It first occurred to Ayra Starr that she might have “made it” on her 21st birthday last summer. While taking her first break from recording and touring in a year, she became speechless as she realized that she was celebrating poolside in Barbados surrounded by family and friends.
The joy she felt in that moment, only experienced one other time—when she met Rihanna, of course—inspired her upcoming album, The Year I Turned 21. The sophomore record comes three years after her debut 19 & Dangerous, whose viral hits “Bloody Samaritan” and “Rush,” (a favorite of former president Barack Obama) introduced the world to the singer. It cemented Starr as one of the musicians ushering in a new era of Afrobeats and one of several young women at the fore of the genre, responsible for expanding the world’s view of what music from Africa sounds like.
The Year I Turned 21, an amalgamation of sounds from different African and non-African genres, has solo dance tracks and soulful ballads. It’s fitting that Starr, born Oyinkansola Aderibigbe, would create an album that seamlessly blends amapiano, funk, pop and R&B with Afrobeats: She was born in Benin to Nigerian parents and lived in Abuja and Lagos in her youth; she speaks English, French, Yoruba, and Nigerian Pidgin.
Ahead of Friday’s release of The Year I Turned 21, Starr spoke with ELLE.com about creating the album, earning her first Grammy nomination, and how she’s trying to enjoy the ride, without taking anything for granted. The final track on the album urges us to all “go out and enjoy what you worked for”—because her late father didn’t get the chance to, something Starr is well-aware of.
How do all the parts of your identity inform and come through your music?
Because I grew up in different cities at different stages of my life, I feel like my music has almost split personalities. I learned to adapt to whatever situation I found myself in and that's what I do with my music. If you give me a funk beat, I’ll find the Afrobeats in that and give you Afropunk. I always look for and find myself and my identity in every beat.
How would you describe The Year I Turned 21? What should people expect to hear?
A roller coaster of emotion, but in a way that is masterful and euphoric. Don’t expect any one thing. Instead, expect different genres intertwined into one. Expect to have a great time, to walk away with a positive feeling. Expect greatness [laughs].
What was going in your life and what were you feeling when you were working on this album?
I’m so happy that I recorded every song in different headspaces. It didn’t even make sense to me until after that these are my emotions, this is my life.
It’s about confidence and getting money, falling in love and having your heart broken, understanding that life isn’t just about love or money. It’s also about understanding oneself and self-love. There are a lot of introspective songs. For example, I end the album with a song called “The Kids Are All Right,” which is my niece singing about dad and finally coming to terms with the death of my dad. I have my siblings at the end of the song giving their final goodbye to my dad, giving the updates of their life.
Technically speaking, what do you and your producers do to make your sound distinct, so it stands out from other Afrobeats songs?
It’s my voice. I’ve opened myself up to so many possibilities when it comes to sound because I don't like to hold myself in a box. I’m a very proud Afrobeats artist, but I am in different spaces and different genres, from the Spanish world to David Guetta dance music, but one thing that has been very consistent in every aspect is my voice. It isn’t just a voice, it's my sound and it’s distinctive from the first “yeah, yeah” you hear in my songs. Just that and people feel good. I don’t want to be bragging!
You’re not.
When I enter a studio, whatever beat I’m listening to, the question is, “What would my voice sound like on this? How can I enter this culture and this genre and make sure the sound of my voice—the deep and the high note—still comes through and I’m not swallowed by the genre?” That’s always in the back of my mind, how do I make sure my sound is me,
On this album, you’ve got some really fun diverse collabs with Coco Jones, Asake, Giveon, and others. What was it like getting to work with them?
Everybody I collaborated with on this album, I genuinely love their sound. I say I’m the creative director of my music because I hear different things and I put different things together. I remember the day I first saw Coco Jones, it’s a core memory. And now getting to work with her on an Afrobeats banger is so cool. She came through, she gave me her soul on this song “Woman Commando.” The first time I heard Giveon’s voice I cried; now he’s on an Afrobeats-R&B track “Last Heartbreak Song” with me.
For the past few years people have been complaining about Afrobeats feeling like it’s getting diluted by too many collabs, samples and remixes with Americans, Europeans and even other African artists. Is that a fair claim? What do you say to that?
It’s not fair at all. People want to put negativity on Afrobeats because it has become so mainstream. The generations of African artists who worked to this extent for people like me to be able to be global with this sound worked for this. The genre’s not being diluted, it’s becoming mainstream. People are going to want to try things and do their own versions of things. The key is that when we stick together as Afrobeats artists and continue with our sound; it can never be diluted. Nobody is ever going to be able to do it like us. That’s just the truth and it’s a beautiful thing to see and lovely to hear.
You were nominated for a Grammy for Best African Music Performance, alongside Burna Boy, Davido and Musa Keys, Asake and Olamide, and Tyla. How did that feel? Did it add any pressure for this project?
I’m grateful for all the awards and the streams, but I like to outdo myself. I’m in constant competition with myself. The recognition is amazing, but you can’t put all your confidence and ego on awards and streams. A lot of people will get those. It’s not about that. It’s about you challenging yourself and doing the best for yourself. Understanding myself, getting better, working on my patience, my mind and my mental health, and putting that in the music. That’s what it’s about.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
