Konyikeh Astonishes on Debut EP 'Litany'

Following the release of breathtaking debut singles "Sorrow" and "Teenage Dreams" issued earlier this year, British musician Konyikeh today issues her pivotal breakout debut EP Litany available now across all digital platforms via Jorja Smith's FAMM label distributed via The Orchard.

The 5-track EP arrives today alongside a visual for the deeply reflective and honest focus single "Joy and Pride" featuring candid footage of Konyikeh layered with her tender voice speaking on topics relating to religion, family, taboos and more.

In Christianity, a litany is a simple, repetitive type of prayer; the priest might say a line and then the congregation will repeat it back, in a way that can feel quite meditative. In more everyday usage, it’s a word used to describe a long list of grievances. For singer-songwriter Konyikeh, the meaning of it sits somewhere in between. Though she does not consider herself to be religious, she grew up in the Catholic Church, where she came across litanies – which would give the name to her alluring EP.

“It's kind of a little prayer to soothe yourself,” Konyikeh shares, “And the things that I wrote in my teenage years that held me together; these are songs from the darkest time in my life. They're like little prayers to myself.” 

Largely produced by British producer Charlie J Perry, throughout Konyikeh’s debut there’s a sense of plaintiveness and liturgy, all while she ruminates on her sorrows track by track and, in doing so, carves out a space to transcend them.

PHOTO CREDIT: Erin Corrian-Alexis

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