Tag: Alewya City of Symbols

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Alewya Shares Cinematic Visual for Dancehall-like “Maktoub”

JOVM mainstay Alewya is an acclaimed London-based singer/songwriter, producer and visual artist. Her highly-anticipated full-length debut, ZERO is slated for a June 26, 2026 release through Because London Records. The album reportedly embodies years of artistic growth into an effort that’s both deeply personal and sonically expansive. But the album also marks a significant milestone, as it sees her boldly stepping into a new creative era, defined by fearless experimentation and cultural fluidity. 

ZERO will include the previously released “Night Drive,” feat. Dagmawit Ameha and “City of Symbols,” “Eshi,” the Busy Twist-produced “Selah” and its fifth and latest single “Maktoub.” Anchored around dancehall reggae riddims, skittering industrial trap triplets, “Maktoub” continues a remarkable run of genre-defying and sweaty global club music that’s expansive yet urgent, accessible yet forward-thinking and remarkably catchy. Over the song’s dancehall riddims, the JOVM mainstay’s reggae-influenced vocal sings lyrics that touch upon themes of resistance, destiny and self-determination that are fiercely feminist and defiantly pro-Black and pan-African. 

The song features a sample from legendary Ethiopian singer/songwriter Teddy Afro, which was chosen by Alewya for sentimental reasons, as several generations of Ethiopans and Eritreans have listened to him growing up, much like she did.

“Maktoub,” which derives its title from the Arabic word “it is written,” reflects ZERO‘s recurring themes of faith, instinct and roots woven throughout. Led by feeling, rather than prescribed formula, “Maktoub” showcases the JOVM mainstay’s intuitive creative process in which rhythm and emotion guide the music before lyrics. “Sometimes songs take time to reveal themselves but ‘Maktoub’ felt immediate and effortless from day one,” Alewya says.

Directed by Lee Trigg, the accompanying video for “Maktoub” was shot in Afar, Ethiopia and follows the JOVM mainstay and a crew of friends riding motorcycles across the plains — and running. The video captures Alewya as a magnetic, carefree presence.  For the video, Alewya and the local filming crew flew two hours from the nation’s capital Addis Ababa and then drove eight across the country to reach the region, camping and hiking through its volcanic landscape along the way.

Afar lies at the junction of three tectonic plates — the Arabian, Nubian and Somali — and is one of the hottest and lowest places on the planet, where temperatures regular exceed 122º F with the land sitting at 410 feet below sea level. Despite the extreme conditions, the nomadic people of Afar have developed an unparalleled knowledge of survival and a fiercely independent culture. Historically, the Afar people have resisted colonization by neighboring empires and European powers.

“Afar is where my worlds meet — where three tectonic plates converge; Arabian, Nubian, Somali,”  says Alewya. “It is the birthplace of humanity, and a land where a new ocean is forming beneath my feet. The Afar people are warriors who have lived on their own terms for centuries, and the women carry a grace that makes me feel close to God. For ‘Maktoub,’ with Teddy’s vocals blessing the track, it felt right to create from the closest place to the beginning.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstay Alewya Returns with Defiant, Dancehall-Inspired “Maktoub”

JOVM mainstay Alewya is an acclaimed London-based singer/songwriter, producer and visual artist. Her highly-anticipated full-length debut, ZERO is slated for a June 26, 2026 release through Because London Records. The album reportedly embodies years of artistic growth into an effort that’s both deeply personal and sonically expansive. But the album also marks a significant milestone, as it sees her boldly stepping into a new creative era, defined by fearless experimentation and cultural fluidity. 

ZERO will include the previously released “Night Drive,” feat. Dagmawit Ameha and “City of Symbols,” “Eshi,” the Busy Twist-produced “Selah” and its fifth and latest single “Maktoub.” Anchored around dancehall reggae riddims, skittering industrial trap triplets, “Maktoub” continues a remarkable run of genre-defying and sweaty global club music that’s expansive yet urgent, accessible yet forward-thinking and remarkably catchy. Over the song’s dancehall riddims, the JOVM mainstay’s reggae-influenced vocal sings lyrics that touch upon themes of resistance, destiny and self-determination that are fiercely feminist and defiantly pro-Black and pan-African.

“Sometimes songs take time to reveal themselves but ‘Maktoub’ felt immediate and effortless from day one,” notes Alewya. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay Alewya Shares Sultry Club Banger “Saleh”

JOVM mainstay Alewya is an acclaimed London-based singer/songwriter, producer and visual artist. Born in Saudi Arabia to an Egyptian-Sudanese father and an Ethiopian mother, the acclaimed London-based artist has spent her life surrounded by diaspora immigrant communities: She grew up in West London and after a several year stint in New York, she returned to London. Upon her return home, the Saudi-British artist developed and honed her ear for music through the sounds of the Ethiopian and Arabic music of her parents and the ambient and alternative rock albums of her brother. 

She’s part of a generation of artists actively redefining global music, a generation that’s generally rooted in heritage, yet unbound by it. Describing herself as a painter, who makes music, Alewya approaches sound as texture and feeling, guided more by intuition than structure. Her sound and story help to widen the Black British frame, bringing the often under heard North and East African perspective into a much-needed focus. 

Back in 2020, the JOVM mainstay burst into the scene with an attention grabbing feature on Little Simz‘s “where’s my lighter,” which caught the attention of Because Records, who signed the rising artist and released her critically applauded debut, 2021’s Panther In Mode EP. 

Alewya’s highly-anticipated full-length debut, ZERO is slated for a June 26, 2026 release through Because London Records. The album reportedly embodies years of artistic growth into an effort that’s both deeply personal and sonically expansive. But the album also marks a significant milestone, as it sees her boldly stepping into a new creative era, defined by fearless experimentation and cultural fluidity. 

ZERO will include the previously released “Night Drive,” feat. Dagmawit Ameha and “City of Symbols,” “Eshi,” and the album’s latest single “Selah.” Produced by longtime collaborator Busy Twist, “Selah” is a sultry, club banger anchored around pulsing Afrobeats-like instrumentation and production paired with a propulsive, infectious bass line and the JOVM mainstay’s effortless, hypnotic delivery. “Selah came from playful instinct,” Alewya says.

Directed by Iggy London with creative direction by Lee Trigg and movement direction by Kitz Katila, the accompanying video for “Selah” captures the cathartic release of joy, sweat through color and dance at a Black London party. This kinetically shot video should remind you that there’s true freedom and unity on a strobe-lit dance floor — and that Black folk are fucking beautiful.