As Will Linley spends more and more time overseas, his career is blossoming in almost the same way that Grammy winner Tyla’s has and my hunch is that things are about to snowball.
After embarking on a sold out run of shows in London, Dublin and Amsterdam, Willy just finished a North American tour where he was the opening act for pop singer, Em Beihold, and naturally, he documented his experience every step of the way across social.
His latest single “Blame”, written in Malibu and finished in SA on a writing camp at the beginning of this year, is the first release since his EP Magic in November 2023, and to say there was anticipation around this one would be putting it oh so mildly.
“It feels so amazing to finally have ‘Blame’ come out! Releasing music never gets old,” Will tells me when I catch up with him mid-events. “The joy, the nerves, the excitement. I love it all. Obviously I hope that fans connect with the song, that goes without saying, but so excited for people to hear this new sound!”
“I originally wrote the song with friends of mine Afterhrs and Sarah Troy last year,” Will explains when I ask him about the origin of the track. “And when I played it for Bubele and David [The Imports] they immediately told me that we should try leaning it towards an Afrobeat world. So they hopped on the tune and added their own spice that only they could do. Fast forward a couple months and the song is out. It’s been a labour of love and everyone has done such an incredible job bringing this song to life, even having Manana come in and sing some backing vocals and help rewrite the pre-chorus was incredible. This song has truly been crafted over time and I’m really proud of it.
It’s clear that Will Linley is a new breed of pop star and I’m looking forward to seeing how he uses his performance on that Lollapalooza stage in Chicago come August to plant roots in America.
