Want a slice of pop perfection?
BY ELEANOR NOYCE, IMAGE VIA ITUNES
Hey DIVAs! It’s that time of the week again. Looking for some inspired energy this weekend? We’ve got you. This week, we’re channelling pop perfection from AURORA to the experimental sounds of Jennifer Vanilla.
Jennifer Vanilla – Castle In The Sky
An exceptional character, Jennifer Vanilla (they/them) is the alter ego of Becca Kauffman. On Friday 5 August, their debut album – Castle In The Sky – was released, featuring acclaimed single Body Music. A journey into 90s-fuelled dance music and pop, Jennifer Vanilla is a self-described humanoid alien documenting their conversations with fantasy. Don’t miss this.
AURORA – POTION FOR LOVE
Headlining Norway’s Øya Festival alongside Florence + The Machine and Gorillaz, AURORA returns with new track POTION FOR LOVE. Both heartfelt and dreamy, this latest endeavour is music for the soul. “When I wrote Exist For Love, a celebrations of the love we carry within us, I also wrote Potion For Love. I wanted to also give something to the people who had lost their love. I find it so beautiful how we still find the bravery to give and receive love knowing how it can disappear at any moment. It makes it foolishly beautiful. Painfully delicious. So little connected to the mind and to logic that it makes my little heart want to burst”, explains AURORA.
Claudia Valentina – Sweat
Ahead of forthcoming EP Foreign Affair due for release on 9 September, Claudia Valentina has shared latest single Sweat. Exploring the relationships and situationships that young women often find themselves entangled in, this track was produced whilst Claudia was in motion between London, Guernsey and Los Angeles.
“I’m fascinated with different sounds from around the world and as I’m from a small island, I longed to get out of there and discover a new world of sounds since I was young. Growing up in London and LA has allowed me to be exposed to different types of music through the people I work with. I’m inspired by the producers I work with and their own individual sounds and I learn so much about different cultures of music through them so I like to merge all these sounds together to create something that’s unique while putting my own musical stamp on everything to tie it all together. This EP is global sounding, it encompasses everything that has touched and inspired me in my life”, Claudia reveals.
Maddie Zahm – If It’s Not God
With her debut EP You Might Not Like Her dropping on 12 August, TikTok star Maddie Zahm has released her latest musical endeavour, If It’s Not God. Grappling with her identity as she navigates her relationships with both religion and sexuality, this track is endlessly reflective. “This song was kind of a shock for me to write. I was at a session with my friend Brian Brundage and we had tried so hard to write about a girl I had been talking to but nothing was coming to my mind. I am stubborn and usually if it takes more than an hour to write a song, I don’t think it’s supposed to be on my project”, Maddie shares.
“It hit hour five and I was about to give up and so we just had a closing chat about our lives. We touched on the topic of religion and I started hearing a single note on the piano and Brian started playing it. We talked about our deconstruction and it was truly so incredible to finally be able to talk to someone safe about my experiences in the church. I was worried it seemed anti church/God but the more I have sat with it the more I realise it leaves so much room and space for me to believe in whatever I want.”
DIVA magazine celebrates 28 years in print in 2022. If you like what we do, then get behind LGBTQI media and keep us going for another generation. Your support is invaluable.
