Seinabo Sey

Seinabo Sey | Photo Courtesy Universal Music Publishing

Sounds Like: Nina Simone and Play-era Moby forging millennial-era natural blues (with an uplifting cameo by Des’ree). An R&B passport with stamps from Scandinavia, Africa and the moon.

For Fans of: Adele, Laura Mvula, Erykah Badu

Why You Should Pay Attention: Swedish soul singer Seinabo Sey ”” pronounce it “say-na-bo see,” admits she “hasn’t gotten the hang of EDM,” but DJs haven’t been picky. After her procrastination-busting anthem “Younger” (the chorus goes “You ain’t getting any younger, are you?”) got remixed by Norwegian producer Kygo, it racked up over 10 million SoundCloud plays, millions of YouTube views and hit Number One on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. Last December, she performed the song as it appears on her new EP, For Madeleine (her mother), with a symphony orchestra at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo. Shaped with studio whiz Magnus Lidehäll (Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Sky Ferreira), Madeleine shows off Sey’s versatile vocal timbre. Now perfecting her debut album, she hopes to release it later in 2015.

They Say: “The first time I had to perform by myself, I was 13 or 14. It was in order to get a grade in school. Prior to that I’d sing in choirs, so I never had to sing solo. Afterwards, I thought maybe I’m better at this than some people. I was happy that I had done something that I was very scared to do.

“[Americans] can listen to new songs you’ve never heard and like them. In Sweden, people stand there and listen, and then applaud in between. They appreciate it, but they don’t show it ’til the song is over.”

Hear for Yourself: In “Pistols at Dawn,” a psychological showdown, complete with gunclaps, unfolds. By Reed Fischer

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