YAYA – Down

Yaya Drops Latest Single “Down”

Dallas born and Toronto raised artist Yaya has released their newest single “Down”, with the track continuing their streak of hard hitting and emotional R&B songs. Indeed, this smooth banger is just another successful outing for the singer/songwriter with surely many more on the way.

Yaya did not originally intend to be an artist. The 23 year old had aspirations of a college basketball career in the United States. But like so many others when the pandemic hit, Yaya was forced to return to Canada and reconsider his options. It was here that he fully committed to his love of music and began to release singles, starting with 2020’s “Change”.

“Change” has racked up over 200,000 plays on Spotify, and was only the beginning for the young artist. Yaya followed it up with several more great songs such as “Ease the Pain”, “Bad Days”, “All This Shit”, and “42”. Many of these also have great music videos uploaded to his youtube channel. In addition to his own tracks, Yaya has been featured on other artist’s projects including R.D.G. Stacks, Kovu the King, and Duane Soul HD. Prolific and a majorly talented songwriter, “Down” picks up where Yaya left off and delivers in a big way.

Yaya – Down

Smooth R&B Delivered from an Honest Place

The track is built around a gorgeous soul sample from Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes, their song “You Know How to Make Me Feel So Good” provides a sharp contrast to the painful lyrical themes Yaya explores in the opening lines. Speaking of a relationship gone sour, Yaya confesses that he broke the heart of someone he truly loved through infidelity. While the confession is brutal, it is delivered through beautiful melodic and catchy bars. Yaya takes unconventional phrasing and makes it flow effortlessly, such as the line “Not funny haha but funny weird/ love me right now cuz the money comin’ in”. The hook is also incredibly catchy, with gorgeous falsetto harmonies bringing the track to an airy and almost ethereal place.

Yaya proves himself to be multi-talented, as the music video itself was co-directed by him. Simple yet effective, it features the artist having a barbeque in the park against the psychedelic backdrop of colour-changing trees. By the time the chorus comes in, we transition to shots of the studio with Yaya presumably working on this very track. The vibe throughout is cool and calm, and as the track fades out we are left wanting even more.

Clearly another stepping stone in the songwriter’s rapid ascent in the Toronto scene, “Down” is a classic track that you don’t want to miss. You can check out Yaya’s instagram to keep up-to-date on his latest drops, and we absolutely recommend you do.