Tony Njoku

“A gift for combining an array of musical perspectives into a unified whole” - The Guardian
“An artist in constant exploration, he detonates the dividing line between genre, masculinity, and race” - CLASH
“It’s hard to think of anyone who is fusing the same elements in the same way as Njoku” - The Quietus
“Continuing to turn high art into sonic form." - Mixmag

Tony Njoku has announced a new EP, Last Bloom, coming 3 May via PRAH Recordings, alongside his new single ‘La Ruée’ released today.
Listen to ‘La Ruée’ here.

Already in possession of a rich and varied catalogue, previous releases from British-Nigerian Tony Njoku have seen critical acclaim from the likes of The Guardian, FACT, Mixmag, The Quietus and many more, championing Njoku for pushing boundaries and pulling down barriers through his music. As a composer and artist, Tony Njoku is ceaselessly creative and constantly evolving, effortlessly marrying experimentalism with traditional composition in exhilarating new ways across each release.  

Upcoming EP Last Bloom promises to be the next milestone on the artist's journey. Blurring lines between classical, ambient and electronic, Last Bloom is a release which will challenge the perception of what classical music can be, who it’s for and the spaces in which it can be created. Proud to represent black composers in the classical world, where the accepted canon is overwhelmingly white, Njoku is self taught and not a product of a conservatoire, rather cutting his musical teeth making club-adjacent beats and dance orientated music. Alongside the slick production and subtle electronic processing, Last Bloom captures the gentle sounds of felted piano hammers

New single ‘La Ruée’ is the sound of Tony’s inner joy translated through piano keys. The accompanying video is a gloriously cinematic affair, with quick cuts between slow motion shots of Tony and tumbling bouquets of flowers shimmering against a black backdrop. Offering insight into the inspiration of the track, Tony offers:

“That melody in the main refrain (the chorus part that comes round twice, first around 0:34 and next around 1:37) kept playing in my head for a while late last year. It was like my internal theme music for a few of my trips late last year, especially this one trip I took to Paris in November. It was a nice moment of rest from work and I was sharing it with a very special person. It really filled me up with joy, I felt energized from it, hence the title, which is French for ‘The Rush’. As soon as I got back to London from that trip I got to my piano and worked out this piece over a couple sessions. It's a personal one.”

After several critically acclaimed releases from Njoku incorporating vocals, synths and drums, it was 2022 release Sketches & Noodles of Bloom, his debut for PRAH, where he first embraced the idea of stripping works back to a solo piano. Apprehensive at first of how it would land, the overwhelmingly positive response to the EP cemented things in Njoku’s mind. He is a composer. He is a pianist. Though deftly mixed with ambient and electronica, this is classical music. Upcoming EP Last Bloom is Njoku stoking this creative fire, sailing under the same winds as Jóhann Jóhannsson and Phillip Glass, Njoku is pushing on further by harnessing themes of heritage and identity, diaspora and conflict, and love and new life.