Hannah Jadagu: Indie Pop’s Forever Lover Girl

At her sold-out Public Records album release show, Jadagu debuted a new sound with an electric embrace

With her sophomore album Describe, Hannah Jadagu set out to try something new. Her previous album, Aperture, faced inward; she sang of dreams, self-doubt and existential explanations. Describe reaches outward, long and wide, trying on less familiar sounds in favor of taking us to new places. She tells Pleaser, “The main inspiration when I made this album was to make something different than my first one, and a lot of that comes through in the production and songwriting. Many of the core themes are about being apart from the people that you love, and figuring out how to navigate that, especially doing what we do in the arts. I think that definitely comes across, and along with that, I’m exploring guilt. I'm exploring second-guessing myself.”

PHOTOS BY LEXI YOB

Her way of reconciling that distance is by casting her love as far as she can. “There is a lot of love in the album,” she says, “and I categorize this album as a love album. A lot of times in pop songs, it's about the lovey-dovey pretty stuff, but I think the way relationships grow is through those difficult, nuanced, hard-to-articulate times. I wanted to put a spin on the typical love album.” 

Jadagu is inspired by other artists who explore love in complicated ways. She cites Imogen Heap’s Speak for Yourself and SZA’s CTRL as two of her favorite love albums. Specifically, she admires the way that CTRL explores, “modern-day relationships and also modern-day self-love.” She says SZA is “very honest about the situations that she gets herself into. And it seems like she's navigating herself in relationship to love, to other people and to her body.”

Though Jadagu’s sound is indie-pop, she considers herself a student of Black artists across all genres. This is, in part, what inspired her to take new sonic risks on Describe. “There's a literal trap song [on Describe]. And that's because I went to the school of Rihanna, SZA and Solange. Of course, you know, I had to throw one trap song in there. I think that's a risk in itself because I know in the alternative space, a lot of the audience tends to skew white, and sometimes they don't get it, but this isn't for people that don't want to get it. If you don't want to get it, that's okay.”

The audience at Public Records was overwhelmingly white. I stood in line for ticketing, the lone Black speck, as far as I could see, until I entered the venue and noticed a pair of Black folks ordering drinks at the bar. I’ve been to an innumerable number of indie shows at which I’ve been in the racial minority; the feeling of alienation never assuages. But the moment Jadagu took the stage, she turned this feeling inside out. She wore indie so vibrantly, so comfortably, because it has always been hers, ours.

For Jadagu, her unwavering place in the world of indie-pop comes from her commitment to community. When I asked her what it means to be a Black indie artist and how she remains steadfast in her point of view, she says, “First and foremost, what's always been important to me is doing what I want. And knowing that I'm allowed to make these decisions and I'm allowed to go on tour and I'm allowed to play in these cities and show up as my Black self and just hope that there are people out there that are rocking with it.”

“Another decision I make, which is very important to me, is the people that I work with. My sister did my glam and my hair for the album art. My best friends are the people who style me. My boyfriend is the DP, cinematographer and director. My roommate directed the ‘My Love’ video. I just try to keep the family close. I think that helps a lot, especially when you're a Black artist, having people in your circle that get you and love you and care.”

As a sophomore album, Describe not only casts far and wide, but also forward and backward, representing a creative transitional period for Jadagu. Describe honors her original sound while snapshotting her creative process and foreshadowing what comes next. I asked her if she could pick three songs from the album, each one representing a past, present and future version of herself, which three songs would they be? She says, “For the past, I'm gonna go with ‘Miracles.’ It’s kind of campy. It's super fun. It's short and sweet. There's a lot of guitar on there. It kind of has a bit of a jig to it. It's kind of silly. That feels like a past version of me, just because the way that we built it was very reminiscent of how I used to make music and how we did the songwriting process.”

“For the present day, I’ll go with ‘More.’ And not for the lyrical aspect, but the sonic aspect feels like stuff that I'm really into. Like 808s with guitars, but also programmed high hats. That's kind of me mixing the old with the new. And I feel like that's something I'm super into right now, especially just from what I listen to — something that feels electronic, but still intimate.” 

“And then for the future, let's go with ‘My Love.’ I'm such a lover girl. I'm in my love era right now. I'm very in love. And, inshallah, that will be me in the future too. I just want to keep experiencing more love. Also, the way that song sounds, I'm kind of curious to get back in the lab and make a few more that have those same elements. So yeah, I see ‘My Love’ — sonically, lyrically, thematically — in my future.”

On stage, Jadagu’s love beamed onto the room, blooming sweetly with each new song performed, as the audience poured their love back into her. She shouted out to her mom, who was standing in the audience, and spoke highly of all the people in her life that she loves. Jadagu’s live performance was a culmination of her love, exalted. The best way to listen to Describe is in a room full of people, transported for the night, by the shared love that can only be formed through a live performance. 

“Come see the album live,” she says. “Support live music, support local venues. Let's rejoice in some music and experience it live because it's such a special feeling.”

Hannah Jadagu kicks off her U.S. tour with Del Water Gap in January. Get tickets here.