Londoner rap icon Little Simz is back with a new record. "Lotus" is her sixth album and takes a more unguarded and personal turn in comparison to the previous releases. OFFKEY's editor Felicia Ete Aghaye took a closer look at the record and what makes it so special.
The Egyptian-born and Montreal-based producer and singer Nadal El Shazly is back with her second solo record. "Laini Tani" combines electronic production style with influences from Arabic traditional singing and rhythms. Svenja Isabel Hudson spoke to Nadah El Shazly about the story behind it.
Hungarian-born, Berlin-based producer and musician Àbáse is part of a new wave redefining the city’s live music scene blending Afrobeat, Brazilian rhythms, and electronic textures into something entirely his own. Anna Grubauer caught up with him ahead of his XJAZZ! performance to talk collaboration, evolution, and the ever-shifting notion of jazz.
What is considered classical music? And who gets to decide? The Toronto-based Colombian artist, Lido Pimienta, has recently released her first fully orchestral album "La Belleza". On it, she uses the tools of western classical music but reinterprets them through her own lens celebrating her roots and the "Caribbean sublime".
The Berlin-based DJ and producer JakoJako just released her new record “Tết 41” following her debut "Metamorphose" (2022). Known for her modular synth mastery and techno sets in sweaty nightclubs, the new record is a transformation of her sound and a nod to her Vietnamese heritage. Anna Grubauer spoke to the artist about the trip to Vietnam that shaped “Tết 41”.
OFFKEY editor Felicia Aghaye spoke to London's own Greentea Peng about her newest project "Tell Dem It's Sunny". Embarking on a journey to the self, the new record sees the singer turning inward, moving away from the outward reflections her debut "Man Made" featured, and instead, explores the cycles of growth, identity, and acceptance.
On "The Breeze Grew A Fire", the alternative R'n'B artist Mereba celebrates the more tender, emotional relationships in life, sharing stories of family, friendship and spirituality. Felicia Aghaye talked to the multi-faceted artist about motherhood, transformation and the gentle power of a breeze.
When examining gender representation in the music industry, we mostly see cis men. Efforts to be more inclusive tend, more often than not, to focus on cis women as so-called "female" representation. Four artists who contributed to the "Soli Tunes" Compilation—6zm, Venusloc, Strip Down, and Mad Kate—reflect on why that is problematic and what could be done better.
