Emerging Afro-Irish artist Xona is a musical triple threat who combines a special talent for songwriting and production with a truly beautiful voice to deliver sensual, soulful Pop/R&B. He releases a new single today, Friday 18th June, via the Berlin label Welcome to the New World.
Having moved from Lagos to Mullingar, Ireland, at the age of 10, Xona has worked tirelessly to pursue his dream of writing and recording serene and graceful pop songs with a certain relatable quality. His new single ‘When You’re Not Around’ is a memorable sultry track that broods over the question of finding balance within oneself.
“Sonically it takes a brave turn from my otherwise very bright pop sound, it’s influenced a lot by The Weeknd, and that super crisp clean RnB groove.”
After studying for two degrees in jazz and popular music while drifting around the Irish underground music scene for a couple years, Xona began working with different producers and songwriters in London, Berlin, and Dublin. His influences emanate from the vast worlds of jazz, electronic, house, rock and even classical music. The result is a distillation of distinctive and melodramatic sounds that undeniably recall the soulful pop realm of artists like Jorja Smith, Miguel, Lorde and Prince.
The writing of ‘When You’re Not Around’ provided Xona with a dramatic progression in terms of his capabilities as a songwriter and producer. “This was the first song that wasn’t about fairy tales or heartbreak when dealing with someone else. I wrote the song for me and it definitely helped me understand the kind of “lover” for the lack of a better word, I am and how to sustain that.” The moment of inspiration arrived suddenly after years of refining his craft coalesced with a divine feeling of how to “ride both the wave of the love you give, and the love you must keep.”
‘When You’re Not Around’ is out now, via Berlin/Dublin based record label WELCOME TO THE NEW WORLD (Tolü Makay, Enda Gallery, Strange Boy). Stream / download: https://found.ee/XonaWYNA
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xo._.na/?hl=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Xonatheartist
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3iupkARv6JjMdaMPXStSGm?si=WXHIRL79QRWXH8RXBV0fjw
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/de/artist/xona/1533671366?l=en
