SURINAMESE/DUTCH FOLK-POP SINGER-SONGWRITER NÉOMÍ UNVEILS THE TENDER NEW SINGLE ‘GARDEN’

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PRAISE FOR NEOMI

“Intricate, intimate, texturally spare, lyrically observational and arresting, the six songs are like snapshots that capture your attention and draw you in.” – SUNDAY TIMES ‘Breaking Act’

“néomí has shared a beautiful, introspective release “skipping stone”. From the raw lyricism to the artist’s somber delivery and angelic harmonies, this release is just as captivating as its storyline.”– THE LINE OF BEST FIT

“a folksy beauty in the school of For Emma, Forever Ago or even Ben Howard’s Every Kingdom. Folk songwriting at its finest complete with spine-tingling ‘oohs’ and a mellow guitar solo.” – GIGWISE

“Singer/songwriter néomí dives into the heartbreak, the healing, and everything else that went into her breathtakingly vulnerable and beautifully raw sophomore EP ‘after.'” – ATWOOD MAGAZINE

“Recording under the moniker néomí, Speelman crafts soul-stirring chamber pop and ethereal folk”– UNDER THE RADAR

“Harnessing her vocal power and injecting her inherent talent for hooking you in with the winding narratives, néomí is an artist who deserves to be noticed and adored.”– EARMILK

After recently returning with her stunning BBC 6Music-supported single ‘your girl‘ her first piece of new material since her stunning second EP ‘after’ released in April this year, which found support with the likes of the Sunday Times (Breaking Act), The Independent (Spotlight Artist), The Line of Best Fit, NOTION, Songwriting Magazine, WONDERLAND, and Record of the Day, néomí, aka Surinamese/Dutch folk-pop singer-songwriter Neomi Speelman, continues to ascend as she delivers the tender new offering ‘garden‘.

Honing more of that lofty folk-pop aesthetic she has become synonymous with since she first emerged, ‘garden’ sees her in one of her most heartfelt and progressive guises yet. With its soft and illuminating piano set perfectly to her ethereal vocal performance throughout, she shines higher than ever throughout this emotive new delight. The track features a beautiful string arrangement written by Abby Gundersen who is part of SYML’s live band, they met when néomí supported SYML on his European tour earlier in the year and connected, with Abby offering to do strings for a future release, and ‘garden’ sees the resulting outcome.

Adding about ‘garden‘, she said, “I believe this is a song that has written itself. It was the first writing day I had with my key-player Wannes, he started playing the opening chords the song starts with. He was doing some solo parts in between and all of a sudden I was standing in my grandparents garden, looking at my granddad and grandmother when they were a bit younger. So I just started writing and Wannes kept on playing. The song was written in a heartbeat. I wrote it for my granddad and it is a little ode to my grandmother as well. My grandfather is suffering from Alzheimer’s. He is at a stage now where he doesn’t remember who I am, and sometimes I wonder if he still knows or understands who he is himself. I see him walking around the garden or at family parties just completely lost but as long as my grandmother is there he will be fine. The beautiful part in this horrifying illness is that he still remembers my grandmother every day, just her, because she has been so important to him…I guess? In any occasion, either happy, scared or angry but in his case mostly loving, he looks at her. I think that is the most touching thing and a great example of how strong love is. Loving someone so deeply that even the illness can’t take over. Sometimes I’m scared that there will come a day where he forgets her too and then I think the battle he has been fighting will be over. Don’t get me wrong, I think growing old and dying is one of the most precious things there is, so this is not a sad story per se. I think he had the most wonderful life (except the 2nd world war) and I hope he will continue to remember her, and how much he loves her until his end. And if not, he has this song. And in the end, I strongly believe that they will find each other in another lifetime.”

néomí is the moniker for folk-pop singer-songwriter Neomi Speelman who writes authentic and sincere stories backed by dreamy soundscapes inspired by the classic folk songwriters, old and new alike.

Although born in The Netherlands, Neomi is half Dutch/Surinamese after her mother moved from Suriname as a child. As a youngster, Neomi’s first step into music didn’t exactly start on the right foot when she was told she had to attend piano tuitions. It was agreed that Neomi would attend the lessons for 5 years and afterwards she could decide whether to continue or not. Nevertheless 5 years passed and the unimpressed Neomi quit the piano and vowed never to play music again.

4 years would float by until Neomi would find herself at a musical junction. During a browse on a popular Internet video website she stumbled across a live video of Ben Howard performing ‘Old Pine’ with a cellist in tow. Spellbound and inspired, Neomi came out of her musical retirement, picked up a guitar and began teaching herself how to play from online tutorials.

As her skill and confidence grew, Neomi applied to music schools and, due to an administrative error, was invited to audition in Amsterdam. Despite being too young to apply, she was offered a place at the school based on her raw talent and potential. Over the next 4 years she would hone her songwriting and sound, her main influences stemming between Bon Iver, Bob Dylan, and hero Ben Howard. She says of the trio “their lyrics are outstanding and insanely beautiful. I don’t think they make songs, but they make art, poems. That’s something I also really try to do; make little poems instead of songs.”

néomí released her debut 5 song EP ‘before‘ on June 24th 2022 via [PIAS] which has garnered 3 million streams to date. She supported Novo Amor, HAEVN, The Slow Show and Jonathan Jeremiah on their 2022 shows in The Netherlands and was named both OOR and 3voor12 Talent for the end of year Popronde tour. After performing at ESNS 2023 she was voted the #5 best act by 3voor12 and she was awarded 3FM Talent by national radio station 3FM. The station would go on to nominate her for ‘Best Newcomer’ at their annual awards ceremony. In March néomí was invited by SYML to open on his European tour, returning to the road the following month when label mate Jonathan Jeremiah asked her to join him on 10 tour dates over Europe. Latest EP ‘after’ was released on April 14th with néomí’s biggest headline show taking place at a sold-out Paradiso in Amsterdam on May 7th.

Having recently announced her biggest headline show, taking place on May 25th 2024 at Tolhuistuin, Amsterdam (tickets on sale HERE ) néomí today announces a run of live dates in Holland (see below), which will go on sale Monday 20th November, as well as an appearance at ESNS in Groningen on January 17th. She also recently opened for Matt Corby on a number of Dutch dates and in Paris and will play her first headline show in Belgium this December.