With the recent release of her newest single last month, 'What We Are Worth', future-soul, R&B singer MAYA shares 5 soul singers that inspire her.
1. Meg Mac
She has the most incredible tone and songwriting ability. One of her songs, 'Never Be', in my opinion is one of the best soul songs to come out of Australia. Meg has a beautiful way of stacking her voice without losing its essence.
2. Allysha Joy from 30/70
She has a voice like Jill Scott, very smooth and very easy to listen to. She is a friend of mine and has an incredible vision to help shape and educate the right message into the future.
I just had a small feature in their new song 'Elevate' from their just-released album. The song is made to empower women and I’m glad they’re spreading such a strong message.
3. Claudia Jones
She has such a great vibe and it really takes you back to a Donna Summers feel. When I watch her, I feel like I’m in an old-school disco-soul heaven. I am also close with Claudette and see how hard she works to get the soul sound out into more venues.
4. Thando
This girl has such a beautiful voice. Just has that honey-smooth tone you want and love in soul singers. Thando is also another strong female with a large stance in the music industry right now. She is killing it doing shows left, right and centre, and they are seriously worth a go.
5. Mayfield
Incredible, full-soul band. Carla, the lead singer, has a great energy. She is also a friend of mine who is non-stop working away to bring great soul music to Melbourne. Her eight-piece band also feature Thando and many great faces. They also play quite regularly and definitely worth a watch.
Maya has a couple of Melbourne shows upcoming: Ferdydurke 30 Nov and The Night Cat 1 Dec.
