Zoom on: H.E.R.

The new little princess of soul

If you were looking for a new female singer to fall in love with, H.E.R is the girl you need in your life (and playlists). She is the new Soul/R&B hurricane that is going to steal you heart and it’s time for us to introducer her properly. You’ve been warned.

Get ready to be swept off your feet. Gabriella Wilson, known under the acronym of H.E.R (Having Everything Revealed) is set to become one of the best female artists in soul music this year. Her debut EP H.E.R released in September 2016 through RCA Records made a big impression and made iTunes’ Best Of 2016 R&B/ Soul Album list. The track «Losing» got a fair amount of love by making the Itunes Best R&B/Soul Singles list and the music video has been viewed over 7 million times on Youtube. Not bad for this new 20 year old singer and this great beginning is totally well deserved. How can anyone not be touched by the emotions and passion you can hear in her voice?

Since 2016 H.E.R released two other projects: H.E.R and H.E.R Vol2 which are basically our favorite records to listen to at the moment. If her music is getting more and more attention from superstars like Usher, Alicia Keys, Pusha T and Rihanna and from the media and fans all around the world, her identity kind of remains a secret as she prefers to be anonymous and be only represented by her music.

«The mystery is a metaphor for who I am, or who I was at the time of creating the project...I feel like oftentimes we don’t like to be open as people about our emotions or things that we are going through. At the time [of recording], I was very closed off except for when I was writing or when I was in the studio»

This approach to music is not uncommon nowadays as we remember The Weeknd released his trilogy of mixtapes and did it as an anonymous persona while keeping his identity hidden and avoiding interviews until he could no longer hide. We also remember DVSN and their debut album «Sept 5th» where we had no information about the duo. The biggest example is Sia who, despite the fame, still hides her face wherever she goes.

However, the mystery is (almost) solved as H.E.R posted a cover of «Jungle» by Drake under the name of Gabi Wilson, which is an identical version of the cover included in her album. The singer didn’t confirm nor denied but she hopes that people will listen to what she’s got to say.

«I want it to be about the music — its honesty and realness. Everything is true to me. I want women to really feel how honest and vulnerable I am and to understand that they are not alone and that these are all human emotions,» she said. «I’ll reveal who I am in due time.»

After going on tour with Bryson Tiller for his Set It Off tour, H.E.R embarked on her own «Light On Tour» and played many shows in the US, all sold out. However, she is ready to invade Europe as she will be playing in the UK, France, Germany and Holland in march. Watch out for her and thank us later.

Listen if you are a fan of-

Soul/R&B in general and especially if you love artists like Kehlani, SZA, Tinashe or even Brandy. Solid R&B batch of female artists here!

One song to listen to-

Although the whole project is worth listening over and over again, «Losing» has the vibe you need if you really want to get in H.E.R. The soulful voice mixed with the smooth vibe will make this you swoon.

WordS by PAM CHARBIT PHOTO : Timothy Saccenti FOR INTERVIEW MAGAZINE