With her sultry voice, Chicago-based singer Aáyanna is about to captivate anyone who listens to Don’t Look Back, her debut EP. The seven-track record includes singles like Risky and Can You Take It, which are turning her into a rising star among R&B fans. If you haven’t heard of her yet, get ready, because you definitely will from now on.
Speaking of this feat in her musical career, Aáyanna says that releasing the EP “is a pivotal moment for me, especially it being the first body of work in my catalog.” Indeed, Don’t Look Back is her first big achievement (musically speaking, of course) after releasing a handful of singles with Avant Garden, the label she signed her first contract with. But the multi-talented singer has music running through her veins. At the tender age of seven, she realised that writing was the best way to express herself, and so she started to write her first lyrics and songs. By the age of nine, and thanks to her dad’s travel set-up, she already recorded her first track. How impressive is that?
Since then, Aáyanna has kept honing her craft and perfecting it. After releasing some songs on the internet since 2017, she met producer Juberlee (Playboi Carti, Lcreae, Mulatto) at a small festival in Atlanta and went on to add elements that would set her apart. And before becoming a solo artist, she did background vocals for artists like SwaVay and Andy Mineo.
Today, a fully realised artist, Aáyanna releases Don’t Look Back, a sensual, hypnotic R&B EP that imagines delicate soundscapes. “I was really inspired by sirens and duality while recording this project. From what I heard and read about sirens, they exude this sex appeal that I admire as someone ruled by the planet Venus,” she comments on the two main inspirations behind the record. Earlier this year, and after a long-lastinc polemic on the internet and the media, we finally saw a brilliant Halle Bailey starring in Disney’s new The Little Mermaid film. Following in her footsteps, Aáyanna becomes our second favourite Black mermaid to trap us with her enchanting, sinuous voice.
“I was also really inspired by duality, and the idea that I can be two things at once or that two opposing things can be true at the same time. I can express my hatred for someone and still be sad that I lost them; or sing about how I never want to hear from them again and ask them to come see me anyway, all in the same story,” she adds when speaking about Don’t Look Back’s inspiration. “And because it’s all true, I think it’s beautiful.”
Gaslight, the EP’s opening track, is set to become an R&B anthem for those who love the genre. Risky, which she released last year, follows as a testament to her power: “I don’t wanna talk, don't you hit me / Told you I've been busy / Two bad bitches with me / Fuckin’ up your city,” she sings to someone who dares bother her. Can You Take It, which has almost a million streams on Spotify, presents her stripped-back vocals, completely seducing us. Won’t Cry is probably her most sensitive track to date, oozing beauty and even melancholy. On the other hand, Good Girl and Kill for Me present a tougher side of the singer
