NJOMZA Talks Sad Girl Vibes, '7 Rings,' And Turning Her 'Brain Vomit' Into New Music

For an artist who named her most recent project Vacation, NJOMZA doesn't actually get away much.


"It's hilarious because right after I determined I was going to call [my EP] Vacation, I was like, 'Wow, hopefully I'm manifesting a vacation in my life because I've never really had a real one.'"


Alternatively, the singer, place on Earth Njomza Vitia, has spent the last three months in a residence in Laurel Canyon churning out new songs. And before that, she was posted up in New York City with Ariana Grande as piece of the super-team of writers in back of the pop star's No. 1 smashes "thank u, next" and "7 rings." It's been a wildly efficient year for the 25-year-old, who, ironically enough, identifies as a homebody who likes to "stay residence and watch trash TV and drink some wine."


Amid the constant work and occasional play, NJOMZA also noticed time to catch up with MTV News ahead of her show in Chicago on Friday (August 23) as piece of reside at Aloft Hotels Homecoming Tour, which takes artists to their hometowns for intimate performances.


"It's just dope to go back residence and be where you're from and have people that appreciate you and your music," NJOMZA mentioned of the upcoming gig, which will bring her back to her Midwestern roots.


NJOMZA was place on Earth in Germany and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, and she would frequently venture into the city by train to be able to see concerts — her faves included Fall Out Boy and Paramore — and build ties in the music scene. Maybe the most crucial connection she made early on was with the late Mac Miller, who contributed a visitor verse to her early mixtape Gold Lion. Miller later signed NJOMZA to his own REMember label, and her 2017 EP, Sad For You, marked the imprint's first release.


The two maintained a close relationship up until his death last September, which inspired her recent one-off single "No One Is Spared." NJOMZA debuted the soulful track throughout her efficiency at the Celebration of Life tribute concert for Miller in October — moving the crowd with poignant lyrics like, "Supposed to swim, nevertheless you dove in / And then you drowned / I miss you" — although she waited almost nine months to release it.


"I actually finished the song right before the efficiency she mentioned. "And, I don't know, it was such a personalized song that I wasn't so eager to just release it right away. Then soon over time, it's just sitting in my computer, and I know my fans hope to hear it, especially the ones that were there at the Celebration of Life for Mac. It just came to that time where I was like, 'You know what, if I don't do it right now, I'll probably never put it out.' So it was sort of just jumping in the water.


"It was awesome to be able to see people vibe with the song," she continued. "A lot of my fans noticed out about me through Mac, so they were all exceedingly helpful with the record."


She's currently plotting a video for "No One is Spared," nevertheless isn't sure what that'll look like however, besides it having a distinctly West Coast aesthetic. "It sort of feels like me being in California... So my 'sad girl' vibe," she said.


That sort of bluesy, wistful temperament was all over Sad For You, although NJOMZA noticeably lifted the mood on Vacation. Expect her to continue evolving on her forthcoming new music — she tweeted this week that she "feels like a new chapter is approaching," and she teased that her new songs are more "fun" than any of her previous work.


"I feel like I go through a transition feeling pretty often, nevertheless certainly now, I'm just prepared to put out the new music and get some new energy going," she mentioned. "I'm super, super influenced by California and living out here; the sunny weather, being by the water. It's a totally different world, yet I love it, and California certainly gives me a creative spurt."


As for what that new music will sound like, she explained, "Man, I feel like I'm so all over the place as soon as it comes to my sound, just because I've spent so much time writing and it's sort of all just word vomit. Or brain vomit, I should mention. I really have something for every emotion and every mood that I feel."


However before we listen to what NJOMZA's been working on all summer, she's got her hometown show to do and an awards show to catch. "Thank u, next" and "7 rings" are both up for major prizes at next week's MTV Video Music Awards, which is especially sweet considering she was in the latter video. "The whole set was just us hanging out, drinking champagne, cracking up together. It was super, super fun. I feel like in the video, I'm just laughing my ass off."


And if "7 rings" ends up winning next week, you could probably guess what the celebration will entail.


"I'm gonna have to pop a bottle of Clicquot for that one!"