Enter Naomi Janae's Ethereal World Through Their Debut EP

Naomi Janae (@naomijanae) by Divina Garcia (@divinagraciaphoto).

Naomi Janae blesses 2021 with the synthy and nostalgic sounds reminiscent of the 80s ethereal wave that we all miss––they knew the assignment. The 25-year-old artist from St. Louis, MO released their new five-track album Hell Is For Lovers. NUNAR talked to Janae on what preparation was like for the album and what their art represents!

After hearing Hell Is For Lovers for the first time, Janae was feeling a ripple of emotions. “I was excited but also extremely nervous because it is my first project. But when I heard everything once it was mastered, my nerves calmed down... for my first project, this is not the worst thing,” Janae jokes.

Janae’s manager Verde a.k.a Coachwave, who also produced and co-wrote the album, helped them with one of the hardest steps as an artist: the title. They tell us Hell Is For Lovers was inspired by a bad relationship. The title’s declaration is a dig at romance we all eventually feel.

Hell Is For Lovers starts off with the speeding synths of “Too Fast” and concludes with delicate strumming by Melani B. Plummer and Janae’s angelic ballad in “ILY”. When listening to Janae, you’ll feel yourself being drawn back to the dream pop/ethereal wave era of 80s and 90s bands like Cocteau Twins, Tears For Fears, and Slowdive. Even the album art pulls us in with it’s dreamy, old-school aesthetics and vibrant color.

If you haven’t met Naomi or heard the new EP yet, Naomi offers that the listening experience is similar to experiencing them as a person. “When you listen to it, there’s a very happy exterior. It sounds fun, but then when you read the lyrics it can be a little bit deeper and have more meaning. I feel like that’s sometimes how people view me?” 

Making the EP brought Janae out of their comfort zone and “out of my head”. “Alone With U”, the fourth song of the EP, was the hardest to record because of how much they had to step out of their comfort zone. Additionally, “ILY” was their favorite vocal performance as it brought out the emotions and meant much to them.

Janae expressed to NUNAR: why now? “I just wanted to prove to myself. It didn’t even matter if other people listened to it. But that I could put something out there, put myself out there.”  

 On what advice they would share to artists, particularly black creators, Naomi says: said “Just remember who you're doing it for, which is you. Your art is for you and through that you can reach other people... and to keep yourself in mind.”