Izzy Bizu, just like many other musicians in the world, is adjusting to this new isolation-based lifestyle the best she can. In fact, Bizu tells EARMILK that she has spent most of the time decorating her “room whilst listening to Nina Simon‘s “Feeling Good”. Sometimes, Bizu shares in an exclusive interview with EARMILK that she also spends her time dancing in front of her mirror pretending that she is in a 1940’s jazz café. Coming off a new release, the London-based pop artist shared further insight into her time in quarantine to discuss the release of her first single for 2020 “Faded.”
“Day to day I write music” Izzy tells EARMILK, “I write in my diary, cook, speak to friends and on weekends I dance with my best friend and we blare out the music!”. Izzy feels, “like there’s a new sense of community people are striving for”, where it is “weird to say but maybe some of this [COVID-19] was a good thing to sort of shake us up and say ‘look at what you have, cherish it forever’ despite all of the loses.”
googletag.cmd.push(function () { var slot = {"name":"in-post-content-1750261","path":"//4052//earmilk//feature//interview","sizes":{"mobile":[[300,250]]},"div":"div-gpt-in-post-content-1750261","targets":{"pos":1,"sz":"300x250"}}; var mapping, gptSlot;
if (slot.sizes.desktop) { desktop_size = slot.sizes.desktop; default_size = desktop_size; } else { desktop_size = []; }
if (slot.sizes.tablet) { tablet_size = slot.sizes.tablet; default_size = tablet_size; } else { tablet_size = []; }
if (slot.sizes.mobile) { mobile_size = slot.sizes.mobile; default_size = mobile_size; } else { mobile_size = []; }
mapping = googletag.sizeMapping() .addSize([320, 400], mobile_size) .addSize([728, 200], tablet_size) .addSize([970, 200], desktop_size) .build();
gptSlot = googletag.defineSlot(slot.path, default_size, slot.div) .defineSizeMapping(mapping) .addService(googletag.pubads()) .addService(googletag.companionAds());
/** * Add targeting data. */ _.each(slot.targets, function (target, key) { gptSlot.setTargeting(key, target) });
/** * Add the page/slot targeting data. */ ionegpt.attrs['position'] = slot.name;
_.each(ionegpt.attrs, function (target, key) { gptSlot.setTargeting(key, target) });
googletag.display(slot.div);
renderedGptSlots[slot.div] = gptSlot;
});
Since the release of Bizu’s GLITA EP in 2019, the London-based native has been writing non-stop. In fact, she revealed to EARMILK, “When I’m happy I’m ecstatic and when I’m saddened it sucks me in, but that’s why I do this!” The lead single “Faded” off the release of her upcoming album The Things We Do For Love was an experience that wasn’t easy to write about. Bizu is a bit of an emotional person, which is why creating music was an outlet for her to express who she is as a person to the wider world. “If I ever feel too comfortable in life it scares me, so I’ll jump on the rollercoaster that keeps me alive, laughing, crying, filling you with nothing but love.”
On “Faded,” Bizu explains that the heartfelt lyricism is about a former lover – one who kept her on her toes. “We were up and down, high and low constantly. The chemistry between us was so explosive, when it was good it was mind-blowing and when it wasn’t, well that’s another story.” Bizu knows where she stood at that time, all she knew “was that eventually, it would have to come to an end” and their “last night was so beautiful. Bizu further explains, “One morning after a fight I was left so drained I thought I couldn’t make it to the studio but I knew it was the only way to release the confusion of passion I had for him.”
googletag.cmd.push(function () { var slot = {"name":"in-post-content-1750262","path":"//4052//earmilk//feature//interview","sizes":{"mobile":[[300,250]]},"div":"div-gpt-in-post-content-1750262","targets":{"pos":2,"sz":"300x250"}}; var mapping, gptSlot;
if (slot.sizes.desktop) { desktop_size = slot.sizes.desktop; default_size = desktop_size; } else { desktop_size = []; }
if (slot.sizes.tablet) { tablet_size = slot.sizes.tablet; default_size = tablet_size; } else { tablet_size = []; }
if (slot.sizes.mobile) { mobile_size = slot.sizes.mobile; default_size = mobile_size; } else { mobile_size = []; }
mapping = googletag.sizeMapping() .addSize([320, 400], mobile_size) .addSize([728, 200], tablet_size) .addSize([970, 200], desktop_size) .build();
gptSlot = googletag.defineSlot(slot.path, default_size, slot.div) .defineSizeMapping(mapping) .addService(googletag.pubads()) .addService(googletag.companionAds());
/** * Add targeting data. */ _.each(slot.targets, function (target, key) { gptSlot.setTargeting(key, target) });
/** * Add the page/slot targeting data. */ ionegpt.attrs['position'] = slot.name;
_.each(ionegpt.attrs, function (target, key) { gptSlot.setTargeting(key, target) });
googletag.display(slot.div);
renderedGptSlots[slot.div] = gptSlot;
});
Bizu’s music style continues to grow stronger with each release as “Faded” showcases more of her vocals than her previous singles had. “Faded” features a mix of bright ’80s inspired aesthetics through the use of drum padding and electronic keys that open up her vocals to delicately guid the listener. Bizu tells EARMILK at the time of creating the single, “I was upset, I went to the studio and I wanted to make a feel-good song about how I knew we would end up.” The lyrics pinpoint Bizu’s feeling at the time, adding to the delicate emotions of the lyrics present. “I often write upbeat songs when I’m sad. It makes me feel better turning the negative energy into a melancholic euphoria.”
Bizu is finally ready to share her heart with the world and although “Faded” is a song about the highs and lows of love, Bizu tells EARMILK she is “finishing my forthcoming album and getting stuck in with the visuals for the next singles!”
Connect with Izzy Bizu: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook