Deva Mahal: Soul and R&B musician talks about her new single 'South Coast'

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Hello, good morning to you, Welcome back to the programs. So my guest for the next fifteen minutes is soul an R and B musician Diva Mahal. She's based in Wellington and she's just released a new single and this is it. It's called South Coast. So Diva's journey to Wellington and her musical influences is a fascinating one. She's got a famous dad. So I think it's time to meet Diva Mahal and you can hear her story from her own mouth. And it's good morning to you, Diva.

Thanks.

There we go. And you were born in Honolulu, is that right? Big family? One of six?

No, I was from Kowaiti, from where.

Kuwaiti, which is the island next to where the capital city of honolulus on.

All right, so you were born in Hawaii. You're part of a big family, one of six. And here's the thing, and I'm sure you hear this every interview. Your father is legendary American blue singer Taj Mahau.

That is correct, very true.

Now man himself, the man himself a frequent visitor to New Zealand. What a great player. Now, the thing about following in famous parents footsteps because you're a singer, he's a singer. You do the blues, he does the blues, is that it can either be a blessing or a curse. So, having Taj as a dad, how was it for you?

Well, my dad has always taught.

Us that it's not following in his footsteps, it's standing in his light. So I try to lead with that way of thinking that he casts not a shadow, but he throws light, and he illuminates us and gives us more strength and sense of self and individuality, knowing that we carry carry what we bring to this world from a long line of creators and storytellers, and we come from a really deep legacy, a very deep and.

Yeah, so at times.

It has been more like the journey of becoming who I meant to be as an artist and then being able to and strong enough to like hold that light would then be able to emit your own life, you know.

Yeah, of course, So it's such a beautifully poetic way of putting things, which is probably what made him such a great artist as well. But when did you decide to follow in your father's life.

Well, I didn't really decide.

I guess it just kind of was how it was always meant to be. Really, I've always been musically inclined and musically inspired since I was really little, and I performed with my pops when I was really little, so he kind of caught on that I was musical from a young age, and he included me in a really beautiful way on his projects. And my actual first studio project was recording with Bob Marley's mom.

So it's funny that you say.

That my first album that my first experience in a studio outside of recording with him. I was really young, I might have been like eight or nine, and I recorded a whole album with Sidela Moi booker and spent a lot of time.

We've even made a music video.

It's really funny.

It's like a VHS music video of.

Me and like all of my mates and my family at the beach on and on Ahola.

Just like well, you know, you speak about videos, but not only in music. You've also been in films. You were in American Hustle with Bail and Bradley Cooper. So how did that happen.

I was cast by David O. Russell, the director.

It had kind of come across my way, and I had to submit like an audition video and record record a track because it was you know, because obviously it's set in the seventies, so.

I had to like record a cool video.

And it was like it was like I think it was like either me or Sharon Jones in the dap Can And so I got the role. And then as in the movie, I'm in that really big scene when they're in the hall and I have I think I'm like funk band leader, which.

Is like my credit or something like that.

Oh cool, and you can see me wearing this like golden calf head and an afro wig, and it's pretty wild. Actually I'm in the scene with the entire cast and then like hundreds of people.

So it was like twenty two hours of shooting.

And the first person I like saw and said hello to was Christian Bale. I'm such a huge fan of his work, So it was kind of wild and it was really funny actually, because you know, like he's so methods, so he like came in and he like waved at me as if he was like the character. But I like totally forgot myself that we weren't filming, but I like forgot myself and I just like waved like a total nerd. That was really fun.

Yeah, I got to meet Amy Adams and Bradley Cooper.

Oh.

I went back and looked at that scene. Uh, and Amy's striding all over the place and she's got big hair and a very load decolotage. And Jennifer ll she's kindest yeah person. And then then I found you, and boy, that afro amazing.

Yeah, it was great.

So good, wasn't it.

It was like the most epic afro and the gold calf town I was. I was really hoping that I could find a way to like snatch it.

Okay, now, look doesn't keepsake. The next obvious question is how on earth did Diva Mahal end up in Wellington? But I got to take a break. So we'll take a little amb break and we'll come back and we'll hear how you're here and all about your new project. Ladies and gentlemen, My guest is Diva Mahal. So this is news stork B. It's my Triki Friday, and I'm Andrew Dickens and my special guest is Diva Mahal, who has a new single out and a tour coming. She's

Really, my brother came out here after touring with my dad and my dad, you know, came out here and he was doing some work with the fellas from the Herbs and or the Herbs and they in a and he's also the justicese guy. Yes, funnily enough, so he had already established like a connection with aut like in.

The eighties and nineties.

And then my brother came through on tour with him and ended up staying.

And then he fell in.

Love with a Maudi woman and had I.

Had their first child, and my mom came out. She had to be nan, you know, she had to be the mukama and came out and then I.

Followed not long after that, after like a family tragedy and I just really needed a fresh start and came here and just came to visit really, and then I fell in love with Wellington with.

And started going UNI. It was like going to Massy.

The jazz program got accepted and everything just kind of like it was like you should stay here. So I was just listening to the universe really and started playing music.

And now I'm here, Yes you are, and that we lucky. Now. Your first EP was a very soulful thing, six tracks, very very R and B. So I've listened to the South Coast, which is your new single which is out now, sounds a little bit more like the Wellington scene is getting into your bones. And I know that you say you know what I mean, and I know you saying back ups and wondering eye with Fat Freddy's drop. You're part of the scene, You're part of the gang.

Well you know.

My first album is actually.

Called a live album from Wellington called Live at Hope Brothers, and that was my first recorded album, and that was very much a result of me living in Wellington. So the Wellington sound has influenced me since I was about nineteen.

But I have lived lots of places.

I lived in New York for thirteen years, I lived in I've been in London.

I lived in New Orleans.

For a year, so my first debut album has a lot of influences from living in New York and then my like second record, well my first EP, but my third album was recorded back in Wellington. So you can kind of hear the evolution between the first album in this one from all.

The places that I've been. I've actually traveled.

All over and toured all over the world at this point, and so like playing in Northsea Jazz Fest, or playing at Carnegie, or playing at the Hollywood Bowl or playing you know, things like Jules Holland and stuff like that. You know, just touring all over over and like really cultivating this new sound, and then came back home and kind of put all of that into the first half of Future Classic, and so the second half, because obviously

Brian, absolutely brilliant. So of course I know all the fans are saying, we got the first episode of Future Classics in twenty twenty three. The fact that you've now released South Coast You're single, does that mean the second one is coming soon?

Yeah, you would be right.

Can you give us some day.

October? Just keep your eyes on October. But I'll definitely be putting. I'll definitely be releasing tracks records off of the EP from you know, from May until October, so there's more to come.

I have a new song that's coming out in July.

I think we're looking at July eleventh, but yeah, keep your eyes.

Honed on that month as well.

Yeah, is absolutely Look it sounds amazing, It sounds amazing. It sounds amazing to New Zealand ears, and I hope it sounds amazing to international ears and so they can really get a grip on what is actually happening down here, because interesting stuff is happening down here.

Yeah, for sure, you want to.

Go and see this woman. She's got great pipes. You start at the end of July at mel In Wellington. Is that rightly, yeah.

July twenty fourth, twenty fourth, yeah, and then twenty sixth that Space Academy, and we finished the tour in Tomakae, Makoto on August second.

Big Fan, Big Fan, which is Joel Little's place, so you know, yeah, hopefully he turns up and then flicks a copy to to Taylor Swift and lord.

Yeah, that'd be great.

That'd be great.

You know what we're going to do, I'm going to play a bit.

Of really honestly, I'm in no shame.

I love him, but I would love for him to like, of course, you know, maybe like I don't know, like.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that would definitely be That's what Joel wants to do. He wants to be a content. That's what Big Fans all about. And I think it's brilliant. I think your song sounds great. In fact, what I'm going to do, We're going to stop the interview now, going to take a break, and after the break, I'm going to play the people a bit of South Coast with of course the second part of the Future Classic EP collection coming out. As we've heard in October, Diva

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