Setting the tone with a luscious strings arrangement, Zaki Hagins opens the Acoustic Mix of Younger with an emotive performance and situational lyricism as he takes us through his feelings in an introspective and sometimes theatrical manner.
The opus expands with depth and poetic nuance as Zaki Hagins delivers emotion, vulnerability and his internal monologue with an identifiable vocal timbre which is immersive and evocative.
We immediately fall in love with his viola performance, which is Zaki Hagins‘ instrument of choice, and we learn that the song is an ode to his twin brother who Zaki describes as his “best friend and biggest supporter”.
The release is a double-sided single, with the Acoustic Mix and Pop Mix showcasing the range of the visionary rising artist. With reference to the meaning of the song, according to Yoruba tradition, the second-born twin is the younger sibling, yet when Zaki moved from his home of Philadelphia to Berlin, the time difference between the two continents made him technically older than his brother Mosi.
Speaking on the release, Zaki confesses, “The song took me a long time to write, and I had multiple little lines floating around my head throughout the pandemic as I taught myself production in Ableton.”
The star continues, “I finished the lyrics and structure quickly upon moving to Berlin to start actively working as a freelance musician, so to me, it really represents not only my love for my brother, but also a sense of completion, of reaching a destination.”
Zaki Hagins is a currently based in Berlin, and originally from Philadelphia with a background in contemporary classical composition and operatic training, he uses a minimalist blend of live-looping viola and soulful vocals to create his own brand of experimental pop. We love the authentic art that he is creating, and have added Younger to our New Music Spotlight playlist, whilst we anticipate future releases from Zaki Hagins!