2 minute read
SONGWRITER
from OTK Issue 07
by One To Know
The Sound of Sincerity
Singing the Blues
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Story and photos by Erin Ratigan
Sitting in a Starbucks off Rosedale Avenue, Njia grins when Nina Simone’s voice croons from the speakers overhead. The timing feels almost eerie, for Njia had just mentioned Nina as one of her favorite artists. Nina, Billie Holiday and Joanna Newsom exemplify what she tries to show in her own work — sincerity and rawness.
“It takes a certain vulnerability and emotion that you have to know how to emote … Studying those two women [Nina and Billie] in particular really taught me how to share my feelings and emotions on stage,” she says.
Njia is a songwriter and vocalist for synth R&B band Cotinga, a collaboration with instrumentalist Landon Cabarubio. While they usually perform at local events like Arts Goggle, their biggest gigs include playing South by Southwest last year and NPR’s Sound on Tap live music series. Njia also sings independently and was a supporting vocalist in Leon Bridges’ song “River” on his debut album “Coming Home.” Even in the background, her voice is unmistakable — clear, bluesy and captivating.
She was 8 years old when she wrote her first song — and she cringes when she talks about it. “It was called ‘Do What the Donkey Says,’” she says, laughing at the memory.
She met her Cotinga bandmate, Landon, in 2016 at a bar after a mutual friend introduced them. Landon had seen Njia singing on Instagram and knew he wanted to work with her. “Her style — she had this very interesting style that I’d never heard before,” he says.
He asked her to play with him multiple times, and — eventually — she agreed. They released their debut single, “Where to Start,” in March 2022.
“It’s really heart-felt,” he says of her music. “Whenever she comes to me with lyrics, it’s not just rhyming to rhyme. All of her stuff, you can picture it every time.”
Njia’s friend Sophia Ceballos says she was blown away when she first heard Njia sing. That was in 2020, when Continga was still a work in progress. “I remember sitting in on a recording session while they were working on the track [“Where to Start”]. The song ended up being in my dream that night and was stuck in my head for a week,” she says. “She’s got such a hauntingly beautiful range and a soft power in her music.”
Music gives Njia a creative way to express emotions she otherwise struggles to convey. She’s shy and reserved and says putting her words down on paper makes them easier to share. She hopes her words speak to her listeners. “We all have gone through various things in life that music speaks to,” she says, “and it’s something that I really, really try to do, is just relate to people.”
SCAN THE QR CODE to watch Nija performing for NPR Tiny Desk.
- SOPHIA CEBALLOS
