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Introducing: Nao

It’s not often that you can say a fusion of soul, guitar and synth sounds can be put together and not crash into unforgivable and utter musical confusion. Introducing one of the few exceptions, Nao!

Nao

If there is one artist you should be listening to right now it’s Nao! She’s bold, soulful and we can’t wait to see what she does next.

Coming out of East London, Nao seemed to have appeared onto the international music scene almost out of nowhere. After working with Kwabs, the Hackney singer-songwriter has now branched out to develop a solo career. The twenty-four year old attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Not only would this environment get her creative juices flowing but also formed tremendous connections for Nao. And with these connections she has created a seamlessly soulful filled EP!

Her first track Back Porch which established Nao as a solo artist was released six months ago, in anticipation of her debut EP So Good. The track is filled with really great rolling bass elements. It’s with Back Porch that we first get a taste of this soul-synth fusion that will not only have us grooving in our seats but will leave you wanting, no, needing to hear more!

Nao collaborated with her friend and producer John Calvert in the production of her debut EP So Good that was released on October 27th. The EP has been hailed with positive reviews and rightly so. The use of the synth and bass throughout the EP provides a really gritty feel, which is then showcased by the flow of the soulful vocals.

The EP is starts with the track So Good and features A.K Paul (he has also collaborated with other big names in the music world like Jessie Ware and Sam Smith) and is a great fit as the EP’s introductory song. The shining quality of So Good is the constant layering effect. Starting with a base of synth then adding the soulful vocals that are distinctively Nao and finally the husky male vocals are then backing the lyrics. This layering is a great quality that So Good possesses and portrays Nao’s eye for detail within the creation of her music.

Another collaboration Nao has on the EP, is with the US artist abhi/dijon. Together they created the last track featured, Adore you. With a mystical sounding intro the track then flows into a combination of soothing tones and synth. However it’s the conclusion of the song that is the best section. You can tell that it was chosen to end the EP and wasn’t just simply thrown in wherever. There is a brilliant fade out that starts around the last 30 seconds to finish in nothing other then the soulful Nao vocals. It’s this fading out that tightly finishes and binds the EP So Good together.

Nao is now touring around the UK and Europe supporting the electronic group, Little Dragon. The UK tour kicked off on November 17th at Brighton and finishes November 29th in Oxford. After this the Europe tour starts in Belgium traveling around to Germany, Switzerland and Luxembourg. Tickets available at here.

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