PREMIERE: Shamiya Battles – Air

Shamiya Battles is keeping up her momentum with her second single ‘Air’.

Shamiyah Battles could be a name that you’re not too familiar with, and with ‘Air’ being only her second single that’s understandable. But what I can say is that Shamiya has such a unique vocal tone that you can’t help but come back to listen more. As well as this, if this latest video is anything to go by we could have a real superstar on our hands. Her first single ‘Be Myself’ that dropped earlier this year has got just shy of 300k streams on Spotify alone and also bagged Shamiya coveted Spotify curated playlist spots in R&B UK and Spotify & Chill.

There’s really no way we can talk about Shamiya without really getting into her vocal tonality. She has a voice that makes a statement on its own despite it being very gentle sounding, often seemingly just above a whisper due to her manipulation of breathing. But it’s that technique that creates the sultry tones that just draw you into the lyrics of the track, and ‘Air’ is definitely a great showcase of this. Her voice ensnares you into the message of breaking beyond self doubts and acknowledging her own potential, and that’s backed up by writing that knows how to make things simple without being basic.

The visuals equally go in the realm of keeping things simple but smooth. What is truly exciting about the visuals is that they show a glimpse of something that is often lacking in newer artist – performance skills. There are segments in the video with some nice choreography to compliment the vocals and that’s not something we typically see in solo artists so early on in their careers. It helps that there were back up dancers but those choreographed segments hit me with nostalgia of Destiny’s Child videos, which is probably what has me so firmly convinced that Shamiya is going to blow us away when she gets the chance to do shows.

‘Air’ is a statement of intent and the first warning to the industry that Shamiya Battles has arrived and nothing is going to stop her chasing what’s meant for her. It will be interesting to see what comes next from the young star but I can only imagine growth both musically and in terms of fanbase, so don’t be surprised if her name starts popping up more and more.

You can stream ‘Air’ on Spotify here.