Spanish is no doubt one of the “romance” languages for a reason. The rhythms of Latin music suit the rich, rounded nature of the dialect it is often coupled with.
Argentinian-born, now Nashville local singer-songwriter Natalia Soul is capitalizing off of this competitive edge a week ahead of Valentine’s Day with her debut EP Hurt You. The five songs are an enticing blend of jazz chords, pop melodies, and that head-swaying Latin pulse guiding it all. Her genre-blending work has garnered her comparisons to H.E.R, Fiona Apple, Lauryn Hill, and others from all corners of the music world.
Title track “Hurt You” sandwiches the EP by appearing as the opening song, in English, and also by finishing out the collection with its Spanish version, “Voy a lastimarte.”
“Damned If I Do” is a memorable song from the EP for its relatable and sassy tagline “I’m damned if I do / Damned if I don’t / So I might as well just do what I want.” Flirty and clever “Thirsty,” on the other hand, uses a variety of parallels from being dehydrated to asking for just one sip to signify her attraction to her subject while retaining a sultry groove. On all five songs, Soul demonstrates remarkable range and control of her voice, and paired with the strong personality of her guitar, a very enticing sound is born.
Soul has a couple of different slogans that she has used to describe herself. You can choose which one you like best: “High Priestess of Sound,” which appears on her Facebook banner, or “Spirit junkie with a music problem,” which can be seen in her Spotify bio. Both of them accurately capture her sunny, energetic, and playfully mysterious persona.
Her optimism is not something she keeps to herself, either. Besides through the channel of her music, she wastes no opportunity to spread positivity to her fans. In one eloquent message addressing stress about the pandemic, she reminded them that, “respect, compassion and introspection are some of the most powerful tools we can use to help humanity today,” as posted on her Facebook page back in April. “I will try and do my best to turn my light on as bright as I can,” she ended the message.
Another way Soul has been able to connect with her listeners is through her openness about her sexuality. This most recent National Coming Out Day, October 11, 2020, she shared an excerpt of her story on Instagram. “I learned about pan sexuality, and it just felt right,” she said of her realization since moving to the United States. “My whole life experience with love just made sense.”
This Valentine’s Day, we can all join Soul in remembering that “love is love is love” by listening to Hurt You, which celebrates both the empowerment of being single or the excitement of a fresh infatuation.
This is such a beautiful article. Thank you for taking the time to write it. I so appreciate it.