Led by the two well-received singles she released this summer ‘August’ and ‘Silent Mode’, and having been championed by the likes of BBC Introducing, Vogue Paris, Worldwide FM, Dummy Magazine, and British Council’s Selector Radio recently, emerging West London neo-soul singer, musician, and producer YAZ LEÓN releases her resounding new debut EP, ‘It’s Only Takeout Ma’.
Written and produced by Yaz León herself, with additional production from Ess West, and live instrumentation from Luke Bachuss, Seun Folayan, Jack Oliver, and Starkey the Messenger, the six-track EP sees the Spanish Iraqi native exploring her familial and romantic relationships, while also having conversations with herself about these emotional ties. Sonically, she experiments with interesting production and soundscapes, weaving through and merging genres such as soul, funk, R&B, and pop music, to tell her stories, and explore topics like nostalgia, distrust, intimacy, and toxic masculinity.
Citing influences such as Childish Gambino, Erykah Badu, Paco de Lucia, George Benson, and Kendrick Lamar, Yaz León pushes her songwriting to new heights on this project, making use of multifaceted storytelling and lyrical narration to create a work of art that can truly speak to everyone – whether it’s ‘August’ where she reminisces about falling in love with a girl for the first time and comes out to her family, or ‘Spend Your Coins Here’, which pushes against fragile pride and selfishness, or the narrative ‘Dunya’ about maturing through life’s growing pains.
‘It’s Only Takeout Ma’ was released today (28th October) across all good music platforms. Have a listen below…
Must Listen: August, Spend Your Coins Here