Afro-soul singer, Emelonye, drops 2 singles, to promote love

A UK-based Afro-soul singer and songwriter, Uchechi Emelonye, has announced the release of her two new singles, ‘Sunrise to Sundown’ and ‘Underwater’l.

Emelonye in a statement on Friday said that the singles to be released on Oct. 3, 2022 would be accessed on major streaming platforms for downloads.

She said that the singles were meant to spur and promote love in every family.

Emelonye said she was inspired to produce the songs due to the huge love shown to her when she was growing up by her family.

She said expressing love within the family would go a long way in ensuring that children do not go wayward to embrace negative behaviours.

“‘Sunrise to Sundown’ is inspired by all the love I am surrounded with in all shapes and forms within my family.

“A love song is a staple to have as a musician and this was my personal take on the topic.

“I also wanted to explore a theme lighter than I have previously done, while still singing about something everyone can relate to.

“I wrote ‘Sunrise to Sundown’ myself, like I write all my songs, I initially found a beat on YouTube one night when I was bored at the university and felt compelled to write lyrics to it.

“It was produced by Zaq Sawyer Coffey in Birmingham whom my dad located, and I am so glad he did because we created a unique and fun product that I cannot wait for everyone to hear,” she said.

Emelonye, second of three children, whose father is a senior diplomat with the United Nations said she had enjoyed interesting musical journey.

She said her musical journey started when her parents enrolled her in guitar and piano classes when she was in primary school in the Republic of North Macedonia.

“There, I developed the knowledge of basic musical theory and the basic skills to play those instruments.

“While studying in Italy, I always auditioned for musicals at school, and on Sundays, I sang the responsorial psalm at our Catholic church in Rome.

“It was from these exposures that I started to develop my voice, through my time in Finland and Uganda, I started a band with my friends, and we wrote and composed our own music.

“I kept on writing and belonged to a few more bands in high school in Nigeria, COVID-19 hit during my last year of high school and first year of University, it was then my older brother and I brought ‘With You’ to my parents who decided to support my music professionally,” she said.

The artiste noted that the singles were equally expected to deepen her grasp on that genre of music in the continent.

“‘Sunrise to Sundown’ is a unique fun product created for music fans.

“The release of these singles are coming on the heels of my debut single, ‘Little Black Bird’,” she said.

Emelonye noted that her musical influences include: Madonna, Chaka Khan, Lady Gaga, Celine Dion, Aretha franklin, Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Huston, and Marvin Gaye.