Kelela: Washed Away
Five years after her debut album, Take Me Apart, Kelela returns with “Washed Away.” The atmospheric track—produced by Yo van Lenz—centers on healing. She explains in a statement, “I specifically want to speak to marginalized Black folk and highlight the work we do to find renewal in a world that’s built to make us feel inadequate. This song is the soundtrack to the relief we find after going inward.” The NYC-based singer-songwriter has promised that bangers are on the way, but “for the first point of contact out of my hiatus, it felt more honest to lead with an ambient heart-check.” The stunning video—directed by Yasser Abubeker and filmed in Ethiopia’s Danakil Depression, near the Eritrea border—provides a fitting visual accompaniment for the otherworldly song.
