Laura Mvula

Born in Birmingham in 1986, Laura Mvula developed an early musical practice spanning piano, violin, choral singing and classical training before studying composition at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Prior to her solo career she sang in a cappella ensembles, jazz and neo‑soul groups and also led gospel choirs — a background that informs the dense vocal writing and carefully crafted harmonies in her music. Signed to RCA in 2012, she first released the EP She and then the album Sing to the Moon in 2013, where contemporary soul, R&B, jazz, chamber pop and choral arrangements intertwine with a highly orchestrated approach. In 2014 she reworked the album with the Metropole Orkest on At Abbey Road Studios. With The Dreaming Room (2016), conceived in part with Troy Miller and featuring a collaboration with Nile Rodgers on “Overcome,” Mvula broadened her palette further by incorporating more direct rhythms and Caribbean references. She went on to compose the score for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Antony & Cleopatra in 2017, while continuing collaborations with Snarky Puppy, Gregory Porter, Jacob Collier and Santana. After the EP 1/f, Laura Mvula returned in 2021 with Pink Noise, an album where her sophisticated soul engages more with 1980s synth-pop and funk.