Irish-Nigerian singer HXNEY (pronounced Honey) has released her new single Jeje, which pays homage to her parents' native country. We asked her the BIG questions . . .  

HXNEY uses her native language of Yoruba in the new song as a nod of appreciation to Nigeria but the track was also inspired by a brief relationship that had progressed too quickly.

We need your consent to load this YouTube contentWe use YouTube to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences

'‘The song was written from a pure state of consciousness, where I let my emotions flow freely," she says. "Jeje took me about 10 minutes to write, unlike my previous work, and soon became one of my favourite songs of mine.

"As we wrap up 2020 and as I start my new era as an artist, I felt like it was only right to share this with my listeners in order to introduce them to a fresh approach from me and connect with me on a different level."

Tell us three things about yourself

I come from a family of six with three siblings who are all boys so I grew up with strong male energy around me, especially because my best friends were guys too, but these days, as an adult I’ve found so much joy nurturing my female relationships as it makes me feel more connected to being a woman.

I’m such an introvert and a homebody so I love reading and practicing self-care in my spare time.

Being productive and seeing progression in my day to day routines serves like therapy for me, that’s when feel the strongest mentally.

How would you describe your music?

The sound of my music tends to change due to my experimental nature, but It’s always influenced by my love for alternative R&B, and my necessity to speak my truth in a song.

Who are your musical inspirations?

I am heavily influenced by artists like Frank Ocean, Brandy, Lianne La Havas, James Fauntleroy and Jhené Aiko just because I feel like they are phenomenal writers and their music always speaks to me.

How did you occupy yourself during the coronavirus lockdown?

During the lockdown, I spent most of my time rediscovering myself as a person and as an artist. With music, I wrote and recorded a lot of new songs, connected with new producers and built a stronger team and support system around me. With self-discovery, I did lots of self-grounding work, like self-actualisation, prayer and meditation.

What’s your favourite song right now?

My favourite music piece right now is a full body of work called Jaguar by an Artist named Victoria Monet. Every single time it comes up on my playlists, it always seems to raise my energy and mood and I’m also fascinated by the instrumentations and it’s got such fun songs to sing along to.

Favourite lyrics of all time?

I’m pretty sure I’ve got many but the one I can think of right now is an outro from the song Moment by Jhené Aiko, featuring Big Sean. It goes like: "Everything you need to be contented is right here, right in this minute. You can have it when you understand that all that matters is right here."

If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Umm, I would have to go with the 1974 classic Lovin’ You by Minnie Riperton. Everything about that song is unforgettable to me and I don’t see myself ever getting sick of it either.

Where can people find your music/more information?

You can find my music on streaming sites when you search for ‘HXNEY’. Or you could visit my instagram (@hxneymusic) where I tend to have a direct link to my music.