Artist Spotlight: Joya Mooi

Shot by @ines.vm_

Artist Joya Mooi welcomes a second collection of songs to her misty-eyed What’s Around the Corner. Categorized as a collaborative offering, the singer engages listeners in moments of reflection in thought as she narrates themes rooted in her upbringing, culture and politics. With ‘Side A’ released in September we hear,  ‘So Stunning’ and ‘Most Frail’ as standout lays before the artist finds resolve in her newest release ‘Side B’, for a complete and beatific 16-unit tracklist. Navigating a lifetime of cultural discourse and complexities the artist brings us an unapologetically personal addition to her discography, combining her neo-soul and R&B-laden essence with bass-rich layers as she explores her inner sentiments. 

Featuring production from Sim Fane, SIROJ,  Blazehoven and Joya herself, the album follows the artist’s signature style while stealthy experimentation with a marinade of genres and sounds. Penned and assembled throughout and after lockdown -  we speak to the artist about confronting a coalition of emotions and feelings with her latest project.

Can you tell us about your new project? 

I started writing the album, I think two years ago now and because I started writing during the pandemic, I felt really stuck - tremendously stuck with Black Lives Matter and all the epiphanies that people had. I had read something about the social cycle theory; that says everything in life with groups of people happens in loops and reoccurs and that really struck me at that point. I’m still contemplating if I think that’s true because I do feel some things are changing and the album is greatly inspired by the feeling that we all as humans are stuck in this loop that we can’t get off, but on the album I’m trying, I’m navigating all kinds of entrapments. Also, just being aware of the endless repetition, politics and personal things that have recurred in my life and my parents' lives and that was really the start of the project. 

I read you also worked on ‘Blossom Carefully’ in lockdown. What was the process like working on ‘What’s Around the Corner’ post lockdown and covid?

One day it's like we finally came out of our holes and I was able to work with my band. When I was creating ‘Blossom Carefully’, I started writing and recording that project inside. But with this one I was able to record the demos and work with my two producers, but also in the studio with my band members as well. So it was a real back-and-forth situation. But I think for now this is my ideal working environment. I really like digesting music and also getting the influence of my band members - the different points of view and backgrounds, so it’s a project that I worked on at various times. There’s Side A and Side B and we worked on it in the studio like that as well. 

Your music is soulful and rich, but offers a signature blend with a more eclectic approach - how did you find your sound?

I just really love music. I love rock, pop. When I make music I’m not really contemplating what the sound really is, I'm just making stuff. When I’m creating, I’m really thinking of the song and sometimes it feels more pop-ish, sometimes more trappy or drums; I’m just really intuitive. I tend to dive into the sonic spaces that really speak to me at that moment. I feel like every song needs a different sound and I feel really free to explore many sounds in my music. I give many thanks to the producers that I worked with, SIROJ and Sim Fane they’re really hip-hop kids, they love every genre so it’s really easy to work with them and explain my ideas.

Can you talk us through your newest single ‘Tears’ and the intention behind a double release?

I really felt like ‘Side A’ is more about setting the story up. I wanted to explain the things I’m thinking about and ‘Side B’ is f letting all the feelings go, showing all the triggers, showing tears. I think also musically it's more expressive. In the beginning, I felt maybe if I explained my alienation about this cycle that I feel like we’re stuck in, I thought ‘Side B’ would focus on resolution, but I really couldn’t find any. So maybe anger or just demanding inner peace and spirituality would be the way to go. ‘Tears’ for me is like the finale of giving thanks to darkness. I’ve experienced loss in my life. I lost my brother and I grew up with lots of trauma from the political background of my parents, I think with trauma and healing it can often be ‘oh, I’ve worked so hard’ like it’s this golden pot and rainbow but that’s not really how it works. Once you need healing you always need healing. So it’s really a song about being open to tears and open to the dramatic endings and failures and sharing that it can be hard to be thankful. 

Could you tell us about your upbringing and how that shaped you as an artist?

I think being very aware of different perspectives, different ways of people finding themselves. I think from a European standpoint I’ve really learned freedom and getting to know yourself is kind of similar elsewhere but in a South African context, I think sometimes South African people are more traditional; worried about familial insights or what other people think and that’s such a difficult thing to navigate. I think because I grew up in Europe - but my father being South African, I’m just aware of both sides of growing up. Catering to parents or what you think life should look like, that is something I just think about a lot and that influenced my music mostly. Having that awareness that we all want freedom, happiness and joy, but there are all these nuances that make that journey a lot harder. I’m just trying to bring some relief to myself in that journey and sharing my story through music.

What message or messages do you hope to bring with your work? 

That’s always a difficult question. I’m just trying to be myself in this world and trying to shine a light on things that really matter to me. Like racism; being South African, I really like to write things from a historical point of view but that is also very personal. With my music, I’m just trying to tell my story and I’m hoping that I inspire other people to tell their story. I think in this day, people are used to sharing but less about how they’re actually feeling and I hope people can do that more and know there’s space and that people are listening to them. 

Can you tell us about some of your biggest influences in your music? 

Growing up with my parents who are jazz lovers, influenced me a lot. They met in Angola so I listen to a lot of Angolan semba music, fado and traditional music from Angola also American Jazz, South African jazz. My father played trumpet, and because of that started playing saxophone so anything with those two instruments in them I listened to it. I think when I got older I gravitated to how people shared their truth through music. Listening to Ella Fitzgerald, Coltrane, Abdullah Ibrahim; just a lot of great great musicians. In recent times I love sperpentwithfeet, Kelela, I just love music haha!

What’s next for you? What does 2023 hold?

Really looking forward to the official album release, I’m also releasing it on vinyl and that is very exciting. We’re going on tour in South Africa and also touring the Netherlands with the new music. And I’m already making new stuff. I can’t promise it’ll be this year but there is already a new folder on my computer!

What’s currently on your playlist?

In the pandemic I started this playlist called hazy daze, it’s filled with very easy, soothing music so that’s almost always my default. Also Lil Simz, I don't know how she does it.