The global soul scene comes together in one work. Featuring Philadelphia's neo-soul legend Bilal, Grammy Award-winning producer Peter CottonTale, Emmy Award winner Khari Mateen, world-renowned trumpeter Keyon Harrold, Chicago's celebrated poet/singer Jamila Woods, leading figure in the indie R&B scene Devin Morrison, Australian prodigy MXXWLL, UK's beautiful-voiced vocalist Sam Wills, Dutch artist Bnnyhunna with Ghanaian roots, Vietnamese rising star Mỹ Anh, Finnish rising star Misha, and Taiwanese vibraphonist Chien Chien Lu. Artists from America, Europe, and Asia come together in one work. This is also the culmination of the "WORLD SOUL COLLECTIVE" philosophy that SWEET SOUL RECORDS has embodied for many years. Transcending genre, national, and racial boundaries, it showcases the current state of soul music on a global scale. Nao Yoshioka's voice connects all genres—neo-soul, indie R&B, Afrobeat, house, and spiritual jazz—with a single thread. The connections and trust she built during her tour of 11 countries for her previous album, "Flow," made this album possible.

Evolution into a Soul Singer-Songwriter—An Awakening in Her 13th Year:
After a 13-year career, Nao Yoshioka has made a definite evolution from a soul singer to a soul singer-songwriter. From singer to storyteller, and then to songwriter. She has spent over 10 years honing her ability to translate her messages into music. The results of this hard work became apparent when Bilal, who had traveled an hour and a half from Philadelphia, entered the booth with a notepad and pen in hand in a special studio connected to a Manhattan rooftop. Based on the topline created by Nao, lyrics were spun on the spot, and her overwhelming vocals were layered on top. While continuing to perform on the world stage as a live artist, her expression as a writer is also deepening. With her 15th anniversary approaching, Nao Yoshioka is still on her way to growth. This album is proof of that, a sure step towards the next stage.

The journey to 'self': Embracing light and shadow:
When Nao Yoshioka completed the world tour for her previous album, 'Flow,' visiting 11 countries, what spread through her heart was not a sense of accomplishment, but a conviction that "this is just the beginning." Not the goal, but the start. That intuition became the origin of this album. After 13 years of chasing only light, she confronted her shadow for the first time. Loneliness, and guilt. That was Nao Yoshioka's "shadow." Not overcoming weakness, but confronting it and loving it. "Self" arrived after integrating the "shadow" as described by Jung. When she realized that both the self she had never shown and the self that shone were her true self, music gained a new freedom. Nao Yoshioka resonates the gradation from darkness to light with her own voice.

Importer: Black Screen Records

Black Screen Records GmbH
Neue Weyerstr. 10
50676 Köln
Germany

Contact: blackscreenrecords.com