Happy International Women’s Day to you and all women-identifying forces you know. Here at Sofar, the list is nearly infinite, as we bring new awesome women into our community everyday. Today, we want to pause and focus on a few of the artists in particular who shine their talented light on us. This list barely scratches the surface, but it gives you an idea of the cool creative women artists in our Sofar community who continue to educate us, and just plain blow us away. Here are a few women to listen to, for songs and otherwise.
Raye Zaragoza
Let’s start with Raye Zaragoza, an artist known for her feminist anthems and protest folk. As a Japanese-American, Mexican, Indigenous woman, Raye uses her music as a space to explore and celebrate intersectionality. Her recent single, “The It Girl”, does just that, reminding women that the “it girl” is whoever we want to be. We find ourselves returning to the artist’s Sofar NYC performance, one she gave shortly after returning from North Dakota where she’d been protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline. Her song, “Fight For You,” was written and dedicated to the Standing Rock Sioux indigenous people– a simple, hopeful, acoustic melody and message.
Vinok
The indie-rock trio, fronted by vocalist Nathalie Vinok, is ready to talk about change. The Kyiv-based group use their songs as a vehicle for initiating social justice, discussing feminism, disability rights, politics, religion, and offering a voice to those marginalized by a global society. Nathalie and her band have only been together since 2019, but they’re already playing festivals. We feel lucky to have seen their energetic performance of “Facile” right as they were getting their (strong) start.
Jess Jocelyn
Meet Jess Nyanda Moyle, or as she’s known in her everchanging solo project, Jess Jocelyn. Born in Hong Kong and raised in Northern Perth, the Flipinx/Australian artist writes songs about identity and healing. Jess found her sound in pop punk and PJ Harvey tracks, and what’s come from it are her own kind of folk songs with a slightly raw edge. The Boorloo-based artist gave us this stripped-down performance of “Catholic Guilt” not too long ago. We’re looking forward to the next one, too.
Ellisa Sun
Standing up for ourselves takes courage, and Ellisa Sun’s got it. The Chinese-American, Nashville-based artist is a longtime Sofar alum, and recently released her single, “I’m From Here”, a response to a rise of anti-Asian rhetoric and hate crimes that swelled in the U.S. during the pandemic. For the artist, the song was not only a reflection, but an encouragement for fellow Asian Americans to take pride in their identities. We’re looking forward to what else Ellisa might have in store for us this year, but also find ourselves time and time again returning to her dreamy Sofar in Salvador.
Kokoroko
The Guardian may have named them “Ones to Watch” in 2019, but we’ve had our eyes on Kokoroko for much longer. The female-led, eight-piece group plays a fusion of jazz and afrobeat music, coming together as an intoxicating experience full of brass, woodwinds, drums, and hooks. They’ve got a new single out “Something’s Going On”, and a slew of tour dates. But before you get to that, you gotta see their Sofar take on Fela Kuti’s “Colonial Mentality”.
Vanisha Gould
A composer, a performer, a bandleader– Vanisha Gould’s found her voice through several avenues. The NYC-via-Simi Valley artist has performed both originals and standards from the Great American Songbook on stages all over, bringing her own spin to the jazz classics. Her recent LP with violinist Lucy Yeghiazaryan, In Her Words, lyrically explores issues women often face in their own private lives, paired with original compositions and jazz selections. At Vanisha’s Sofar, she takes her own fluid, jazzy approach to a Jim Reeves classic tune.
Iona Lee
Poet, illustrator, spoken word artist– all encapsulates Iona Lee. By 19, the artist had already won the Scottish National Slam, and since then has performed everywhere from cafes to the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Iona’s work is wide, landing on elements of womanhood, grief and loss, sometimes magic. Her Sofar performance of “Thin Place” shows us her expansive style– wide and airy depictions of landscape and emotion.
Folly Tree
For Alex Moshe, the name Folly Tree came straight from a dream. The Tel-Aviv based, Canadian born artist had dreamed about the Tree of Knowledge, one that bore the fruit which turned Eve on to the Garden of Eden. For Alex, she wanted a name that was the opposite– non judgmental, intuitive. From there came Folly Tree, a space for the artist to explore healing trauma, new love, and all the complex emotions surrounding. Take some time with her Sofar performance of “Remedies”, a dreamy, soothing tune that feels like both a song and a healing balm.
Photo credit: Raye Zaragoza performing Sofar NYC, photo by Jose Pardillo
