Lutfia has shared her latest EP So Much For Summer, a combination of alternative pop and funk. With an undeniable love for singing and songwriting, the singer has been sharing lyrics as young as 14 years of age. Inspired by a diverse range of iconic talents like Christina Aguilera, Pink Floyd and Michael Jackson, Lutfia creates a colourful world through her music with lyrically rich lyrics and upbeat hooks. Each track stands out on its own, as Lutfia pours out her heart on messages about self-love and mental health.
‘City Of Angels’ is our personal favourite track on this EP. It’s inviting and gives the listener a delicate warmth with rock-esque hooks. One can almost call this anthemic, as it talks about a love for mankind and embracing life. Definitely a song for everyone on this release, Lutfia is going places.
Now, if you’ve been following RCRD LBL for the past year, chances are you would have heard about the Chinese-British songstress Fifi Rong and her fantastical build towards releasing her latest crowd-funded album, There Is A Funeral In My Heart, For Every Man I Loved. The singer first arrived on our radar in February 2021 with the release of ‘Another Me’ and the artistic music video that accompanied it. In the nearly full year to follow, we saw Fifi Rong investigate the world of live performance, become a forerunner in the NFT community and launch the impressively successful crowd-funding campaign that helped her give back to her followers and collaborators alike.
It seemed only fitting to round off the year with Fifi Rong as we explore her mind, creative process and plans for the future. Find it all in the exclusive interview below.
Tell us about your first memory of music and how it inspired you
I was 4 watching this TV show about pianists and I developed this aching desire toward it and begged my parents to get me a piano.
In your biog, you mentioned how you’ve struggled to reconcile the two different sides of society (Western and Eastern). Do you feel you were able to bring the two together in your latest album?
Yes absolutely. It’s effortless now, and I can dial to any side as I wish.
There Is A Funeral In My Heart, For Every Man I Loved was crowd-funded, reaching the goal before the campaign ended. Tell us how you feel about this success and what you envision the next step to be
I’m very proud and loved. We reached the goal 2 weeks before the end of the campaign and ended at 164% crossed Indiegogo and my website’s crowdfunding period. This is proof of the ‘1000 true fan’ theory of how modern artists can have true creative freedom and full support from a relatively small number of true supporters instead of millions of distant listeners/fans. Going forward, I will be taking my connection with my real supporters to web3, which is an environment where this culture I have developed in my community can really thrive.
What is your favourite aspect of your video for ‘Out Of Clock’? What makes it stand out from the rest?
I speak in Chinese and English in the monologue at the intro, and tell the story of Why There Is A Funeral In My Heart in Chinese on one of the stereo fields, whereas I kept repeating the Album title in the other stereo field. It sums up the album really, and the production style is my favourite type in all my productions too: ‘passive aggressive’. Also, the chorus really spells out the general emotional signature of the entire album. ‘My heart is running out of love, for anyone, to stay’… after every funeral I gave to every single love affair. It’s a memoir of love after all.
The world of NFTs is quickly evolving, with you as one of the forerunners in the community. Tell us why you believe this new digital world is so important?
Cryptocurrency and NFT is a new technology, a disruptive one. Technology is a one way street, and NFT as a technology will take over the whole world before everyone realises it. It creates a better, fairer world and financial system, a win-win situation for creators, fans, and collectors, and adds much more utility and ownership to the relations between them.
Metaverse is the immediate future that will integrate with most of our lives and NFT is the builder block of this meta universe we are moving into.
Where is a good starting point for an artist looking to enter the NFT game? What tips would you give to a newcomer?
Web3 is powered by people and communities and the key is self governance, so education and connection with others in the community is the first and foremost aspect of longevity in NFT. So I’d recommend finding us on twitter, we have community space to educate and connect all the time around the week/cock. My twitter is @fifirong so follow me and connect on my daily onboarding show and I’ll set them up.
Tell us about your latest album. Which track shouldn’t fans sleep on and why?
‘I’m Enough’ has been talked about a lot from the feedback so far. I didn’t expect that, as I didn’t get special ‘love’ earlier during the making of the album from my peers, so I was sleeping on it. But now the album is out, people are loving it, and felt that it should have been a single as well. But then, the traditional industry may think there’s no single in my album, whereas my true supporters think every song is a single. Guess whose view I care more about?:)
Fusing pop, country, soul and blues, Slovakian indie band Dennyiah have returned with another stunning release. ‘Sense Of Rain’ traverses EDM territory, further proving Dennyiah’s versatility as artists.
Dennyiah is vocalist Denny and guitarist Lubos. Their album is expected in 2022, and the duo is well on their way to reaching international audiences.
The stunning video for ‘Sense Of Rain’ features Massay dancer Fernando Anuang’a, who adds a visceral visual aesthetic to the track. The track showcases Denny’s vocals, which sit beautifully atop the alluring melody.
Dennyiah shares, “It’s about the elusive sensation of an invincible life force coming from within. Losing the ego and idealised and pre-constructed idea of self. That’s when nothing around changes. The only thing that changes is your perception and the fact that it doesn’t have the power to go under your skin anymore because it’s always been disconnected from the true within. Bad things good things – it’s all the same – what matters is how much you let it drag you down. This song speaks about the short moment of enlightenment, about the deep connection to everything without the heaviness of reaction.”
Adding to how the track was created, Dennyiah share, “It was created years ago with two of our former bandmates. Matej Marga ( drummer) and Miroslav Kažimír ( synth/piano). Miro created the base synth layers and Matej added drums. After that we jammed the idea in our rehearsal room all together with Lubo ( guitarist) and I came up with the melody that was actually stuck in my head for a while – the part where I sing sense of the rain. Lyrics were written long before coz’ I was going through a lot of changes in my life and was looking for a spiritual awakening which eventually happened, at least for a short while. The song came absolutely naturally and we may all agree that it’s a testimony to a better life within ourselves.”
London-based producer and selector, DJ Chillz returns with ‘Keep Me Safe’, the second single to be released from her expertly crafted, ‘Adebowale EP’.
Leaning into a more Afro Electronic Chilled sound, ‘Keep Me Safe’ showcases Chillz’ more mellow side; drawing influences from her distinctly unique blend of house, RnB and Afrobeat; as well as her Nigerian heritage. Minimal yet addictive, ‘Keep Me Safe’ fuses sharp percussive beats and simple guitar chords with distorted vocal chops in her native tongue of Yoruba; a track to smoothly ease us into the winter months.
“I produced and wrote this track after a Kemetic Yoga session, almost as a form of self therapy. It brought me closer to my Nigerian heritage with the use of my mother tongue of Yoruba in the lyrics.” – DJ Chillz
The founder of Riddim Nights, Zanku Vibes London and the syndicated Eclectic Sounds Radio Show, DJ Chillz has been a force within the music industry for a while now. Known for her skills behind the decks, eclectic live sets and her effortless ability to combine the rhythm of Afrobeats with RnB and House, Chillz has stepped into the spotlight as a talented producer – her sounds regularly appearing across the airwaves of BBC 1Xtra, Capital Xtra and Reprezent to name a few.
After support from BBC 1Xtra’s Rampage Show, Ellie Prohan (KISS Fresh) and Bukky On The Radio (The Beat London), Chillz second single off her Adebowale EP, ‘Keep Me Safe’ marks an exciting new chapter as she steadily climbs up the ranks of rising female talent making their mark on the industry.
