Today, Nao announces her new album, ‘Autumn’, out October 16th via Little Tokyo Recordings.
The 10-track collection sees the London artist return to where her musical story first began: jazz. Created alongside producer Dave Okumu, ‘Autumn’ is the first of four season-themed records, ‘A Soulful Suite’, each exploring a different genre and musical language that has shaped Nao’s career.
Following four albums with RCA, ‘Autumn’ will be released entirely independently, a deliberately pared-back approach that reconnects Nao with the freedom of her earliest EPs.
“I had this realisation that I’m performing in old skin, but I’m a new person now,” Nao says. “I found myself thinking a lot about the kind of musician and performer I want to be.”
Nao spent four years studying jazz at music conservatoire, immersing herself in artists including Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Keith Jarrett, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. With ‘Autumn’, that musical foundation comes back into focus.
“Jazz feels like letting go to me. That’s what improvisation is, it’s free-form, it’s letting loose, it’s shedding, it’s a release. Autumn and jazz melt together really beautifully.”
Rather than opting for a traditional album rollout, Nao is keeping the campaign concentrated and direct. She shares double-single ‘Eugene’ and ‘Save The World’ today, with the full album arriving in October.
Tune in now.
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