afropunk exclusive: rock and soul singer mayaeni showcases powerful voice and serious guitar chops on debut ep ‘elocution’

“I hope you brought your shovel / If you wanna dig deep down in my soul, babe” Mayaeni sings in “Break Me.” Through the 5 songs on her debut EP, Mayaeni does the digging, stretching her versatile voice to its breaking point. Vintage riffs that hearken back to her upbringing in Detroit grace the world-weary strut of “Shooter.” The EP splits its run time between poppier love songs like “Heart” and the infectious “Million N’ 1,” but the blues-inflected tracks like “Too Late” steal the show, showcasing a rare confident ferocity and understated but serious guitar chops. Elocution drops July 8th on Roc Nation.