Meet the latest soul diva coming straight outta Croydon
From a south London soul collective to a newcomer award: Tawiah talks to Matilda Egere-Cooper
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"From my experience, as soon as you say you do soul music and you're from the UK, it's like a dirty word," says the bubbling newcomer Tawiah, with a shrug. Odd, then, that only a few days earlier, the 21-year-old was among hundreds of non-conformists and wacky types at Gilles Peterson's annual Worldwide Awards, where the only thing considered smutty was a reveller's panty-peeking hipsters and the eclectic groove of one of the night's winners, 2 Banks of Four.
Honoured with the new BBC Introducing... award, the singer – clad in the Japan-meets-street-chick garb that's come to be her trademark – capped her shy acceptance speech with a rendition of "Watch Out". It's a stirring lament that is proving popular at the moment, thanks to its appearance on Peterson's Bubbler's Two compilation.
At the ceremony, Tawiah was enchanting, if not addictive, to watch; her mighty vocals thundered through the venue as she delivered the melodies with razor-sharp accuracy. A few songs more, and Tawiah was being showered with applause. "It was amazing," she agrees, reflecting on the moment. "For the first time, I finally felt like I'm getting recognised for me as an artist, doing my own thing."
As the latest name to come out of the underground scene, Tawiah is rather a big deal. Since graduating from Croydon's Brit school of the performing arts three years ago, she has been working the live circuit, hooking up sensational backing vocals for the likes of Corinne Bailey Rae, the Guillemots, Lemar and Basement Jaxx.
She has also been Mark Ronson's honorary female singer on his international tours, standing in for his muses Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen, on "Valerie" and "Oh My God". She explains: "I'm the south London chick with the super-soulful voice who takes on the tracks and does her own thing. Fans obviously wanna see Lily or Amy, but they get me. I put my own flip on it, and people end up loving it."
Watch Tawiah perform 'Valerie' with Mark Ronson at Glastonbury 2007
The singer recently released her first EP, In Jodi's Bedroom, on her own label, Bush Girl Records. It pays homage to her sessions with producer and best friend Jodi Milliner, as well as to her music influences, which range from gospel to Ghanaian highlife, her heritage. She decided to release the taster CD to satisfy the demand for her music that has been building up since she's been on the road.
"For years, people have been like, 'Can I buy something?' and I'd be like, 'Aaargh!', because I didn't have anything. So it got to a point where I wanna be, like, 'Yeah, actually, here you go, here's my EP'. And it's given me a kick up my arse to get my album done!"
Her appeal is understandable. On stage, her presence is arresting while the music, focusing mainly on love and relationships, ticks all the boxes for quality and creative soul music. On YouTube, you'll find a clip of her stealing the spotlight at a Natalie Williams gig, as she clears the floor with her zealous dance steps.
Watch Tawiah's show-stealing dance moves here
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