10 Things We Love About Naya Yeira

Jakarta-born, London-based singer-songwriter, Naya Yeira is making space for a sound that’s entirely her own, where R&B, pop and hip-hop – and honestly, whatever else she wants – meet an unmatched emotional vulnerability. Her voice is distinctive, her writing raw, and with support from some leading industry cosigns, people are starting to take notice.

Raised on a mix of traditional Indonesian music, Western rock, and 2000s R&B, she started writing songs at a young age as a creative outlet, naturally. Though she was set to study computing in Toronto, it was a series of serendipitous events; one demo and a massive leap of faith that landed her at London’s coveted BIMM instead.

A pandemic-induced hiatus led to her return to her home country, where a stellar run of self-releases generated national buzz. With Visa issues stalling her momentum back in London, she fervently remained in the studio, where she quietly sharpened her craft.

Now at 23, she’s carving her name into the city’s live scene, with standout sets at Kindred, Camden Chapel, The Grace and most recently, La La La Fest in Jakarta. Her shows are stripped, soulful, and entirely centred on storytelling – wherever that story may take her.

With her new single, ‘Wicked Games’, ushering in a new era, Naya’s finally back on her own terms. Confident, experimental and grounded in truth – this isn’t just a comeback. It’s the start of something major.

1. We love how you don’t confine yourself to one genre of music.

   I have no problem being put in a box – it's just a name at the end of the day, I’m not fussy. But I think when I was under the R&B label, I was like, ‘Wait, is it just because of the way I look, you don't want to put me in another box?’ I have no problem being R&B. I love R&B, but I'm not sure if I fit that entirely. I was just confused. And then, the more I listened to music, I realised that I was drawn to the R&B scene here in the UK, but maybe it's different in America – I don't know, I’ve never been there. But I was like, ‘Okay, well, I don't sound like that. Is it going to be confusing to people?’ If I could have my own genre and just market it that way, I'd love it. It would make everything so much easier.

   
   

2. We love your dedication to preserving the quality of your sound and voice – who or what are some of your biggest influences?

   One of my favourite artists of all time is Stevie Wonder, and his Innervisions album. And then, I love Michael Jackson's music from all eras of his career. I love Doja Cat. I love Billie Eilish. I love Addison Rae – I can go on and on. These are my main Pop people. Musically, I feel like I've also been influenced by Ray Charles and Blues, and then some Trap, Hip Hop stuff. I'm all over the place. I listened to everything to the point where I don't know anymore.

   
   

3. We love how vulnerable you are with the subject matter of your songs – how did you gain the confidence to navigate touching on such emotional topics?

   I think I'm the kind of artist who doesn't take myself too seriously. I definitely hide behind the pain or trauma, whatever, and I would make it into a heartbeat for a song, for example.

   
   

   

   Photo credit: Hudi Sukarma

   
   

4. We love how eager you are to get stuck in and do things yourself – tell us more about your interest in interactive art, specifically, and digital concepts!

   I'm a huge DIY person, but, like, in an independent way, since I was young, I didn't want to rely on people too much because too much anxiety and like, it just stresses me. If it's my fault, it's my fault; you know, I'll take the blame. But if it's your fault, it's because I trusted you. Anyway, I think people would be surprised to know that I really enjoy interactive media art, which involves coding quite a bit – a nice, little bit of Python. Not that I'm amazing at it…I'm not. Let's put that out there.

   
   

   When did this fascination begin?

   It started last year when I was playing my first festival in Jakarta, at La La La Fest. They had a giant sphere in the middle and a huge LED ring around it – so imagine, the planet Saturn, and there's like a giant LED, but the ring is a lot higher, and we're supposed to have visuals on that. And I thought, 'Wait, I can do it myself.' I just had the sudden urge to be like, ‘No, I can do it myself.’ Then I figured it out, and ever since then, I've been on a roll.

   
   

5. We love how intricate and detailed you are with your process – to you, what constitutes good music?

   When I can't get it out of my head and it's catchy, and it sticks with me and the people around me, and the quality of the sound, instrumentally. Or when you just get that feeling, it's all in that feeling. Even if I release it and it doesn't do the biggest numbers or whatever, I'm like, No, I still believe in it. It's my gut feeling – you can hop on this train, or you don't have to.

   
   

   Are there any particular songs in your discography that it was clear from the jump was going to be a great song?

   Wicked Games got a good one [on TikTok]. And then there's this other song called Do My Dance, which I love – lots of Jersey code mix.

   
   

6. We love how you don’t care to entertain external voices or influences that aren’t supporting your vision – how were you able to stand so firmly on business when it comes to your craft at a young age?

   Well, I think it took so long just to be at the start of my journey, like girl (me) was in development for so long, to the point where I'm like, Okay, where do I see my career going and all that? I can't say I'm a psychic, but I know it will have its longevity. That's what I want to go for. I want it to be known for being artistic in its own way. I definitely want to create a little world that I can build visually and musically, and I want to be known for that. I think I prefer longevity more than a one-time buzz.

   
   

7. We love how you don’t shy away from your Gen-Z’ness – how does this play into your creativity and/or musicality?

   I think that when you make good music, and I'm confident that I do too, it just has that seriousness that comes with it, even if what I'm saying is like, ‘What are you on about?’ On the other hand, I'm trying to make it kind of serious and jokey. It's very ‘brain rot’ and representative of Gen Z culture because nobody's serious.

   
   

8. We love how embracing you are of making this entire process collaborative, from the producers you work with to your other songwriters.

   Again, it starts with a feeling. Usually, I’m feeling something that day, or something's bothering me that's not quite it could be something super, like mundane is like, Oh, my landlord's giving me shit. Or like, Oh, my boyfriend pissed me off.’ So I come in with a feeling, and then I sit on the chair, and then we talk about that feeling. And then I explain that I feel kind of this and that, and then my producer comes up with chords, and then it's this collaborative dance that we do in conversation. And then finally, we come up with this beat. And I'm like, ‘No, the beats gotta be harder.’ Other times, I feel like I don't want to talk as much, or he’ll come up with a beat, and I'm like, ‘No, no, this isn't it. This is not what I'm feeling.’

   
   

9. We love the evolution of your sound and your identity as a musician across the last decade.

   I've been on this [journey] for ages, since 2019, I think. Before that, I was just singing and being happy. I basically released my school project in Indonesia as a soundtrack for a TV show at the time, and that went viral. Then, it got removed from Spotify – annoying, but it's on YouTube. It was such a different sound from what I'm doing now – I guess that was just pop. I don't even know what I was doing back then, but it did well, which is why it annoyed me so much. I didn't even know who I was as an artist. I needed the time to get into my craft and master it, even though how it happened wasn't how I wanted it to happen – it was some stupid visa stuff, and I couldn't release anything – but I think it was needed. I needed to develop as an artist and figure out what I want. I'm at a point where I know my sound now, even though I don't have the same buzz that I did back in 2020/21. But I can build on a better foundation, as now, I feel like musically, I'm solid and visually, I can figure it out.

   
   

10. We love your new single Wicked Games – tell us about it and what else you’ve got in store!

    It’s about that moment where you realise something that started off as a bit of fun has turned into something serious. It’s that emotional shift – you’re acting all nonchalant, thinking it’s chill, and then suddenly, you’re in deep and yourself: wait… am I actually in a relationship? Like I said, people quite liked it on TikTok, so I’m excited for it to be out, but also, I can't wait to make as much visual art as possible to develop the storyline of the EP. That's what I'm excited about for sure: crafting a whole little world to be in visuals. 

Wicked Games is out now! You can stream it here and watch the video below:

'WICKED GAMES' MUSIC VIDEO