Nao (singer)
Nao | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Neo Jessica Joshua |
| Born | December 1987 (age 36)[1] Nottingham, England |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Labels | Little Tokyo Recordings |
Neo Jessica Joshua, better known as Nao (also styled NAO; /ˈneɪ.oʊ/), is a British singer-songwriter from East London.[2][3] Her sound has been described as soul combined with electronic music, funk and R&B.[2] Nao coined the term 'wonky funk' to describe her style.
Music career
Neo Joshua was born in Nottingham but moved to East London as a young child. She studied vocal jazz at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London and went on to be a backing singer for artists such as Kwabs and Jarvis Cocker.[2][4] For six years up to 2014 she sang in an all-girl a cappella group called The Boxettes.[5][6] In October 2014 she released her first EP, So Good, it reached number 4 on the iTunes electronic chart and the title track made the BBC Radio 1 and BBC 1Xtra national playlists in the United Kingdom.[2][3][7] This was followed by a second EP, February 15 (II MMXV), in May 2015,[7] receiving the "Best New Music" tag from Pitchfork Media.
Nao played Glastonbury Festival in June 2015.[4] In September 2015 Nao was named as a nominee for best newcomer at the 2015 MOBO Awards.[8] Nao was a featured vocalist and writer on Disclosure's UK number 1 album, Caracal, on the track "Superego".[9] She was featured in the long list for the BBC Sound of...2016 prize in November 2015, ultimately being named in third place in January 2016.[10]
Her debut album For All We Know was released on 29 July 2016.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK [11] |
US Dance [12] | ||
| For All We Know |
|
17 | 3 |
Extended plays
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| So Good |
|
| February 15 |
|
Singles
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "So Good" | 2014 | So Good |
| "Zillionaire" | February 15 | |
| "Bad Blood"[13] | 2015 | For All We Know |
| "Fool to Love" | 2016 | |
| "Girlfriend" |
Guest appearances
| Title | Year | Artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Firefly"[14] | 2015 | Mura Masa | Someday Somewhere |
| "Superego"[15] | Disclosure | Caracal |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Organization | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | BBC | Sound of 2016[10] | NAO | Third |
References
- ^ "Little Tokyo Recordings Limited". Companies House. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
- ^ a b c d "BBC Music Sound of...2016 - NAO". BBC. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ a b "NAO on itunes". Apple iTunes. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ a b "Glastonbury 2015". BBC Music. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "The Boxettes, Kings Place". The Arts Desk. 13 January 2012.
- ^ "This All-Female Beatbox Group's Awesome Rudimental Cover Is Anything But Basic". Huffignton Post. 15 August 2014.
- ^ a b "New band of the week: Nao". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "Grime and hip-hop artists JME and Krept And Konan dominate Mobo nominations". BBC Newsbeat. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "Caracal by Disclosure". Metacritic. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ a b "BBC Music Sound of 2016 longlist - listen to the nominees". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "NAO | full Official Chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
- ^ "Nao Album & Song Chart History – Billboard Top Dance/Electronic Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
- ^ "Bad Blood - Single by NAO". iTunes (UK). Retrieved 10 January 2016.
- ^ "Someday Somewhere by Mura Masa". iTunes (UK). Retrieved 10 January 2016.
- ^ "Caracal by Disclosure". iTunes (US). Retrieved 10 January 2016.
External links
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