NAIPALMARTISTBIO

NaiPalmisthetypeofartistthatarrivesonceinageneration.Atwo-timeGrammynominatedsinger,songwriterandmusicianfromAustralia,sheisacomposer,instrumentalist,producer,vocalistandpoetwhoapproachesalloftheseself-taughtdisciplineswithanintuitive,infectiousgracewhichsentheronajourneytosculptsongsthathavebeenreceivedandtreasuredacrosstheworld.ItisaworldshehastravelledmanytimesoverwithherbandHiatusKaiyote,whoalongwithNaiPalm, have become household names since they first began playing together inMelbournein2011.AftertheindependentreleaseoftheirdebutalbumTawkTomahawk,wordofmouthcaughtonlikewildfireandwithinmonthstheywerechampionedbyahostofR&Bandhiphop’smostrespectedtastemakersandicons(Ahmir“Questlove”Thompson,JazzyJeff,ErykahBadu,Prince).ThiseventuallyledtotheirsigningwithSalaamRemi'snewimprint Flying Buddha (on Sony Music Masterworks) in 2013, and a GrammyNominationforBestR&BPerformancefortheirsingle‘Nakamarrafeat.Q-Tip.’ThisGrammynominationmadethemthefirstAustralianartistevertoberecognizedbytheGrammysinanR&Bcategory.Hiatus Kaiyote exceeded expectations with their critically acclaimed sophomorerelease, the opus Choose Your Weapon, which earned them a second Grammynomination(“BreathingUnderwater”forBestR&BPerformance),andcementedtheiruncompromisingartisticvisiontotranscendgenreandthetrappingsandclichésoftheindustry.Thesechoiceshaveledtotheband’scontinualgrowthinalaneoftheirowndesign,garneringdeeprespectandactivelyinspiringtoday’smostcelebratedmusicalicons. In 2016, producer 9thWonder sampled them for Anderson .Paak’s album

Malibu.And in2017,theiralbumhasbeensampledandusedontwoofHipHop’sbiggest releases, opening Drake’s projectMore Life (“Free Smoke”), and closingKendrickLamar’salbumDamn(“Duckworth”).ThissuccesshassetthestageforNaiPalm’sfirstsolorelease,NeedlePaw(SonyMusicMasterworks).“Thisrecordisaverypersonalleapintothedeepend.Iwantedtomakesomethingwithnolandmarkstohidebehindandnoteamtofallbackon”-NaiPalm.CompromisedalmostentirelyofherguitarplayingandvocalarrangementsNeedlePawisNaiPalm’sself-imposedchallengetoexplorethepotentialforimmortalityandtimelessnesswithinhermusicbystrippingawaytheproducedlayerstofocusontheelementthatisclosesttothesourceofthehumansoul,thevoice.“Thereissomethingveryprofoundaboutourvoices.Thefirstthingyoudowhenyoucomeintothisworldismakeasoundfromyourmouth.It’snotthoughtoutnorpoetic;it’sprimal.Peoplecanconnecttothestoryandinstrumentsofthebody.Youcanhearhowsomeoneisfeeling.Extracomponentscangetintheway,sofocusingonvoiceswasthemostdirectwayformetotranslatehowIexperiencetheworld.”-NaiPalmNeedlePawisthemosthonestglimpseintoNaiPalm’smusicalworld.Itisdreamlike,honest,andbeautifully transparent, revealinghermusical ruminations to listenerswithacourageousvulnerabilityandartisticgenerosity.“I want to remind people that there are humans behind the music. Not justcompressionandreverb.Theurgencyforaccuracyisnothuman.Theexposedprocessishuman,withoutthecheatcodes.”–NaiPalmNai Palm’s approach to vocal arrangements is orchestral. At any moment theinstrumentsshehearsinhermindarepresentedinanorganicblossomingofsound.Avoicecanbepresentedasahornor strings,ora choirofwilddingos.Her sonicenvironmentscelebratethesynthesisofsoundandthepointsofcontactthatgatherus togetherwithin it, steadilymovingaway from theartist asegoand fittingeachheartfeltofferingintotheecosystemoftheentirearrangement.NeedlePawisaremindertomusiciansthattheydon’thavetorelyontheproductiontoexposetheirgifts.Asongcanstandonitsown.Beingsurroundedbythelimitlesssonic ocean that is Hiatus Kaiyote is a blessing, but at this time and as a femalemusicianworkinginanindustrythathasconstantlydemandedthatshedefendhercreativechoicesfromdaydot,NeedlePawwillserveasareminderofNaiPalm’sself-taught,self-sustaining,selflessartisticability.Atthispointinherjourney,shehasnothingtoprovetoanyone,justsomethingthatprovidesforeveryone.

NeedlePaw–AvailableOctober20,2017–SonyMusicMasterworks