Niambi by Folajimi
DMV-raised and Puerto Rico-based multidisciplinary artist Niambi shares her new single “Rocksteady” today. “Rocksteady” is rooted with a slick, Jersey club beat produced by longtime collaborator, life partner and New Jersey native Proda.
Arriving alongside the new single is a stunning visualizer directed by CEOJAY. “Rocksteady” follows Niambi’s debut solo single “Soccer Mom,” which was highlighted by Rolling Stone and CLASH Magazine and arrived with a MajorStage live session featuring Portia Rolle, who is the grandmother of Niambi’s child and has played on records for artists including Elton John, Notorious B.I.G. and Lil Kim, on guitar. Both “Rocksteady” and “Soccer Mom” reveal the breadth of genre Niambi explores on a forthcoming, as-yet-to-be-announced project.
Speaking about the new single, Niambi shares, “‘Rocksteady’ is one of my favorites! It’s a lot of fun, which is so refreshing for me, as I fall in love with making music all over again.”
With this new era, Niambi is letting loose and showcasing her confidence in her various roles: rapper, singer, producer, songwriter, mother and spiritual leader. Her musical story was destined from the beginning. Niambi (which is Swahili for “Melody”) had music running through her ancestral lineage, long before she entered this world. Born in Atlanta and raised in the DMV, she grew up watching her parents in Pan-African groups and jazz ensembles. Her parents were also the leading members of a neo-soul/ funk band. In Maryland, her family owned an internet arts cafe where her mother would headline monthly concerts. Niambi began exploring her passion on her own at a young age, citing Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, India Arie, Nas, Kendrick Lamar, System of a Down, Paramore, and Red Hot Chili Peppers as influences. She was the lead singer of a rock band throughout high school, which served as a creative outlet for her as she was also simultaneously in the school band and choir. She learned the technical aspects of music in her music theory classes, all of which led her to attend The Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at NYU Tisch.
It was there that Niambi met future OSHUN member Thandiwe, along with her partner / collaborator Proda, who produced “Soccer Mom” and “Rocksteady,” and her manager, who is still with her today. Niambi and Thandiwe formed OSHUN during their freshman year of college in 2013 at NYU. As collaborative partners, the two have created music, visuals, and spaces in honor of the divine feminine, carrying the name and traditions of the primordial West African deity, Ọṣun. Naming artists like Jorja Smith, Princess Nokia & Black Thought as previous collaborators, and amassing over 80M global streams, their work has been recognized and praised by Billboard, Rolling Stone, The FADER, NPR, Essence, REVOLT, Paper, Vogue and more.
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