Maya Amolo is a Kenyan R&B/Alternative Singer/Songwriter based in New York with a refreshing sound bringing a different edge to the East African scene.
Maya’s subject matter delves into matters of the complications of love of self and love of someone else, and how it can be both heartbreaking and beautiful.
Maya started by collaborating producers on the internet to create sad-boi tunes on SoundCloud, including “U Wanna” and “Where Tornados Flew” as well as Lo-Fi voicemail with “North Star (part 1&2)” and “Rainy Daze”.
Her creation of soft harmonies and structure of melodies amassed dedicated listeners and gained her the attention of local event organizers and other local producers.
Maya was recently featured on Kenyan musician Karun’s, “Favourite 5 Underground Female Kenyans Artists” article for Bonafide Magazine, where she describes Maya as “a free-flowing human being transcending space and time.”
Maya made the jump from Soundcloud in her freshman project “Leave me at the pregame”, where Maya cultivated her own safe space through the songs on the project with her gentle melodies and vulnerability.
Lush Green, The Visual Produced by Mumbi Muturi (https://www.instagram.com/mumbi_muturi/) Directed by Mumbi Muturi Director of Photography: Khalid Ramirez (https://www.instagram.com/khalidramirez/) Assistant Producer: Wambui Lamu (https://www.instagram.com/wambuijl/) Assistant Director: Sam Mugatsia (https://www.instagram.com/nosta_lone/) Set Design + Costume: Mumbi Muturi Wambui Lamu With special thanks to: Bryan Emry (https://www.instagram.com/bryan.emry/) Kepha Maina (https://www.instagram.com/kepha.maina/) Makeup: Sinitta Akello for Ne'bya Beauty (https://www.instagram.com/nebyabeauty/) Song, "Lush Green" Written and Performed by Maya Amolo (https://www.instagram.com/papayamayaaaa/) Music Created by mau (https://www.instagram.com/kamauwithsunflowers/) Mixed and Mastered by PRVK and The Other Guys (https://www.instagram.com/kevinprovoke/) Listen to "Lush Green": https://music.apple.com/ke/album/lush-green/1518220947?i=1518220952 https://open.spotify.com/track/5kSIbC6znYrxFCrbAuQkV2?si=SLajTYjjQPuY2CTrAF0omA Listen to "Leave me at the Pregame": https://fanlink.to/LMATP
Lush Green is a track supported by subtle tinkering beats; produced by Kamau Wanaina, that time travels back to Maya’s hometown in Nairobi, Kenya where she explores the feelings that come with being away from your comforts and the ones you love over time.
She writes a reassuring letter to herself, where one gets the sense of community and tenderness that Maya craves when she is away in New York.
The visual is shot in her home garden; directed by Mumbi Muturi( the artist’s mother), capturing the lush green vegetation which is in reference to how Kenyan summers look while at the same time being a safe haven for Maya.
The presence of Kenyan models with African head-wear pieces in the visual are a direct translation that she feels better and more alive when she is back home.
Maya writes "For me this visual is the perfect representation of what makes me feel most cared for and comfortable, and what I was writing about when I was homesick in New York in the winter: The comfort of a green garden and support from people at home
