A Conversation with Ayoni

Hot off the release of her newest single, "2," Ayoni is a rising star to look out for. Her powerful pop vocals beautifully tap into the R&B sound to produce music that soothes the soul. Her global upbringing and Caribbean roots have also influenced her music, allowing her to explore different genres and international music scenes. Though only 25, Ayoni's experience of growing up around the world has left her with clear wisdom and a genuine approach in regards to music and recording. Before her show last month at Antone's Nightclub with MICHELLE, Ayoni stopped by the KVRX station to chat with us on-air.

To hear more about Ayoni's upcoming work and musical upbringing, keep reading below:

Q: Can you tell us about your upcoming single, "Two?"

A: It opens a fun chapter in the album. It's very soul influenced. It kind of has a British sound, I think. It's a song that's kind of like a breakup song, but with a fun twist.

Q: What was the process of writing that song like? What inspired it?

A: It was really fun. I was in a very toxic situation. I was dating a Gemini. I'm a Gemini, so crimes ensued. Itt's really about going tit for tat in relationships, which is something maybe our generation can relate to alittle bit. I feel like sometimes when you're dating, it's almost like you're encouraged to have tricks up your sleeve. And I'm not that kind of person. You know, this was my first relationship after being in a really wholesome relationship, so it was a rude awakening of what dating can be nowadays. This song is a very playful tongue-in-cheek interpretation of that, while also still holding true to this narrative of self-discovery and what you deserve at the same time.

Q: Is "Two" part of a larger upcoming project?

A: That song is part of my album, which is gonna drop in June. That album, for me, is an exploration of love and loneliness. The album chronicles the past few years of my early 20s--I'm 25 now. Leaving relationships that you thought were gonna last forever, and then being a young adult and trying to figure out relationships. It's a very post-college album. I graduated in 2021 so I feel like, those first few years of just finding my feet andnavigating that transition is very turbulent. A lot of the time in music, we focus on teen years and sometimes those middle adult years can get lost, or may be not as glamorous. I think there's a lot of twenty-somethings that relate to the chaos of your early 20s. This album is really an exploration of that and a very (in some ways) playful tongue-in-cheek retelling of certain scenarios, which is just my personality, but there's also some really deep, reflective records as well, that really played a part in coming to self.

Q: How would you say your process of writing music and your music itself has evolved over the years?

A: In a lot of ways, my writing process initially was very pure and very, you know, I was talking with a friend earlier this week about how grateful I am to have always trusted my own perspective, and that's aided in never really struggling with writer's block. I try to sit down and write when I have something to say, and if it's not working, I don't really have a problem taking a step back and waiting. That is something that I've always stay true to, but one of the things I realized in the process of writing this album is that I have layers of honesty with myself. I think I treat songwriting as therapy and self-reflection, so there's a very bare and raw aspect to approaching your experiences and being like, 'I'm not even going to judge myself. This is my space to truly put to words the feelings that I've been having.' When [this album] started off, I was in a relationship, and I'd been in it for a few years, and I thought that's where I was going to be for the rest of my life. When I started to ask myself certain questions, it led me down a path that I didn't expect to end up on. Sometimes, we don't want to get super real with ourselves. Even for myself, my writing in the process of this album has changed to different levels of honesty. I think that there are records that are more vibey and fun, and I'm almost just exploring a sonic space. But there's also records where there was some real truth telling that needed to be done.

Q: Can you tell me a little bit about how and when you started making music?

A: I started off as a writer first, and then that transitioned into songwriting. In terms of the jump from actually writing songs on instruments and performing them to moving into recorded music, I think the interest started when I was in my middle school and high school years, but the infrastructure wasn't necessarily there. I lived in Danville in Northern California. There weren't really studios or anything in our town, but there was one guy that had a home studio. So I would go to his house with my mom...maybe just a few times, record stuff for family. Nothing serious, but that was my first time recording and learning about what goes into recording a record. My first real skip into production and actual sound was really at the end of high school. At the time, I was living in Jakarta, and I was curious about production. My best friend at the time, Rory, was really into dance music, electronic music, producing and DJing, so he showed me the bare ropes of GarageBand and learning how to produce. When I moved from Jakarta to LA and went to USC, that was really when me and my friends were recording in our dorm rooms, or someone's parent had a home studio, or whatever. That was the first time where we were all truly creating music at a great quality. That was really the transition into recorded sound for me.

Q: You've lived in a few different spots around the world. How has that influenced your music?

A: I think it just keeps you open. When I lived in Jakarta, we would go out in high school and the clubs would play dance music or electronic music. At the time, I think that Chainsmokers, Swedish House Mafia, or just very pop dance music--that sound was in my mind. So the first records I recorded that I actually released in Indonesia were with dance producers. There was Devarra and another guy, Eric Soto, who were both Indonesian dance producers. They love a big vocal sound. When I got to LA, more of the alternative pop/alternative indie, like Lorde's Melodrama--more experimental approaches to genre--really resonated with me. And, you know, I'm from the Caribbean as well, so I was coming up on Rihanna and seeing how she infused dance hall with pop and also had a very global, genreless sound.

Listen to Ayoni here:

See Ayoni in Alicia Keys' Uncharted Documentary: