Emerging R&B and Soul artist Filah Lah Lah dropped her debut album On Air in May. Shortly after, she released the first-ever visual album by a South African R&B/Soul female artist, performing all 18 tracks in a 36-minute film that invites listeners on a journey of self-discovery, blending soulful melodies, introspective lyrics, and striking visuals.
Filah Lah Lah’s musical journey is rooted in her childhood, heavily influenced by her father’s love for Jazz, Funk, and Rhythm and Blues. Exposed to legends like Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Marvin Gaye, and Smokey Robinson, Filah has developed a distinctive sound.
In this Q&A, we caught up with Filah Lah Lah to dive into the creative process of her debut album On Air.
What’s the story behind your debut album "On Air"?
On Air is really an archival ode to media. Media had a huge influence on my wanting to be an artist and I wanted to explore that in an artistic way.
What influences your sound?
My parents’ love for Jazz and Funk had a huge influence. I’m a student of black music in general and that’s definitely because of my parents and the love they had for it. I wanted to emulate that love.
We love that "On Air" has a visual film! What was the creative process behind?
The sonics were already giving movie to be honest. We just followed suit visually and it all just made sense.
If you could play only one song from “On Air” forever, which one would it be?
Vaughn’s Song for sure. It took me a while to write a song about my late brother and I i’m still feel like Vaughn’s song doesn’t articulate those feelings in the best way but it’s close and I know he’d be proud of it.
What’s your best networking tip?
Don’t worry too much about how you’re being perceived. Image may be everything but when you’re so concerned about it I think it can take away from the essence of who you really are. I’m a yapping oversharer who likes to make people laugh and honestly that’s been one of my greatest networking tools - within reason of course.