Cosmic R&B Star Puellae Discusses Her ‘PSV’ EP, Influences and Dream Collabs
An interview and track-by-track breakdown of the PSV EP by newcomer Puellae.
The best way to describe Belgian-born vocalist Mélissa Otshudy is otherworldly. Puellae, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter, is one to watch in the ever-growing and sometimes uninspired UK R&B scene.
Although her music is engrained in a wide range of influences, the artistic stitching that makes up Puellae's music is from a parallel, hyper-modern universe. Back in March, Puellae dropped her second project, PSV. The EP was an espresso shot of glossy and intoxicating sounds, tied together by mellow production and anime-inspired art direction.
Through six tracks, clocking in at just under 16 minutes, Puellae—colloquially known by her fans as Baby P—takes listeners on a vivid journey. PSV is avant-garde, dystopian and sleek.
The Ashton McCreight-produced “Cherry Pie” kicks off the project with a melody you'll be sure to remember. The sincerity of P's lyrics converges beautifully into the cloudy dream-like instrumental. It wouldn't be fair to mention “Cherry Pie” without touching upon its animated lyric visualiser. The cartoon short was put together by a friend and close collaborator Zino Vinci.
“Uwam's Terrane” is exemplary of P's growth as an artist since her Cloud 22 project. Puellae flows from English to French with a seamless transition whilst harmonising in a hypnotising manner reminiscent of Kid Cudi.
“Iridescent Dreams”, PSV's lead single, is Puellae's favourite song off the project. She described the track as ‘a different kind of different’. Being the third in the six-song tracklist, it anchors the project and exemplifies the musical mission statement.
“White Durag” is a hopeless romantic anthem with candid words by P, offering a sense of ease and relatability. “White Durag” was accompanied by a self-directed video that acts obliquely as a celebration of Black pride, depicting Puellae and several friends sporting white durags and vibing out to the track's riddims.
“Double Denim”, like “White Durag”, is a fashion-themed track that explores narratives through the metaphor of clothing—featuring a memorable verse from Love Phia over a beat by underground icon Lord Fubu. It's the perfect ending to the project as it leaves a lasting impression through P's swagger, galactic motif and vivid storytelling.
Although she's based in Coventry, Puellae isn't your average UK artist. As she was born in Belgium with Congolese roots, Puellae’s travelled and diverse geography bleeds into her artistry, often with her French native tongue.
Puellae photographed by Daniel, Una & Warren of OneFourTwo.
The EP is an acronym for Puellae.Space.Venus—a fitting title as it's a celestial-themed excursion touching on Afro-futurist sentiments. Topped off with intimate subject matter, the mixture of personal and extra-terrestrial feels deeply authentic to what Puellae represents.
From the first track to the last, Puellae soars high, fine-tuning her sound into a mesmerising demeanour. The wide-ranging project still retains its cohesiveness despite its left-field and abstract components. Puellae enlists several producers throughout the six tracks. Notably, Rio Mulindwa on “White Durag” and Kobe Francis on “Baby Luv” create a smooth, form-fitting playground for Puellae to shine vocally.
The Culture Crypt: We briefly touched upon how expansive your influences are. Can you tell us about any that stand out in particular?
Puellae: “Solange! I love her sound and aesthetic in all of her songs. She dominated the soundscape and brings her listeners exactly where she wants them to be, and I find that so powerful. Other inspirations who influence my music are; Kelela, Lous and The Yakuza, Tanerelle and Ari Lennox, to name a few. I couldn't talk about influences without mentioning my friends. Kente Kwame, Dan Azhar, Phia, Sibby, and Credo helped shape me into the creative I am now. They're all artists too. Being around them whilst they're recording—seeing them perform gave me such warmth.”
“I soon began joining in more and more sessions, messing around, and they all saw something in me that kept them encouraging me to write and record something. Space, the cosmos and anime inspire the themes and imagery in my music, but personal experiences usually inspire me to write.”
Puellae photographed by Dylan Mukenge.
What can you tell us about the recording process of PSV?
“I would record the songs for PSV in like an hour or two, but each piece came about in a unique time frame. “Cherry Pie” and “Baby Luv” were recorded in the same week in June 2020. “Uwam's Terrane” was made in July maybe and “White Durag” in early October. Then I had the unfinished “Double Denim” for a year or two, and when I thought about making another tape, it felt right to put it in and have my best friend Phia feature in it.”
“All the tracks apart from “Iridescent Dreams” were recorded in my room, and then I sent them over to my friend Daniel Azhar to mix, so this spans over a couple of months. I'd say intention really separates this project from my last. ‘Cloud 22’ is my baby, but in the sense of me still not knowing what I was doing and just going with the flow. Looking back on ‘Cloud 22’ now, that project was just vibes.“
“My project is a way more refined collection of my thoughts, feelings and experiences from 2020. They’re translated precisely the way I want them to be, in a spacey, galactic, interstellar kind of way. Even if you can’t relate to what I’m saying, you can feel the emotions conveyed.”
“I wanted this project to show an updated version of where I am musically and allow people to really hear who I am and what I can do. PSV is literally a story of my 2020 romances and memorable moments.”
Who would you love to work with in the future?
“Umm… let me think. I'd love to collab with all of my inspirations. But outside of the obvious, I'd love to work with FKA twigs and Bree Runway. I think they all have an out of this world presence, and it would be amazing to see what we could do together.”
Stream PSV below.