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Rising pop icon Seeva proves that he is more than just an electro-pop artist with the release of his new EP, Afterthoughts, which dropped on May 13, 2022.
“I wanted to create something more raw and real with this project,” Seeva shares, after revealing that Afterthoughts is more of a “mesh” of musical styles influenced by pop, ballads and soul. It’s quite a difference from his debut album, We Need to Talk, which was released in 2020 during the height of the pandemic.
The London-based songwriter reflects how he initially wanted to mirror that same electro-pop feel with this new EP, but because he changed so much as a person and an artist since then he reveals that “it was never going to be authentic to just copy what I’ve already done.”
Living in a post-pandemic reality, Seeva credits the evolution of his music style to the world opening back up again and finally being able to collaborate with other musicians in person. More real instruments can be heard on this new EP, he comments, as “it just evolved and felt right to strip it back and make it more real.” This is especially true with the acoustic guitar behind “Twenty-Two” and background drums in “Gemini Moon.”
According to Seeva, this EP is a “heartbreak project” in more ways than one. It’s not just about experiencing heartbreak from a former partner but also having to face the harshness that comes with entering adulthood. Having to move out of suburban comfort and into the heart of a big city like London was “a heartbreak in itself” because it revealed that life really isn’t like it is in the movies, Seeva explains. Afterthoughts explores the reality of being an adult in a post-pandemic world, while also incorporating themes of being single and dating with a queer, South Asian identity.
Despite this project being born out of heartbreak, Seeva says it was also a form of healing for him. Learning how to actually sit with himself after experiencing this pain, instead of just jumping into the next relationship, was an important lesson he had to learn. “I’m not the same heartbroken boy that this EP reflects – I’m in a really good place and I’m actually happy,” he says.
The writing process for this EP mirrors that same healing energy, as Seeva recalls each session beginning with a therapy-like check in for everyone working on the project. He notes that the process of writing the longest track on the EP, “Artefact,” was one of the most therapeutic songs to write. “It was a moment when I sat down on the piano after a trip to New York and I needed to let something out,” he reflects. Within ten minutes he had completed the entire song and he expressed how something like that had never happened to him before. “It was spiritual,” he remembers.
In response to what it is like working in the music industry as a queer person of color, Seeva emphasizes that it definitely comes with its challenges. He started working in writing rooms at 17 years old and he says that he was always the only person of color in the room. “It’s being tokened a lot of the time and trying to grapple with why am I here – am I here because they want me as a talent, and if so why aren’t they picking my writing,” he continues, “or am I here because I’m brown and they just need to tick it off the list?”
Seeva explains how queer communities of color often have to create their own opportunities within the music industry in order to be seen. “We’re queer people of color, we’re people of color, we’re South Asians who are all trying to bring each other up,” he says, “and that’s a shift that’s definitely much more visible now than what I remember growing up.”
Afterthoughts is a project that Seeva is extremely proud of. It’s the kind of EP you should listen to if you’re both deep in your feelings but also want to experience a bit of a main character moment. “I hope people listening to it feel heard and seen,” Seeva says, “and just that this little queer brown kid in London is writing a song that maybe people can connect to regardless of how they identify.”
With that in mind, Seeva is gearing up for his first headline performance on June 1 at Colours Hoxton in London. He expresses how excited he is to be performing live again, and that he can’t wait to announce more live performances coming up very soon.
Follow Seeva on Instagram, @seevamusic, and listen to Afterthoughts now.
