By Cam Delisle
Just hours before igniting the Commodore Ballroom stage, the R&B trio unpack the realities of touring, influence, and fan-fuelled evolution.
Naomi Sharon Has Found Her Flow
OVO's first female signee is breaking out with her most fluid and empowered work yet.
by Ozioma Nwabuikwu
Photo by Dion Bal
- Published on
The last few years have been a whirlwind for Naomi Sharon. The Dutch-Caribbean artist was signed to Drake’s label, OVO Sound, in 2023 with only two singles under her belt and now calls in from sunny Los Angeles – her recording base for the time being. As the first female OVO signee, the pressure may have been on, but Sharon has proven she’s here to stay.
Her debut album, Obsidian, released in October 2023 and was met with immense praise from critics and audiences alike, lauded for its cinematic blend of R&B and alternative genres. Fresh off a tour opening for Tems, Naomi Sharon is back with something a little different on her new EP, The Only Love We Know.
“For Obsidian, it was more about getting over heartbreak and finding yourself again…with the new music, it’s a little lighter almost. [It] has the energy of moving forward,” says Sharon of this new era. This is abundantly clear not only in the substance of this new offering, but also in her current mindstate as she prioritizes staying grounded and surrounding herself with the right people. “I do things for myself still, not only for success,” she says. On The Only Love We Know, Sharon touches on toxic love once again, but with newfound clarity and a commitment to putting herself first.
On opening tracks “Bittersweet” and “Can We Do This Over?”, we see our heroine struggle to let go of repeating patterns, choosing familiarity over healthy love. Growth is rarely linear, and while she’s getting closer and closer to who she truly is and what she truly wants, she stumbles just like the rest of us. “It’s a never ending story,” Sharon says. In true Naomi Sharon fashion, these soundscapes transport the listener to a different time and place, filled with yearning for a love that’s too hard to uphold, though we wish it was different.
During the second act of The Only Love We Know, our heroine begins to free herself from harmful patterns and chooses healing. “I’m not bound by the cycles,” she sings on the alluring track “Calm Waters.” As it flows into “Soft like Dawn”, a stream of water softly trickles in. Sharon was born under a water sign on the Zodiac – a Pisces – so this was an intentional choice for her. “I see water as a cleansing element and by moving forward, you kind of have to cleanse yourself from any old patterns or negativity or some other things that are holding you back,” says Sharon. “For me, if I would cleanse myself, it would be with water as well.”
In the triumphant final act, Sharon reaches the peak of her defiance. “I deserve better!” she declares on “Feels Like Home,” while the anthemic final track, “The Only Love We Know,” seals the deal. Pulling from her gospel choir and musical theatre background, Sharon combines powerful choruses and infectious house melodies, resulting in a song that feels like the ultimate release. “In life, you go through things and you attract certain people or situations,” Sharon says about the song’s message. “I believe that that’s because you only know that…Even though you’re in a toxic situation or in a toxic relationship, it’s kind of reflecting where you are in your life and where your boundaries are.” It’s not enough to know different, we must also choose differently and these final words prove she’s finally ready to do so.
Even so, Naomi Sharon doesn’t claim to be a guru. She wants fans to take what they need from this EP, without judgement. “It’s not my responsibility to be like, ‘Okay, you should break up with this person, or do this, or find another job,’” she says. “If it’s resonating with you and there’s a truth in it and you feel pushed by it then that’s what it should be.”
While Obsidian felt like the bittersweet first act, The Only Love We Know feels like the victorious montage at the end of the film – filled with hard-won lessons, earned certainty and the courage to change and persist. This isn’t the end of our hero’s story, but rather, a brand new season.
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