david

A song that renders rooms speechless, teary-eyed, enraged and empowered. This has long been a fan favourite and is finally due for an official release. First Word Records is proud to present 'david', the third single taken from Allysha Joy's forthcoming album, 'The Making of Silk'.

Allysha Joy is a deeply-expressive singer, songwriter, producer & keys player hailing from Naarm (Melbourne), known for both her solo work and as front woman for 30/70.

A uniquely-talented artist, her husky soulful voice, formidable Fender Rhodes prowess and raw poeticism has garnered legions of attentive fans the world over.

As an integral performer in the modern day jazz-soul scene, previous support has included selectors Gilles Peterson & Jamz Supernova (BBC 6 Music), Jamie Cullum (BBC Radio 2) and Laurent Garnier (PBB France), along with stations such as NTS, Jazz FM, Rinse FM, Lot Radio, KEXP & KCRW, and publications including OkayPlayer, Dazed, Clash and The Vinyl Factory.

Along with a recent foray into the USA market with a string of successful shows, Allysha Joy has performed alongside acts such as Snarky Puppy, Ezra Collective, PJ Morton, The Teskey Brothers, Kokoroko and Children of Zeus, to name a few.

'david' reflects on the heaviness of a relationship misleadingly called "love", the deep pain within and the incredible power that comes from getting out! A breathtaking performance of raw intimacy, as Allysha notes that the song was captured live in the studio as one whole take of vocals, Rhodes, drums and bass all in it together, with the sound of her bell earring swaying by her side. Undoubtedly a highlight of the much-anticipated new album, 'david' is enamouring and empowering all at once, as Allysha recounts and reclaims her own story of survival.

"I think it would be painful for me at this point to not tell the truth — to say explicitly that this is a song about abuse, about multiple experiences of sexual assault. I want others to know that they shouldn't stay quiet if they are in a situation where they don't feel safe. I want to be open about these painful complex feelings of shame and confusion that I know other survivors will have experienced in feeling like they can't speak up or even acknowledge what is happening, what happened. I won't carry that shame anymore and I want others to know that they're not alone." Allysha.

'david' is released digitally worldwide on July 10th, with the album 'The Making of Silk' landing September 13th on vinyl & digital.