My name is Alana Soul and Love In London is my first ever project. When I first started the project I didn’t exactly know what direction or what I wanted the EP to be about. So at first I spent a lot of time thinking about what I wanted the concept to be about.
I remember watching a SZA interview where she spoke out how she writes and how she always tries to write about real situations. This really helped me because it really made me understand what direction I wanted to take in regards to the project.
I decided I wanted the project to be based around love but not heartbreak. More so the motions of different circumstances that arise in different types of relationships, whether that’s a friendship or romantic relationship, because at that point in my life I was forming new relationships and also losing old ones. But I was hurt. It was more so just growing up and releasing what I want.
I also wanted all the songs in the EP to mean something to me and so that’s why I took my time writing each song. I wanted it to be based on real life situations. I feel that’s when people really relate to you as an artist.
My favourite part of creating this project is the creative aspect of things. I really loved listening to different beats, working with different people to get the finished product. I intentionally did not collaborate with many other artists for this product as it’s my first project, so I wanted my listeners to really get to hear me as an artist and know my sound. Also because this project was so personal to me I knew the vision that I had.
I worked with quite a few different producers. I wanted to work with as many as possible so that each track could have a different feel and sound to it. I found one of the hardest parts of creating the project was actually choosing the beats because there were so many amazing beats.
I worked with one particular young producer called BR. His work and drive is truly amazing and I think he really understands my sound, which I feel is important when working with producers.
I love the feeling of working with a new producer as I feel each beat I listen to brings out a different emotion for me, which I think really helped me to be as creative as possible on this project and not put myself in a box.
I would say some of the artist that helped inspire my writing style was SZA. I love her writing style; so unique and creative. I also love Amy Winehouse. I would say she is my biggest inspiration when it comes to writing.
I love how free-spirited she was and I can tell just though her music, which is key to be able to understand someone else on a personal level just through their music. It’s what makes them a great artist in my opinion. So I worked very hard on this project and really put my emotions into it.
Musically I wanted to have a range of different tempos and vibes. My two favourite tracks would definitely be “Good” featuring RG (another amazing artist), and “Therapy Session” because I was the most creative on both of these tracks. “Good” has an Afro- beat production style, which is completely different for me as I usually sing on solely R&B beats.
But I definitely loved it and I’ll be releasing more of this style in the future. “Therapy Session” was the most creative track on the EP. At the very beginning of the track I am almost speaking to myself as a therapist. I then begin to sing as the patient explaining to the therapist why I’m still in contact with that particular person.
Overall, I would say the most important aspect of the project was creating something someone else could listen to and resonate with on a personal level. Listen to Love In London below!
