If you are a fan of neo-soul music and pop-laced R&B music, we have a treat for you today and it comes from two artists separated by not one by two oceans. If you are a fan of such artists as Snoh Aalegra, Mahalia or H.E.R or Sinead Harnett, SZA, Ari Lennox or Yebba, get ready for a tune to knock your socks off.
Hailing from Singapore and Paris, respectively, Cravism x Maya Diegel are a hot music duo to watch. Their new single ‘It’s Okay’ will be released on Friday via UK-French label Komplex Recordings on August 20. Accompanied by a film by Parisien video director Stewart Livinec, this is the first taste of their sophomore project ‘Caryatid EP’, entailing aseries of songs and films. With smooth jazz textures laid over lush mellow jazz hip hop beats, the listener is transported into a chilled relaxing realm. This certainly numbers among the best pop tracks we’ve heard so far this year.
Hailing from Paris and initially trained as a jazz singer, Maya Diegel‘s trajectory would take a big turn upon meeting Singaporean producer Cravism several years ago in Cornwall after his performance at the local university, Maya fell in love with Cravism’s set and sought to collaborate. Impressed by Maya’s capacity for writing high level melodies, harmonies and lyrics, their fateful meeting ultimately brought the 2019 release of their first collaborative album ‘Vibes, vol. 2’, which resulted in ample playlisting and radio interviews and ultimately secured them a record deal with Komplex Recordings.
Recorded in their respective home countries, their new album was mixed by Thomas “Mister T.” Gloor at AKA-Studios in Switzerland and mastered by Stefan Hegar (D’ Angelo, KRS-One, Cody Chestnutt) at Fisheye Music in the USA.
“This track started off in one of the basement rooms in Lasalle back in August 2019. It was another practice beat that I made and didn’t really think much about it for months until the first lockdown came. Maya was experiencing lockdown in Paris as well, so I sent her a couple of tracks to write on and she recorded them and sent the back to me to mix,” says Cravism.
“When writing this song, I was picturing what I would say to someone that I love who is going through a difficult time in their lives, I wanted to give the audience a feeling of comfort and calm. In this song I am telling the person that is in front of me that they can open up to me about anything that is troubling them. This song to me is pure love. Overall, the album is about part of my experience of being a woman and I thought that this song would add something to the theme of the album, vulnerability,” says Maya Diegel.
Having released two instrumental albums before meeting Diegel and touring the UK and Singapore, Cravism has always been immersed in the hip-hop culture. Besides being a professional b-boy, Cravism began playing the piano and trumpet early on, which progressed into recording and producing his own music. His music has been featured in Berlin, Hong Kong, London, Mexico City, Milan, Moscow, Paris, and Seoul for the Adidas Originals Flagship Store. It has also been used in many documentary videos, including ‘The Cuppa Depresso’, ‘Elevate the Streets’, ‘Dead was the Body’ and others. Cravism was also the opening act for legendary Hip-hop trio Slum Village during “Dilla Week” in Falmouth 2019.
Maya Diegel explores different altitudes with her voice, drawing influences from Hip-Hop, RnB, Neo-soul, Jazz hop and funk. After graduating with a music bachelor in the UK in 2019, she has launched her music career, in addition to pursuing a career in the cooking world, her other great love. A born singer-songwriter, Diegel’s style and delivery conjures emotions and atmosphere that make for an incredible experience.
As of August 20, ‘It’s Okay’ will be available across online stores, such as Apple Music and streaming sites like Spotify. Out in full on October 22, the ‘Caryatid EP’ project entails a staggered release of a track every three weeks with accompanying films, in addition to a series of online live performances of these compositions.
CREDITS
Written and performed by Cravism and Maya Diegel
Lyrics by Maya Diegel
Produced and arranged by Cravism
Mixed by Thomas “Mister T.” Gloor at A.K.A Studio (Lausanne, Switzerland)
Mixing Assistant by Marco Ballerini
Mastered by Stefan Hegar at Fisheye Music (Germany/USA)
Cover Artwork Jérôme Boccia (France)
Video by Stewart Livinec
Photos by Malcolm Soh
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