Last night, triple j gave Meanjin-based indie-pop innovator Yb.‘s title track Blackphemy a first play, ahead of the full ‘Blackphemy’ EP release this Friday.
Blackphemy is lyric-driven and begins by touching on themes of isolation and self-doubt. The sonic and poetic trajectory of the song move in parallel, building to a place of self-assurance, the music adding grander scale with harmonies and unfolding instrumentals as the song closes out. As the lead song on the EP, it foreshadows the journey of the ‘Blackphemy’ EP.
“All my life I’ve felt like I’ve had to leave my cultural predispositions behind in order to feel accepted in what was, at the time, a predominantly white community, but the beautiful thing about this EP is it truly is an encapsulation of my unfiltered and sometimes crude self,” said Yb.
The ‘Blackphemy’ EP, out this Friday, 25 November, is a body of work encapsulating Yb.’s experience as a black artist in Australia, weaving together experiences of the harsh realities of racism, ignorance and the pressure to be accepted.
Each track on the EP sits distinct to the other, tied together by a thematic deconstruction of the stereotypes littered throughout the indie music scene. ‘Blackphemy’ showcases a year of writing, production and collaboration with Australian artists, tracking Yb.’s path towards authenticity.
Yb. has taken 2022 by storm, performing headline shows and having supported Allday, Biig Piig, Golden Vessel andSan Cisco across Australia. It’s onwards and upwards for Yb.; the Brisbane-based artist-producer played BIGSOUND 2022 in September, had single Dance With Me Today land a sync opportunity in Cha Cha Real Smooth, a critically-acclaimed film on Apple TV, and scored a sync for the Spotify playlist Front Left. Yb. has become a regular across triple j, with a swag of rotation ads and first plays on triple j and features on triple j Unearthed. ‘Sandra’ made him the cover of Fresh Finds Spotify playlists New Music Friday AU & NZ, Fresh Finds AU & NZ and come thru. Milky, Altitude, The Music Network, Music Feeds and Sniffers have also featured Yb. across their publications.
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Yb.’s debut EP is out this Friday – 25 November
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