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Oct 08, 2019 By Christopher Roberts Nilüfer Yanya

Nilüfer Yanya released her debut album, Miss Universe, in March via ATO. Now she has shared a new single, “H34T RISES,” via a video for the track. The song is a reworked version of the album’s “Heat Rises” and features The Invisible’s Dave Okumu on production and backing vocals (he was Yanya’s first guitar teacher). Yanya’s sister, Molly Daniel, directed the video, which was filmed in Instanbul, the hometown of Yanya’s father. Watch it below, followed by Yanya’s upcoming tour dates.

Yanya had this to say about “H34T RISES” in a press release: “The original song ‘Heat Rises’ came together over a year or so, maybe. I felt really lucky I was able to work with Dave Okumu on this, there was a lot to learn just being in the room with him. I had the rough demo and beat on my phone for maybe a year, but it wasn’t until the lyrics were fully realized that that it really took shape as a song for me. The original track works perfectly in the album but when I decided to re-release it as a single, I thought a few changes to the mix and structure might help it jump out more and that’s where ‘H34T RISES’ came from.”

Video director Molly Daniel had this to say: “Me and Nilufer hadn’t considered shooting in Istanbul, but once the thought had entered our head we wanted to stick with it. I felt like Istanbul would really fit the concept and it was really nice to be able to work with a female led and Turkish crew. I remember finding out my mum was pregnant with Nilüfer when we lived in Istanbul, so returning to work there together as adults really felt like we had come full circle.”

Yanya and Daniel also have a non-profit organization, Artists In Transit, which raises money “for displaced families entering Europe and teaching arts and music classes to refugee children in Athens.”

Read our interview with Yanya about Miss Universe.

Previously Yanya shared three Miss Universe tracks: “Heavyweight Champion of the Year,” which she shared back in November via a video for the track (it was one of our Songs of the Week), “In Your Head,” which she shared in January and was also one of our Songs of the Week, and “Tears,” which she shared in February via a lyric video. Then she shared a video for “Baby Blu,” which was shot in Tokyo. Then she shared a video for the album’s “Paradise,” which was filmed in Instanbul, her father’s hometown, and produced/directed by her older sister Molly Daniel. Then she stopped by NPR Music to perform three songs as part of their Tiny Desk Concert series.

A previous press release said that Miss Universe features “co-productions with both her former school guitar teacher The Invisible’s Dave Okumu and her live bandmates Jazzi Bobbi and Luke Bower, as well as producers John Congleton, Oli Barton-Wood, Will Archer and M.T. Hadley.”

Nilüfer Yanya Tour Dates:

10/09: Foro Indie Rocks - Mexico City, MX
10/18: SWN Festival - Wales, UK
10/19: Simple Things Festival - Bristol, UK
10/22: Atlas - Aarhus, DK
10/23: Vega - Musikkens Hus, Lille Vega - Copenhagen, DK
10/24: Banhof Pauli - Hamburg-nord, DE
10/25: Under Your Skin Festival - Utrecht, NL
10/27: Festsaal Kreuzberg - Berlin, DE
10/29: Turbinezall de Centrale - Ghent, BE
10/30: Luxor - Koln, DE
11/01: Pitchfork Festival - Paris, FR
11/10: O2 Empire Shepherds Bush - London, UK
11/22: Super Bock Festival - Lisbon, PT
11/24: Sala El Solo - Madrid, ES
11/25: Razzmatazz - Barcelona, SP
12/07: Fairgrounds Festival - Berry NSW, AU

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