Frya strikes the perfect ‘Balance’ between bold and vulnerable

IF YOU have watched season 2 of Blood & Water, chances are strong that you have already heard a Frya song. Before releasing her debut album, the Zimbabwean-born singer and songwriter had five of the singles off the album featured on the hit Netflix show.

Born Rutendo Maregere, Frya lived most of her life in Zimbabwe before moving to South Africa in 2016 to further her studies.

After quitting her job last year, she decided to pursue a musical career full time. Now, she has released her debut album, Balance.

She started working on Balance in June of 2019 and said she wanted to fully express and embrace all the different sides of her sound.

“I wrote every single record, and that process was therapeutic for me. I worked with Andre Harris, who is a Grammy award-winning producer, Mr Kamera, who is one the biggest producers in Southern Africa, originally from Zimbabwe, and GT Beats, who is also from Zimbabwe with international acclaim,” she said.

Balance came about after Frya was inspired to express her love for different genres of music.

“You’ll hear some R&B soul, Afrobeats and a bit of dancehall, things I am inspired by. I’m sonically inspired by what I grew up listening to from Nina Simone to Amy Winehouse, Oliver Mtukudzi and Vybz Kartel and gospel.”

While she knew that when she quit her job in finance, she wanted to pursue music, but she did not know what she wanted her album to sound like at first.

“I just knew I wanted the project to be wholesome, and that’s the advantage of working with great producers.

“During that time, creating it brought out different perspectives, so for example, with Andre Harris, the sound was Western, new age R&B. With GT Beats, it was purely soulful with R&B elements, and with Mr Kamera, it’s Afrobeats and dancehall. So that gave the project a wholesome feel,” she said.

That said, she was adamant about not wanting any features on the album.

“It’s my debut album and I wanted it to stand alone and give people a feel of Frya without any co-sign,” she said.

On the lyrical content of the album, she said: “I’d describe it as versatile, bold, and honest. When I write music, I follow one rule, which is that I have to tell the truth. So with every record, I do that, and I just hope it connects.

“It’s written from the perspective of a young black African woman going through life in this time. Relationships, friendships, picking myself up after a heartbreak and getting ready to go out and forget the troubles.”

A quick listen to the album reveals there is something for everyone.

“If you listen to BDE, Back it Up and Fire Fire, it’s dancehall. You can have a good time at the club with those records. With Calculate, it’s Afrobeats. You can chill with your friends and mellow down or go for long drives.

“You Can’t is a new age R&B record. It’s for the vibes. Then when you listen to Changes, you’re forced to feel something for it. It’s a vulnerable, sad song.

“So there’s something in there for every moment,” said Frya.

Putting this body of work together taught Frya patience. There were many aspects of the music industry she needed to understand.

The most important question she said she had to ask herself was what it was she wanted out of her career and where did she see herself going.

She named the album Balance because, in creating it, she found balance in being as bold as she wanted to be and as emotional.

“Every part of who you are works in your favour, every part is interdependent, and it’s all about finding that balance,” she said.

For the rising star, this album represents the beginning.

“It’s my first baby, it signifies the start for me. Only bigger and better from here, I want to collaborate more, write more television soundtracks, write for more artists.”

She said that she hopes the message that listeners take away is that it’s okay to feel and be all that you are.

“I want people to have a feeling of understanding and have an appreciation for who I am. I’m often misunderstood, and I’m a bit in my shell, and I hope this brings people in a bit more to the person behind the music.

“I also want people to understand how much I love Zimbabwe, from the cover of the album. I had balancing rocks to symbolise the balancing rocks we have back home, even wearing burgundy on the cover to express power, black power, ambition and wealth.”