Test the credit of your favourite information from current years and you will see Alissia’s identify in every single place. Whether or not it is the bounce of Kaytranada or the uncooked soul of Mary J. Blige, the Swiss-born, Italian-raised multi-instrumentalist has quietly turn into one of many trade’s most trusted secret weapons. Culminating with a historic nod as solely the ninth girl nominated for the GRAMMY for Producer of the 12 months, she tells ESSENCE, “I feel there could be a lack of alternative for girls on this trade,” she displays. “One factor I’ve realized is the significance of understanding your value and believing that you simply’re within the room for a motive.”
Right this moment, she trades the background for the entrance of the stage. Her new single “Cannot Get Sufficient” sees her formally step out as an artist, teaming up with longtime artistic accomplice Anderson .Paak for a observe that looks like an immediate summer season basic. For Alissia, the pivot is simply the pure development of a lifelong obsession with the groove style.
“Going into the humanities looks like the proper transfer for me in the meanwhile,” she says. “It feels pure, aligned and the proper time to share extra of my very own voice with the world.”
Forward, ESSENCE chats with Alissia to speak about her journey, her legendary mentors and what’s subsequent.
ESSENCE: You truly started your musical journey as a classically skilled pianist, then studied string and horn arranging and moved into manufacturing. What made you say, about that precise second at a good friend’s home once you picked up a bass guitar and began producing, “that is what I am presupposed to do”?
Alisia: The primary time I picked up a bass, I instantly began enjoying. There was an immediate connection and I knew it was one thing particular. I’ve at all times been deeply impressed by 70s music, and what drew me to funk greater than something was the bass. On the similar time, I used to be closely influenced by artists like Michael Jackson and Prince. Watching how they constructed whole musical worlds made me wish to perceive each aspect of the method. That is once I determined to review string preparations, brass preparations and all the things else. This helped me specific precisely what I used to be listening to in my head. I am actually grateful for these years of research as a result of they formed the best way I create music at the moment and have been invaluable all through my profession.
ESSENCE: How has your mentorship from funk legends like Bootsy Collins modified the best way you concentrate on area and silence in a music somewhat than simply filling it with sound?
Alisia: I am actually grateful to have began my journey on this trade with somebody like Bootsy Collins, who has a lot knowledge and expertise. Early on, he taught me a number of the most essential classes that I nonetheless carry with me all through my profession. The one that basically caught with me was the concept of “the area between the notes” and the significance of letting the music breathe. He additionally mentioned that in the event you can solo each particular person instrument in a music and it nonetheless looks like an entire, intentional a part of the report by itself, then you already know you’ve got constructed one thing sturdy. At its core, manufacturing is about serving the music.
ESSENCE: Changing into solely the ninth girl nominated for the GRAMMY Producer of the 12 months was a historic second. What duty, if any, do you suppose comes from being a visual instance for the subsequent era of girls in music? Trying again in your journey, what do you want aspiring producers, particularly younger girls, understood about constructing a profession in music manufacturing?
Alisia: I used to be extremely honored once I acquired the nomination. After spending so a few years working behind the scenes, it was such a rewarding second and actually, it nonetheless does not appear fully actual. Being acknowledged on this method by my friends meant loads to me and to everybody who supported me all through my journey. The extra you put money into your abilities and information, the extra assured you can be in any room you stroll into and other people will respect you for it.
ESSENCE: Your new single, “Can’t Get Sufficient,” blends funk, pop, soul, and stay musicianship in a method that’s each nostalgic and recent. What introduced you and Anderson .Paak collectively creatively on this album, and what did you need listeners to really feel when listening to it?
Alisia: For this specific music, I already had the instrumental concept once I introduced it to Anderson. I actually wished to seize that quick tempo, that good power, that individuals may dance to and hook up with, irrespective of the place they’re on the planet. From the second I began engaged on it, I felt there was one thing particular in regards to the report and I knew it could completely complement her voice and writing fashion.
ESSENCE: As we put together for the second half of 2026, what can followers anticipate from you?
Alisia: I am at present engaged on an album and I am actually wanting ahead to sharing extra quickly. That is a few of my most private and finest work thus far, and I can not look forward to the world to listen to it.