaiian meaning the sea and the sky, a poetic compound of kai and lani, it rose quickly on the American charts after the Oakland singer Kehlani Parrish broke through in the mid-2010s. It now sits at 150 on the girls chart, a fresh entry with deep roots in the language it comes from. Three syllables that glide, keh-LAH-nee, the long middle A doing the singing. Nickname Lani is gentle. Melodic, contemporary, a little bit spiritual without being solemn. A name that sounds like a horizon line at golden hour.