South London’s very own Kadiata is an artist/rapper known for his experimental edge whilst being his own music producer, songwriter, and cinematographer.
He has worked with select artists who have all moved on to great things, with his production work spanning from Sam Wise’s 2017 breakthrough song “Rack Up”, Jesse James Solomon’s classic “Under The Sun” which he also features on, to Miraa May’s party starter “Regardless” and more.
With his production thriving alongside his success as an artist, he gave us self-produced songs such as “Art Hoes”, “On Tap” and “When the Sun Comes Out”, with Sam Wise, leaving Kadiata’s name popping up in every corner of London.
His witty nature compliments the music along with his ability to blend genres like Trap, RnB, Afrobeats, Pop and Rock. Kadiata gives us a mashup of all the sounds he grew accustom to growing up which will have you scratching your head.
Kadiata has just released his new EP titled Blind, This Summer, and with this project, Kadiata introduces a very rare style of storytelling, where he shares a series of events which closely resemble that of the hopeless romantic.
From the first song, “Pray For Me”, we hear Kadiata accepting himself, embracing his imperfections and owning his flaws. “I see that the things that we do are inspiring people but it’s not everybody who will give flowers“, he says about the track.
It means a lot to Kadiata to be himself unapologetically. On “Pray For Me”, he says “Used to hate my life, but I thought you know what I deserve to live as much as these *****“, highlighting a period in his life where he questioned whether he was good enough, further explaining to us that, “I feel like a lot of people go through that so it was important for me to share my experience”.
The song ends with an audio capturing a flirtatious interaction of Kadiata’s – his initial encounter with a new love interest. He mentions how cold it can be when you first meet someone and how wrong you can be about the person you think you’re getting to know, adding that, “the person you are listening to here is different to the guy you will hear later on in the EP”.
The next track “Bebigerl” was released, along with the music video on GRM Daily, in March, and Kadiata explains his reasons for selecting this to be released prior to the EP dropping, saying, “I feel like ‘Bebigerl’ is the most fun on the project. ‘Blind, This Summer’ means being free, having more fun and being blind to all the repercussions. ‘Bebigerl’ encapsulates that feeling the most“.
On “Bebigerl”, there is a lot of small talk on the phone to his new love interest, which Kadiata points out was intentional to emphasise the pre-judgement made as the phone call is interrupted. At this point they do not really know each other.
When it comes to “Delete My Number”, there are a few lyrics in there that would make the perfect Instagram caption. Kadiata enjoys sharing the stages of his music production online and in fact “Delete My Number” is something that was created on Instagram.
“A lot of people know me as a producer and I feel like everybody expected me to produce the whole EP but I only produced one song, ‘Delete My Number’“, and this song is the perfect example of how Kadiata successfully blends multiple genres.
“It’s the most pop song but can also be considered as genreless at the same time. There are guitars in there, 808s and also an interesting drum pattern. It is exactly what it says on the tin, that energy where you are completely done“, he reveals.
Speaking of being done, Kadiata mentions to his lady friend how he is tired of the jungle after she questions the attention he receives from the ladies. He manages to keep his cool and is very light with his responses.
Is love blind? Well “Blindside” highlights the fact that whenever you meet someone new, you never know for sure what you are about to get yourself into. Kadiata describes himself as being “boasy” in the chorus.
His confidence is certainly rubbing off on his lady friend, as she begins to talk his lingo. You can sense more of a connection as Kadiata teaches her how to speak Portuguese, and you can hear it in her voice that she is getting drawn in by Kadiata’s personality.
Offering context, he tells us, “it doesn’t really matter what languages you speak, I feel like energies just connect“.
“Hold Me Back” puts the spotlight on Kadiata’s talent as he blesses the song with his sweet vocals. Kadiata can hold a serious note and he has proven so before with his single “Onda”, and on “Hold Me Back”, Kadiata sings, “kiss me with your lies, slap me with your truth”.
Principally, the track is just about letting the other person decide whether they want to share the truth or share lies. The truth may not be what you want to hear but it will not hurt. All of a sudden the conversation gets deeper.
Kadiata explains further, “I don’t think anyone wakes up knowing what life’s for, some people take their lives because of it and some people just learn to enjoy this weird experience”.
Kadiata also shares how he meditates and has been doing so since 2016. “If I don’t meditate I go mad. For me to say I meditate, maybe it won’t be such a weird thing for people. I want to share with people what I do and what works for me”.
The end to this song is the moment where you can sense feelings have been caught, but she is questioning whether it is all too good to be true.
On “99 Ways“, Kadiata explores questions regarding loyalty. “People love you for different reasons and in different ways. I watched an interview where they were saying how a lot of people say things like they love fish when really they love what the fish can do for them“.
Kadiata adds that, “if you loved the fish you wouldn’t eat it, you’d let it swim and be free. I feel like a lot of people love each other in a similar way so that’s me saying there are ’99 ways’ to love, but only one way to hold it down”.
At this moment in the EP, Kadiata is transparent with his lady friend by explaining she should not be surprised if he surprises her, offering that, “at some point I am going to surprise you if you think that you know me. It will only be a surprise because you have already made your mind up and put me in that box”.
She is more convinced that he is too good to be true. As a rapper, producer, someone who meditates and speaks Portuguese, she finds it difficult to believe he is also loyal.
The last song on the EP, “Lifestyle” is a recap of the whole project. Kadiata reflects on the kind of girls that he meets all the time. “As an artist, I meet loads of girls that just want to party and not take life too seriously which is fine but within moderation“, he expands about the track.
Even though this song does not include a phone call, Kadiata ties in the conversation from “99 Ways”, where his lady friend is questioning herself. “Her questioning herself says a lot more about herself than it does about me. I feel like we always project ourselves onto others, that’s why she finds it hard to believe the things that I say”.
Maybe she’s just a little party girl?
Kadiata’s style of storytelling is effortless and so genuine. He confirms that this project is one out of four and he will be continuing the story later this year with Lost, This Winter. Also, there are some collaboration to look forward to on the next project.
Kadiata ends our conversation with a moment of acknowledgement for some people who contributed to the execution of Blind, This Summer, including Michelin Shin, the producer of “Bebigerl”, “Pray For Me”, “Blindside”, and “99 Ways”, who also executively co-produced the project with Kadiata.
He also acknowledged Sokari, the producer of “Hold Me Back”, “Lifestyle” producer New Machine, and the female voice behind the love interest on the EP, Hana Oliveira, who starred in the BBC Three series Hood Documentary.
Kadiata’s Blind, This Summer EP is out now, purchase it on iTunes here, and stream it on Spotify below.
Words by Claudia Namu
