Tag: Because London Records

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay Alewya Shares Broodingly Cinematic “Eshi”

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,” along with the album’s third and latest single “Eshi.” “Eshi” weaves broodingly atmospheric electronics, shimmering keys thumping beats and gnawa-like percussion with a looping figure played on an Eritrean and Ethiopian instrument, masenqo, a single-stringed bowed lute that features a diamond-shaped resonator. Alewya’s expressive delivery ethereally floats over the song’s widescreen production and instrumentation as it builds up and intensifies to a chant-driven crescendo. The result is a song that feels woozily anachronistic, in the sense that it draws from ancient traditions and pairs them with contemporary, Western/pop-influenced sounds and production techniques. “Eshi is rooted in tradition but unbound by it too, which is one of the pillars of ZERO,” Alewya explains.

The accompanying video was co-directed and co-produced by Yonas Tadesse, Frehiwot Berhane, Tedos Teffera and Alewya, and was shot in Lalibela, Ethiopia, during the celebration of Gena, Ethiopian Orthodox Christmas. The gorgeous, cinematically shot video captures and reinforces a strong sense of community and culture, both of which are central and defining forces in the JOVM mainstay’s work.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Rising Artist Alewya Returns with a Sultry and Playful Banger

Dubbed “this decade’s triple threat” by Love Magazine, Alewya is a rapidly rising London-based singer/songwriter, producer and visual artist. Born in Saudi Arabia to an Egyptian-Sudanese father and an Ethiopian mother, Alewya has spent her life surrounded and nurtured by diaspora immigrant communities: she grew up in West London and after spending several years in New York. she returned to London. Upon returning home, the rising British artist developed and honed her ear for music through the sounds of the Ethiopian and Arabic music of her parents and the ambient alternative rock albums of her brother. 

The translation of the Saudi-born, Ethiopian-Sudanese, British-based artist’s name from Arabic to English into “most high” or “the highest,” and interestingly enough, her work generally is thematically concerned with transcendence. She sees her music as an accessible space for her and her listeners to connect on a deeply spiritual level — with her work challenging the listener to remember the last time that they felt truly connected to themselves and their emotions. “I want to move people to themselves. I want them to feel the same way that I felt when I had a taste of a higher power and felt there was a presence over me,” Alewya says. “I want people to feel that.” 

Last year, Alewya had 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 The Busy Twist-produced debut single “Sweating,” a forward-thinking Timbaland-like mesh of trap, reggae and electro pop. The rising London-based quickly followed that up with “Spirit_X.” Centered around a forward-thinking production featuring skittering, tweeter and woofer rattling beats and arpeggiated synths paired with Alewya’s punchy delivery that saw her alternating between spitting fire and sultry crooning, the song is indebted to the relentless energy of classic drum ‘n’ bass.

Alewya will cap off a big 2021 with her highly anticipated debut EP Panther In Mode. Slated for a November 18, 2021 release through Because London Records, the seven-song EP will feature three of her previously released, critically applauded, singles — the aforementioned Busy Twist-produced “Sweating,” the drum ‘n’ bass-informed “Spirit_X,” and “Jagwa.”

The EP’s fourth and latest single “Play” continues the rising British artist’s collaboration with Busy Twist. Featuring a sultry production featuring wobbling bass, skittering beats, glistening synths that rise and fall around Alewya’s self-assured and equally sultry crooning, “Play” continues a run of slickly produced, forward-thinking club bangers centered around positive messages — while being defiantly feminist. “’Play’ is a song about my love and gratitude for pleasure and play and how it has and can unlock deeper feelings of connections,” Alewya explains in press notes. “It’s overtly feminine and innately primal and most of all light and fun!”

Co-directed by Alewya and Jack Bowden, the recently released video for follows a collection of beautiful Black people, who get together at sunset to dance all night. Each person is having the unadulterated, joyous fun that is sorely missed.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Rising Artist Alewya Releases a Club Friendly Banger

Dubbed “this decade’s triple threat” by Love Magazine, Alewya is a rapidly rising London-based singer/songwriter, producer and visual artist. Born in Saudi Arabia to an Egyptian-Sudanese father and an Ethiopian mother, Alewya has spent her life surrounded and nurtured by diaspora immigrant communities: she grew up in West London and after spending several years in New York. she returned to London. Upon returning home, the rising British artist developed and honed her ear for music through the sounds of the Ethiopian and Arabic music of her parents and the ambient alternative rock albums pop her brother.

lation of the Saudi-born, Ethiopian-Sudanese, British-based artist’s name from Arabic to English into “most high” or “the highest,” and interestingly enough, her work generally is thematically concerned with transcendence. She sees her music as an accessible space for her and her listeners to connect on a deeply spiritual level — with her work challenge the listener to remember the last time that they felt truly connected to themselves and their emotions. “I want to move people to themselves. I want them to feel the same way that I felt when I had a taste of a higher power and felt there was a presence over me,” Alewya says. “I want people to feel that.” 

nking Timbaland-like mesh of trap, reggae and electro pop. Since, the release of “Sweating,” the rising British artist has been busy releasing a handful of equally self-assured singles, including her latest single “Spirit_X.” Featuring around skittering, tweeter and woofer rattling beats, arpeggiated synths paired with Alewya’s punchy delivery in which she alternates between fiery bars and sultry crooning. The new single sonically is indebted to the relentless energy of classic drum ‘n’ bass music, and manages to evoke the sensation of getting lost in thumping beats and strobe light.

“I know that the rave can be utilized as ritual and ceremony to transform, uplift and energize a person,” Alewya explains. “I love giving visceral experiences. I love drum and bass for that specific reason. ‘Spirit_X’ encompasses all of the above in my way.”

Directed by the artist and Simon Lane, the recently released video for “Spirit_X” follows Alewya as she wanders a subterranean maze of abandoned tunnels before encountering an underground and extremely communal rave from a dystopian future that seems very familiar — and defiantly pro-Black. Visually, the video references The Prodigy’s “Firestarter.”