HEY YOU! SONIA ELISHEVA
Hi Sonia, how are you feeling about the release of your latest track "Playground"?
I’m really excited about Playground! It feels like the beginning of a new chapter for me and I love that it's quite different from my previous music. There’s a lot of playful energy in the song, but underneath, it’s actually about something quite vulnerable. That feeling of constantly wondering whether you’re doing enough or whether everyone else has somehow figured life out before you.
“Playground” centres on the idea that nobody really has life figured out. Was there a particular moment that made you want to write about that feeling?
I actually wrote the lyrics back in 2024 and it wasn't really based on one moment, it was more this recurring feeling that has followed me through different stages of my life: starting a new school, moving somewhere new, starting a new job, attending music events. I’d look around and assume everyone else knew exactly what they were doing, while I was the only person winging it. I slowly started to realise that we’re all basically making it up as we go along, which I actually find quite comforting. That became the idea behind “Playground”: we’re all just big kids in the same playground pretending we know what we’re doing.
You describe the song as a release from pressure and external validation. What helped you personally start letting go of those expectations?
To be honest I don't think I'll ever completely let go of the need for external validation, I still care what people think, but I think the difference is now I accept that as an inevitable part of being an artist (and a human being!) I've also become much more aware of when I'm creating from a genuine place and when I'm making something because I think I'm supposed to. A lot of it has been learning to trust my own taste - I've made artistic decisions in the past based on what I thought other people would like, and now I'm much more conscious of making decisions simply because I like what I'm making.
This is your first solo release of 2026 and signals a new sonic direction. What felt different about making “Playground” compared with your earlier work?
With Playground, I wasn’t trying to recreate something I’d done before or fit myself neatly into a genre. The biggest difference is that I’m becoming much less interested in asking whether something fits the version of me people already know, and more interested in experimenting with sounds that I find exciting. I also worked with a different producer on this track, and I think working with new people has been really valuable for me creatively. Everyone has their own way of hearing and approaching music, and bringing someone new into the process can completely open up your mind to different ways of making things.
Your sound has roots in jazz and electro swing, while “Playground” leans into electro alt-pop. Which parts of your musical identity stayed constant during that shift?
I think the constant in all my music is the sound being playful and danceable but the lyrics having a slightly darker, more thoughtful edge. I still care a lot about storytelling & having a strong sense of character in the music. Also the use of real instruments in dance tracks - I have always asked real musicians I work with to add their skills and personalities to my tracks, as that's important to me (instead of making everything on a computer!) Also my background is in jazz and that has taught me a lot about experimentation. I think those things stay with me even when I’m making something that sounds completely different!
You’ve described your music as “Jazz Bar meets London nightbus banter after a sweaty nightclub.” What would a listener hear in “Playground” that captures each side of that world?
Yes! So:
The Jazz bar: my vocal phrasing and tone is jazzy and that never really leaves me, whatever genre I’m working in! There’s also some jazzy chords being played by the pianist in my seven-piece band. So there’s still that little thread connecting it back to where I’ve come from musically.
The London nightbus: you can hear this in the lyrics. There’s a line that goes, “barely keeping my head above water, but I just lost 3 kilos so I must be getting hotter” that slightly cynical, ironic, self-deprecating sense of humour. I think there’s something quite uniquely British about being able to make a joke about something while simultaneously admitting that you’re having a bit of a crisis.
The Sweaty nightclub: this one is probably the most obvious, it’s the club beat! I actually made a playlist recently called “I’m having an existential crisis but I still wanna dance”, and I think that sums up Playground pretty perfectly.
From touring with a seven-piece band to building a solo project, how has performing live shaped the artist you are becoming now?
I think touring really made me realise how much I value the relationship between the recorded music and the live show. In the age of AI where everything feels so controlled, I think I just love the unpredictability and energy of playing with a big band even more. You get those moments of freedom where something unplanned happens on stage, and it's not controlled and it's not perfect but it does feel real. And I think that’s really shaped where I’m heading now. I’m interested in making records that can stand on their own, but also have a strong live identity. The full album will be out next year and I'm really looking forward to transforming it into a live show with the 7-piece band and combining the electronic and jazz worlds. That's a challenge that excites me.
