OnlyL
TSHA’s *OnlyL* is an EP emerging from the confines of the coronavirus pandemic, with booming beats designed to ease listeners back to the dance floor after months of lockdown. But unlike her acclaimed 2020 EP, *Flowers*, an intentional curation, this collection was more of a happy accident. “The reason why the EP doesn’t have its own individual name is because it wasn’t necessarily supposed to be an EP,” the London producer/DJ tells Apple Music. “It’s not like a body of work where each song is related to each other.” If anything, its purpose is to set the scene for what’s to come: TSHA’s debut LP. “It’s more related to the album and the future, because that’s what I was working towards when I was writing,” she says. Every track here sits within its own sonic universe, each with a different origin story. The title track is straight-up electronic pop, while “Power” drips with twinkling club nostalgia, and “I Know” is a fraught, melodic tale. Here, TSHA takes us through each track. **“OnlyL” (feat. Nimmo)** “I actually had a different track that I wanted vocals for, and I contacted Nimmo because I really liked their sound. They had a ’80s/’90s feel to them—a bit like Eurythmics. They wrote vocals over this other track, but the voice and beat just didn’t go well together. I loved Nimmo’s vocals, so I rewrote a new track around them and chopped it up. The chopped vocals are what you hear in the chorus. I make beats ready so that I can always access stuff that I like quickly. So, I dragged a beat that I really wanted to use underneath and that just brought everything to life. Then I just built around Nimmo’s vocals and added a modular pattern that comes in as the second part of the drop. An organ sample that’s been chopped acts as the base.” **“Power”** “My music is good for certain times, but I didn’t really have club tracks. That’s where ‘Power’ was born. I’m just super excited to DJ now that the pandemic is easing and play it in a set. I sampled a 1982 Brit-funk song by \[early ’80s band\] Direct Drive in this track, and I don’t really know what inspired me to do that. I just decided to try out sampling because I’ve never really sampled like that before.” **“I Know”** “In this song, the phrase ‘I know’ could mean a lot of things. It could be about clarity, or it could reflect the hurt of realizing someone doesn’t really love you the way you thought they did. I wrote this when writing my 2019 EP, *Moonlight*. At the time of writing it, I sent it to people alongside lots of other tracks, and no one said anything about it, so I just assumed no one liked it. But it was my favorite track! Then, I sent it again when we were looking for a third track for this EP. And everyone was like, ‘Oh, this is great. This is brilliant.’ I was like, ‘You do realize I sent this to you, like, a year ago?’”
Hotly tipped by everyone from Annie Mac, Bonobo and Gorillaz to Billboard, NME, Crack, Mixmag and DJ Mag, TSHA is rapidly emerging as one of the most exciting talents coming out of the UK. Forthcoming EP “OnlyL'' due for release on 27th August showcases a confident creative who is constantly developing and refining her own distinct feel and sound. The release arrives off the back of a stellar run for the young artist including the launch of her new bi-monthly ‘Jackfruit Radio’ show on Apple Music—which debuted with a guest spot from femme culture founder Elkka—releasing her first BBC Essential Mix and a Minimix for Annie Mac’s R1 show, and being named BBC Radio 1’s “Future Artist” for January 2021 and “Star of 2020” by BBC Introducing. Her most recent EP, 2020’s “Flowers”, made multiple End-Of-Year listings, and was met with widespread praise from the likes of Billboard, NME—who described the EP as "emotion-filled electronic anthems from a star in the making”—NPR, Resident Advisor, Mixmag, NYLON, DJ Mag, Dancing Astronaut and many more. She has also been tipped for greatness by essentially the whole of BBC R1 specialist DJ crew including Annie Mac, Jack Saunders, Jaguar, Pete Tong, Danny Howard, Ricky, Melvin & Charlie and Flava D. On EP title track and lead single ‘OnlyL’, TSHA’s innate gift for producing genre-defying, classy electronic pop is at the fore. An instant earworm, it features vocals from NIMMO aka Sarah Nimmo and Reva Gauntlett, with TSHA juxtaposing the dark lyrics against the track’s upbeat instrumental. ‘Power’ plays to another of TSHA’s loves: club music. With her DJ career flourishing, the global pandemic shut down the nighttime industries and all access to dancefloors and the shared experience and exhilaration of clubbing. ‘Power’ encapsulates all of that pent up energy and love and is aimed squarely at the dancefloor–an absolutely storming four-to-the-floor groove. ‘I Know’ shows off yet another facet of TSHA’s extraordinary production chops. A perfect marriage of live musicianship and electronics, it’s a beautifully textured and melancholy work built around a gorgeous hang drum motif. Gearing up for a busy summer schedule at UK festivals including Access, Bigfoot, Standon Calling, Gala, Boardmasters, Lost Village, ION, Hideout, Inner State and Detonate, TSHA will also be appearing at Field Day in August 2021, sharing the bill with the likes of Bicep, Floating Points, Jayda G and Mount Kimbie. Artwork for “OnlyL” is by illustrator Felicity Marshall. Limited edition 12” released 27th August 2021.