Digital Cover Story 12: NAO

"...the whole world has stopped and I was still trying to push ahead. But then I thought you know what, there's no other time in history where we ever could do nothing. I did that. I just stopped. I learned how to stop and stand still.”

Photo Credit: Lillie Eiger

There are only few singers out there with purely unique vocals and a recognisable signature sound - East London’s singer NAO is certainly one of them. For those of you who aren’t yet familiar with the songstress, NAO has emerged onto the scene in the mid-2010’s by enchanting her rapidly growing audience with her distinct take on fusing alternative R&B with funk and electronic music. Already in her early childhood days, she would constantly play the piano and, later on, attend the reputable Guildhall School of Music and Drama to study vocal jazz. After her graduation, she started working as a session musician but swiftly found her passion for creating her own music - ultimately she found her own label Little Tokyo Recordings, under which she’s released her first ever EP’s. The rest is history - now, the talented artist has toured the world, was placed on Michelle Obama’s official playlist and got nominated for a Grammy. Whilst her debut album ‘For All We Know’ has immediately entered the Top 20 charts and led to two sold-out shows in the iconic Shepherd’s Bush Empire, her critically acclaimed album ‘Saturn’, released in 2019, has further cemented her as an international superstar.

Words by Antonia Kuenzel

Although it has been two years since her last body of work, NAO has kept up her momentum with different forms of creative outlets - whether that was writing a piece for Slay In Your Lane’s collection of essays, ‘Loud Black Girls’, or gifting fans new singles - but most importantly, becoming a mother which, according to her, has helped her develop as an artist throughout the past two years. “I think that time and becoming a mum helped me develop. So it added new layers to my creativity. I think I always like to push my boundaries with my music and I try and explore different soundscapes. And I have just been doing that and just keep pushing and pushing.” With a brand new era approaching for her, in terms of embracing motherhood and entering her thirties, I was wondering if there were any lessons she’s learnt in her twenties. “The biggest lesson I learnt is be honest”, she begins to say. “ Whether it’s a difficult situation, honesty is how you grow. Also I think, just be kinder to yourself. There’s a lot of pressure to people in their twenties, going into their thirties because the world says you should have all these things in place, like the right job, a house and a family and that’s literally not the way most people’s lives go. I think we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to achieve, and we miss the journey because we are too worried about the outcome. Be more present, enjoy the journey”, she continues, and her words couldn’t be more resonating - especially in the ongoing pandemic, lockdown after lockdown, there has been an huge pressure on millennials who suddenly found themselves out of work in-midst of an emerging recession, with an immense fear of losing out on important years. Although everybody dealt with the situation differently, I was wondering if it had impacted NAO creatively in any way. “I definitely had a plan before the pandemic and then the pandemic hit and it was just like okay.. the whole world has stopped and I was still trying to push ahead. But then I thought you know what, there’s no other time in history where we ever could do nothing. I did that. I just stopped. I learned how to stop and stand still.”

“There’s a lot of pressure to people in their twenties, going into their thirties because the world says you should have all these things in place, like the right job, a house and a family and that’s literally not the way most people’s lives go. I think we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to achieve, and we miss the journey because we are too worried about the outcome. Be more present, enjoy the journey”
-NAO

Still, she has evidently been putting in work - only recently she surprised us with brand new single ‘Messy Love’, an utterly beguiling track which accentuates her soulful, velvety vocals that we love so much. Lyrically addressing a relationship gone wrong, followed by heartbreak, I ask her about the inspiration behind the single as it’s a relatable topic for many. “It’s less about fighting heartbreak but it’s more about seeing the red flags, and the mistakes that could be made down this road in the relationship, and saying no, I’m turning my back away from love. So it’s more like, almost empowering in a way, and to say like ‘I can see the situation is going to be messy so now I’m gonna leave.” ‘Messy Love’ follows up on ‘Antidote’ featuring Nigerian’s finest Adekunle Gold which was released earlier this year. Will there be more music on the way, I ask her, but it’s a secret for now.

Moving on from speaking about ‘Messy Love’, we discuss award shows in the UK. There are many established award shows across the UK, including the MOBO Awards and Brits - all for which NAO had been nominated in the past - but one of the most prestigious one to this date remains the Mercury Prize which recognizes homegrown talent and their outstanding albums. Legendary artists such as Kano, Wolf Alice and Lily Allen have been shortlisted for the Top 12 albums of the year - and, alongside her truly mesmerising performance at the ceremony, she was on that very list with her second studio album ‘Saturn’. “It was amazing. I love the Mercury Prize and always followed it you know, and really associated with brilliant musicians and people that do stuff outside of the box”, she tells me when I asked her what it felt like having received such a prestigious nod for her body of work. “So to get nominated was like a real moment that I felt proud of, and also to perform on TV as well - I was nervous, like I’m quite a private person”. Despite being a rather introvert person, performing live is something NAO indisputably excels at. Having numerous world tours under her belt, she’s a seasoned performer without a doubt, and keeps on captivating her fans while on stage. Although live shows are currently on hold due to the pandemic, I ask her if she does have plans to hit the road again, despite being a new mother. “Yes, I think so. Definitely”, she affirms. “Touring is a massive part of how music connects to people and so I think I definitely have to go back on tour next year but I guess I’ll be doing it differently because I’ll have my daughter with me. She’ll be maybe two years old, so that should be interesting.”

“I think that time and becoming a mum helped me develop. So it added new layers to my creativity. I think I always like to push my boundaries with my music and I try and explore different soundscapes. And I have just been doing that and just keep pushing and pushing.”
-NAO

So far, the songstress has collaborated with a multitude of artists, including SiR, 6LACK and Adekunle Gold, to name but a few - each collaboration seemed an impeccable sonic fit. “The most collaborations with me happen organically”, she says, further elaborating that it’s mostly just friends or artists whose work she admires. I was particularly curious about her previous collaboration with Lianne La Havas for the single ‘Woman’, a gorgeous offering championing black women in particular and celebrating their magic, and most importantly, highlighting the importance of equality, fairness and systematic change - all in all being a truly empowering anthem. “I’ve been listening to Lianne La Havas for so many years”, NAO explains when I ask her how she eventually teamed up with her for a song, having seen both singers perform individually at Afropunk in 2017. “Before I was an artist, I was a jazz singer and drove my car to a pub in the middle of nowhere and sing to no-one. And I remember hearing Lianne on Radio 1 at like midnight, and I remember how special that was because she is such an incredible musician and singer, and her music is so authentic and organic. It was the sort of music that I wasn’t hearing much on the radio at that time so I found that really great. I’ve been a fan of her so it was just a matter of time. We kept bumping into each other at festivals and finally made it happen.”

Besides the start of a pandemic and lockdowns which seemingly lasted an eternity, this global topic has not been the only one headlining the newspapers. In May last year, Afro-American citizen George Floyd was brutally murdered by a police officer. This shed another light on the ongoing systemic racism and the broken system of justice in the United States, where unprovoked police brutality and racial bias is an increasing cause of death for many innocent black citizens, and beyond. This sparked the Black Lives Matter movement and international protests against racism. It was an eye-opening moment for many businesses and brands promising to do better in the future - especially the music industry is guilty of not being as inclusive as it seems, with white male executives still dominating this sector. In the light of those events, NAO set up a brilliant scheme for black women in the music industry, in collaboration with Sony and Mura Masa, and I’m really intrigued to hear more about it. “It’s all about getting black women and women of colour into more technical roles within the music industry, touring in particular”, Nao explains. “So like, stage design, sound engineering, stage tech, because at the moment there is not very many and we just felt like this is a good thing to do and would make an impact in many people’s live. Obviously now touring isn’t really happening but hopefully soon we will get everyone placements soon.”
Speaking of supporting black talent, I was curious to hear whether there were any particular Black-owned businesses that she champions and which she recommends to us. Being a foodie, she endorsed her favourite Caribbean. “It’s called Bakes’N Stuffingz and it’s like the best Caribbean food that I have ever had. And it’s owned by a girl called Mindy who is my age and she’s from St Lucia but came to England when she was 14 and started up the business in her kitchen at home in her one bedroom flat. Her daughter is like 10 years old and she’s like helping her so it’s just those two.” With our office being based in East London as well, I cannot help but plan my next lunch break at Bakes’N Stuffingz after hearing these words. It’s got the best ratings in East London. So that’s the first business that comes to my mind.”

As our conversation draws to a close, Nao tells me that “fans can definitely expect more music. I’m like an artist who likes to take a snapshot of life, life of where it is right now so the songs are anecdotes that people can relate to.” And I’m sure that I can speak for many when I say that I can’t wait for more of NAO’s music to come.

Watch her most recent video below!