Emerging R&B singer-songwriter Saleka has released her debut album, Seance, via Range Music Partners.
The 13-track project includes the previously shared soulful tunes “Clarity,” “Mr. Incredible,” “Graffiti,” “How Many,” “Seance,” “Red Eyes” and “Echo.”
“This project has some songs I wrote many years ago and some songs I just finished. This album helped me learn how to make music, it helped me grow up, it helped me through the low points of life and helped me celebrate the high points,” Saleka wrote in an Instagram post.
She continued, “I have so many mixed emotions about releasing it… a couple tracks feel like a version of myself that doesn’t exist anymore, and couple of them are so fresh it makes me scared to show them to anyone, but these songs were always meant to come together in a full album form and now they will.”
Among the album’s new tracks is “Samsara,” which paints a vivid picture of, what seems like, an endless cycle of failed relationships. “From this allegory / Trading trust for trophies / Sold my serenity / I’m so far underneath deep free me / Solitude is a sea / Every wave weakens me / I’m so far underneath deep free me,” Saleka sings over dynamically soulful instrumentation.
Of the track, Saleka explains, “‘Samsara’ is a Sanskrit word referring to the cycle of rebirth and reincarnation. The song plays with this concept as a metaphor for a seemingly endless pattern of relationships. It is a story of dark irony— living through the beginnings, middles, and ends of love over and over, and looking for some way to escape the cycle.”
“Samsara” is accompanied by a cinematic video directed by Danica Kleinknecht. The captivating visual vividly illustrates the tumultuous journey of falling in and out of love. She finds herself adrift at the end of each relationship, yet she keeps dancing along, holding onto hope for another shot at enduring love.
“I feel like a lot of people our age have been through what it feels like to fall in love, and then break up, and then fall in love, and then break up, and lose someone, and find someone new, and going through that, you feel like you’re dying and getting reborn every time. So I wanted to [make a video about] that,” Saleka explained to Nylon about the video’s concept.
As noted above, Seance is Saleka’s first full-length project. The Indian American’s voice may sound familiar to those who have watched Servant on Apple TV+, particularly in seasons three and four. She helmed the soundtrack, Servant: Songs From The Attic, released in March 2022. A deluxe edition was released this past March with three additional songs, all performed by Saleka.
The Apple TV+ original show was executive produced by her father, M. Night Shyamalan. The acclaimed filmmaker went to Instagram to share a heartfelt message.
“So very proud of my oldest daughter @saleka for her debut album #Seance which was released today. Saleka started piano at 4 years old. Studied classical piano for 11 years. Been singing and writing R&B songs ever since. She is an inspiration to our family in her approach to art and humanity,” Shyamalan wrote.
On June 14, Saleka will begin her mini North American tour in San Fransisco, California, to support Seance. She will play additional shows in Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. The tour concludes on June 22 in her hometown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Saleka’s tour dates are listed below.)
Stream Saleka’s debut album, Seance, below.
(Continue scrolling to see tour dates)
Saleka’s Tour Dates 2023
Jun 14 – San Francisco, CA @ Café Du Nord
Jun 15 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hotel Café
Jun 18 – Toronto, ON @ Drake Underground
Jun 20 – New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
Jun 21 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd DC
Jun 22 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Lounge at World Café Live
Get tickets at salekamusic.com.
