Who? Tahliah Debrett Barnett was born in Gloucestershire, and that’s about as pedestrian as her CV gets. Immediately establishing herself as an alien artefact in the video for Water Me, the former backing dancer was immediately categorised as an “alt-R&B” artist, although Barnett has spoken since about the classification of her music, suggesting journalists are defining her based on race than her music style, which shares threads with classical, hymnal and electronic music. Signed to XL imprint Young Turks, her stage name – originally just twigs – refers to the clicking sound that her bones make when dancing.
The album: LP1
Previous releases to date:
2012 – EP1
2013 – EP2
What we said: “Barnett’s songs offer a distinctive take on the traditional female roles of seductress and wronged woman. The sirens she portrays are frequently confused and vulnerable. Their sexual assertiveness is underscored by self-doubt, which seems a pretty realistic depiction of sexual assertiveness, regardless of gender:‘When I trust you we can do it with the lights on.’ Other times, they seem faintly terrifying, lust bordering on obsessiveness. ‘I could kiss you for hours,’ she sings, her voice gradually slowed down until it sounds like a threat: you’re not sure whether the recipient of her affections should willingly submit to her charms or get their number changed.”
What FKA twigs said: “I love annoying sounds, beats, clicks. I don’t see anyone else doing that now. It’s got loud noises in there, the structures aren’t typical, it’s relentless. It’s like punk; fuck alternative R&B!”
Mercury-friendly accolades: FKA twigs has spoken of the “bizarre time in the world, where you can be so famous, so elevated, but none of it is your own vision”. A great deal of her lure is not only the impact of her futuristic compositions or the surreal aesthetic she brings to an otherwise visually unadventurous list of nominees, but her creative control. It’s worth taking a look at this recent interview with T-Pain who discusses working with Barnett, and how her approach to integrity changed his life.
Likelihood of winning: It’s worth placing a bet – Ladbrokes currently has 5/2 on her winning – and it’d be a victory deserved, if only so she becomes known by the wider press as “Mercury award-winner FKA Twigs” rather than “Robert Pattinson’s new girlfriend”.
Stream the album:
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