Japanese soul singer Nao Yoshioka, a fourteen-year veteran in the industry, is preparing to release her highly anticipated new album, self, on July 17th. Marking one of her most personal and introspective projects to date, the record explores themes of vulnerability, healing, and self-acceptance through her signature blend of soulful vocals and heartfelt storytelling. Ahead of the album’s release, Yoshioka sat down with us to discuss the inspiration behind self, the experiences that shaped its creation, and the journey that brought her to this new chapter in her career.
A Different Approach from Previous Albums
Yoshioka’s upcoming album was approached differently compared to previous works in her discography. “I decided to write about the weak part of me and the painful part of me that I haven’t faced in a long time. For the first through fourth album, I was writing about the journey of how to love myself. And after I released my last album, I think I know how to love myself, and I was, like, proud of who I was.” After her 5th album, she had the opportunity to perform in 11 countries, a dream-came-true moment, as she always wanted to become an international artist. However, she experienced setbacks with her health while touring. “I had a panic attack;I was questioning myself, like, ‘This is the life I wanted. Why can’t my body take it?’” After some reflection, she found that while she accepted the best versions of herself, she could not say the same for her “weaker,” more vulnerable aspects of herself. Through this new album, she hopes to share this journey of learning to embrace her whole self..
The Beginnings of Her Career
Yoshioka’s relationship with soul music has grown since her start as a young Japanese artist. Having moved to New York around the age of 20, she encountered soul music for the first time. “One of the first songs I sang was Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna Come.’ It gave me hope in my life. That’s when I realized music can really change and support someone’s life.” Since then, not much has altered her relationship with soul music – it continues to be the medium that she communicates to the world with.
Though she initially was still learning English as a teen, she now finds that she feels more comfortable with singing in English. “I feel more free when I sing in English more than Japanese. So, I don’t know how this happened, and I don’t know why I feel more freedom when I’m singing in English. Though it was difficult for me to take this path, I am still glad I chose it.”
A Sneak Peek to Her Album
When asked about which song on the new album was the most impactful one, Yoshioka picked “Shadow” as the core of the album in terms of messaging. She explained that the album’s title and themes come from psychology concepts from Carl Jung. One of the significant concepts was the idea of one’s “shadow.” “[In Jungian psychology], shadow is the part of yourself that’s weak, part of you you don’t even want to look at, and when you embrace those shadows and weaknesses, that’s when you become your whole self.” After her panic attack on stage, she had to learn to embrace her weaknesses. It was only then did she start feeling complete and finding life got easier. “I’ve been doing this for 14 years, but it feels like my life has just started.” The collaborator for the song, Bilal, was a perfect match, she found. “He really understood the concept of the song, and he said he experienced ups and downs in his career, finding it difficult to keep his inner child. That’s why this song became more special than ever.”
Working with Collaborators from Around the World
Regarding other collaborators, she found the deepest connection she has forged is with Eric Roberson. “During the time we’ve spent together, he was like a big brother to me. He invited me to stay at his house and spend time with his wife and kid. He has such a beautiful heart, and he’s become a role model for my career.”
A favorite memory she shared was her time with Debbie Morrison, described by Yoshioka as an amazing vocal director. “In the studio, he gave me the direction of trying with no vibrato. As a soul singer with a gospel background, singing with no vibrato was super hard. We tried it together, and I failed so many times, but it turned out to be the most beautiful sound that I ever experienced.” Another fun memory was with Maxwell. “I had a session at his house in Australia; his studio is right next to the national park. When you get out of the studio, it’s just like wild nature, and sometimes kangaroos come to visit his yard. So it’s just a chill vibe, and we’re just having fun, not just constantly making the music.”
The World Soul Collective
Yoshioka’s been with Sweet Soul Records her entire career, and the CEO of the label, Naoki Yamanouchi, had the idea to collaborate with artists from around the world at the beginning of her career. “Over time, we’ve been collaborating with a lot of amazing artists from all over the world.” There was the Soul Exchange tour, where Yoshioka’s team did the tour with American artists in the United States and American artists came to Japan to collaborate and tour together with Yoshioka. This ended up building out the global community through the World Soul Collective. “I have amazing people who I can really trust, and we have a lot of artists that we can invite and we can do tours together in Japan. It’s a really collaborative endeavor, and I’m grateful to have all those amazing artists.”
Closing out our conversation with Yoshioka, she expressed her excitement to release the album.
“I really hope all the listeners will feel comfortable [through listening to this album], and they can love themselves more than before.”
Stream “Safe Place” HERE | Pre-Save Album HERE
Interview with Rachel Bui | Photo Credit: SWEET SOUL RECORDS
