Bringin’ it Backwards: Interview with Rozzi

Updated:

June 5, 2021 7:03 pm

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We had the pleasure of interviewing Rozzi over Zoom video!

As we grow up, being vulnerable becomes harder. But for Rozzi, openness is a sign of strength. That’s how the LA-based neo-soul luminary has designed her “dangerously personal” new Hymn for Tomorrow EP — the first installment of a new full-length album coming later this year — due out July 16 on BMG. Mostly recorded in London and New York with a handful of stellar producers, including: George Moore (YEBBA, Clean Bandit), Andrew Hollander (Carly Rae Jespen, Coyle Girelli), Pretty Sister (Betty Who, Jordin Sparks), Michael Dragovic, Eric Leva and Jurek (Matoma, NCT Dream, Blackbear), and with Rozzi sharing production duties on “i dk,” Rozzi’s smoky, full-bodied vocals spectacularly amplify each song, as they move seamlessly from upbeat pop, funk and R&B to low-key acoustic ballads. With recent single and title track “Hymn For Tomorrow,” she learns to find the strength in letting go of past disappointments in order to make room for something new. Today, Rozzi has unleashed the bold, R&B-styled “I Can’t Go To The Party” single alongside a striking new video directed by Jack Begert. At the time that she wrote it, the song described a “brutal” experience running into an old flame at a social gathering and reflects on personal growth through experiences. The single now holds a dual-meaning. It also encompasses the spring awakening that we are all feeling as we come out of lockdown, while still not ready to party safely quite yet.

The much-anticipated Hymn for Tomorrow EP arrives three years after the San Francisco-born singer’s 2018 debut, Bad Together, which followed a series of high-profile collaborations with Kendrick Lamar and Pusha T, plus a sold-out arena tour supporting Maroon 5. If Rozzi, who has made a career out of connecting to audiences via intensely personal songs, wants us to take anything away from Hymn for Tomorrow, it’s that showing emotion can be empowering.Passionate about the recovery effort for the disastrous fires that ravage her home state of California each year, Rozzi, her co-writer/producer – Eric Leva – and her label, BMG donated a portion of proceeds from recent single “Orange Skies” to The American Red Cross (Western Wildfires) and the Bay Area’s Sonoma Family Meal. Her relatable quarantine track “Best Friend Song” found support across SiriusXM Pulse, Spotify “Pop Prism” + “Tomorrow’s Hits” and much more.