Lolo Zouaï On Her Bilingual Pop and Making 'Jade' With Blood Orange

By Ural Garrett


Two years prior, Lolo Zouaï reached a turning point in her music career after the release of breakout single “High Highs to Low Lows.” The single, produced by Stelios Phili (a frequent collaborator with A$AP Ferg who’s accountable for the Young Thug/Elton John team-up “High”), served as an introduction to the San Francisco native’s soft vocal abilities that with little effort transition between English language and the French of her Parisian birthplace. “High Highs to Low Lows” also displayed Zouaï’s formidable songwriting abilities as she described her own career peaks and valleys. Between then and right now, she’s built a sizable fanbase (dubbed Lo-Riders), released a number of successful loosies, penned a track for Grammy-winning newcomer H.E.R., Toured alongside the likes of Alina Baraz, collaborated with Blood Orange, and continued networking with with Phili for her recently released debut album, High Highs to Low Lows.


On it, Zouaï transitions between cocky (“Ride” and “Out The Bottle”) and weak (“Desert Rose” and “Beaucoup”) as Phili matches with emotional beats. High Highs to Low Lows comes with the ever-changing ideas of contemporary R&B in a globally-connected generation. For Zouaï, it’s combining her love of knocking Bay Area hip-hop and Aaliyah's airy vocals — all of the while putting her bilingual abilities to good use. According to her, “it’s just a world thing in general because that’s just who I am.”


Speaking with MTV News, the rising Zouaï discusses becoming comfortable singing in both English and French, her songwriting path, what she aspires toward, and more.


MTV News: Can you recall the moment you first linked up with Stelios?


Lolo Zouaï: We connected through my boss Doug, who knew Stelios for a while. We thought he had a wonderful world of sound that was fun. We actually worked with each other on a song before “High Highs to Low Lows” that never came out. It was really different. Then I went on a trip to France where I had a different perspective on music and life. I later came in with the idea of the sound I wanted. He was really receptive and able to create it come to life so with little effort. Then, I had the title of the song already, so things happened obviously. We loved the end result and then began working more with each other.


MTV News: How has that creative connection between the both of you evolved from those early moments, to right now using tracks like (my personalized preference) “Caffeine” and specifically “Beaucoup” that highlight your French singing abilities?


Zouaï: It’s crazy because Stelios helped me write the one in French, also. I guess he notified me he took a number of years of French in high school and he remembered. As soon as we work with each other, it’s really 50/50. Although he’s using the computer, I help produce by directing or come up with ideas. Lyrically, I’ll come up with a concept and he’ll help me write it. He used to interview artists for GQ. Because of that, he has the freedom to ask questions and just converse with people. That’s categorize kind of how our songwriting process is with each other. We just talk about a situation and begin writing lyrics. I finally began finalizing things with the ad-libs, and voilà.


MTV News: The cover is pretty tidy, by the way. You look angry comfortable. Was there something in particular you wanted to convey there?


Zouaï: Well, I wanted it to resemble how I was as soon as making the album. I think it shows confidence and vulnerability. You could look at the cover in different ways depending on what song you listen to. It literally works with each and every song. I wear a lot of NASCAR jackets. It’s actually a Chevy Impala jacket, which is also a track I have on the album before “Caffeine.” Stylistically, I love going to the thrift store or wearing whichever someone gives me for free.


MTV News: You’ve never been shy about your ambition to prepare your music global. Any time did you figure out that singing in French would be a really captivating hook to your vocals?


Zouaï: It was really If I began working on High Highs to Low Lows. I didn’t really overthink it at all. I just thought about how I could stick out, still be authentic, and be myself. Then I thought I never heard anyone put in French like that. I’m super American and I speak French however, I speak French like 5 to 10 percent of my whole life. It wasn’t a big segment of my language. Honestly, I didn’t expect it to take off the way it did in France, where they really involving it. Yet my dad is from Algeria and my mom is from France. It’s just a world thing in general because that’s just who I am.


MTV News: With your global approach, you still have an enormous respect for Bay Area hip-hop considering your upbringing in San Francisco.


Zouaï: I just grew up on E-40, Also $hort and Mac Dre. It gave me an appreciation for things that just knock really hard. It got me to prepare hard beats because, although I have a soft voice, I love the contrast. I grew up listening to the radio out there like 106.1 KMEL and I was listening to a lot of R&B, also. It pretty much shaped my voice without me knowing it. I mean, each person grows up with that in the Bay because it was the most popular. Any time While I got obsessed with Also $hort, I would go to all of his shows. I have a bunch of posters signed by him and even met him a bunch.


MTV News: Preference Also $hort track?


Zouaï: So several. Probably “2 Bitches” and “Gettin' It.”


MTV News: You’ve worked with Blood Orange on the “Jade” track from your Ocean Beach project. Can you recall any moments throughout the collaboration?


Zouaï: He is staggering. He works with little effort and can literally visualize music. About per year ago, he posted [my song] “Blue” in his Instagram Stories. Someone sent that over to me and I was really excited. Then we began DMing and that’s how we began working with each other. While I was working on “Jade,” I didn’t have a second verse, so I played it for him. He fancied it and I asked if he wanted to hop on it. He wrote, recorded in like a hour, and it also sounded excellent. I don’t work with that several people, so watching him work really widened me up to an other way of working.


MTV News: Your songwriting, also, was well-respected enough to win you a scholarship in 2017 from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Do you remember the process in honing in those skills?


Zouaï: At first, I began writing in high school and yes it was pretty dark. Those songs were pretty dark and if I go back to those songs I wrote back then, they weren’t that good. You certainly have to begin building a bunch of bad songs so you’ll get better. It’s about finding your fashion. As soon as I figured out what I wanted to mention and my point of view was, it became easier to write songs; there's a theme. It’s really about knowing what you desire to mention. The scholarship I won went to individuals they think of as promising songwriters. I even attended the Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony, where I believe Max Martin won that year. I saw Usher perform and Ed Sheeran, as well. I was seeing how people take years to be recognized like that and it’s something I hope to be in one day.