“I think this generation needs hope.”
It’s the answer – her answer – to the question posed by the title of ENY’s debut EP, a rich, dark, anthemic five-track electro-pop release called Broken Generation. How do you un-break a generation?
“I think this generation needs hope. I think that this broken generation needs a fresh start.”
But the Hereford singer is not going to be the one give it to them. At least not by selling them back some shiny, Love Island, do-it-for-the-Gram #goals. There is no absolution by nightclub bottle service on her record.
And yet the sun-drenched pianos and build and drop of Broken Generation’s house tracks feel like a boat party somewhere.
The vocals though are the walk home. Beautiful and sometimes soft and sometimes soaring, they feel far more like the moments of regret and clarity and resolve and emotion that you get walking home alone under streetlights after the party’s over.
It makes for a gorgeous and complicated debut. The opening track wrestles with mortality and morality in a way you don’t hear in pop music. It sounds like Spotify. But the honesty of emotion, and the willingness to lay bare hard truths and big stakes in her songwriting, feels like tear-soaked Nashville bar songs, and Redding and Aretha, and music that is about the weight of things as much than the lightness of them.
Like those artists and the gospel roots of those Southern states, religion runs through all of that.
ENY said: “I think this broken generation needs a living relationship with God.
“I really want people to start thinking about the meaning of life because sometimes we are just too busy with everyday life - days, months, years pass by and before we know our life is ending, and we still do not know why we live.
“I believe that a relationship with a loving God can change everything.
We spoke to ENY ahead of her BBC Introducing showcase on Sunday night about her EP, writing her first songs and her own personal relationship between religion and music.
Listen to Broken Generation below, and read the Q + A underneath.
Bit of background - where did you record Broken Generation, who does the production on your records, and who’s the other half of ENY on stage with you?
ENY: So... I recorded Broken Generation about 10 months ago and honestly I was just looking for someone who would help with recordings and it turned out that one of my friends works on student radio, and we could record there. You need to start somewhere, right?
Last year when I started creating songs, my concept was to have a band but a few months ago when I have moved to Hereford, things changed. It was hard to lead a band because of the distance and I’ve decided to use ENY as my name. On our EP „Broken Generation, the music you can hear is produced by Piotr Warczyk.
To be honest, I do not have a favourite music producer. It all depends on the particular song. And the same with the vocalists. I have my favourite songs, but it's much harder to choose my favourite artists.
How did you get started?
It's funny because I've never written a song before. The first song I wrote was Broken People.
My friend Kamil Wrona sent me an idea (I was in Germany back then) for the music he had and when I heard it, the words and melody appeared in my head and in my heart immediately.
After my return to Poland, I decided to start a band and start writing about what I see in the world. I would not be myself if I did not say that God and the hopelessness I see in the world is the main factor motivating me to create music. I sincerely believe that God can totally change people's lives. So I decided not to be silent. That’s how it all started.
You make these beautiful, anthemic songs – and that combination seems to be rooted in this forceful, undeniable emotion behind them. Where does that strength of feeling come from, and how easy is that to tap in to and maintain in live performances?
I honestly believe that my music is inspired by heaven. I really want my music to open and break even the most closed human hearts. I want my music to get real emotions out of people's hearts because I believe that this is something that people need these days.
I really want people to start thinking about the meaning of life because sometimes we are just too busy with everyday life- days, months, years pass by and before we know our life is ending, and we still do not know why we live. I think my songs are so emotional because for me it's a matter of life or death.
Die Like This, Broken People (“my soul is weeping”), Loveish (the –ish part), Pain, Closer (“every time you are hiding, hiding your heart you are making it harder for him, to get you”) - you’re touching on emotions that often don’t make it into mainstream bass and house music.
When it comes to your songwriting, what leads you to dive deeper, and at times darker, than a lot of electronic pop music?
I think it's just who I am. My friends and family know that I am a reflective and pretty deep person. I think it would be difficult for me to write superficial and light lyrics because it's just not me.
I think that music has incredible power, is a carrier of so many emotions and can easily change the atmosphere in the room. I think that my lyrics are just an invitation for my listeners to reflect with me.
This summer, if you could play any stage at any festival in the world, what would it be?
LOVEBOX festival.
What city’s streets were you walking through on Die Like This?
Haha, I was walking through the streets of Łódź, in Poland. I looked at many people on the way, who were full of stress, routine and tried to figure out life. I used to be in a similar place myself. I looked at many people on the way, who were full of stress, routine and tried to figure out life.
I used to be in a similar place myself, and I remember that the thought that I had in my mind was "I do not want to die like this”.
What broke this generation - and how would you fix it?
The lack of God.
I think that this broken generation needs hope. I think that this broken generation needs a fresh start. I think that this broken generation needs a living relationship with God. I think there is too much in this generation of religiosity, emptiness, tradition, and too little relationship with the Creator.
Every day I live among people who are desperately trying to fill the emptiness that is inside of them with career, superficial relationships, money, family, new aims, hoping for a better future. But I believe that a relationship with a loving God can change everything. It can change how we see life and its entire value.
What tracks to do you listen to before you go on stage?
Usually, I do not listen to music before going on stage, but if I listen, I love listening to LANY.
Growing up, what were the artists and music that have stayed with you to this day?
When I was younger, I honestly listened to a lot of pop and R&B. I loved Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo and many, many others. I love discovering new music, that's why it's hard for me to stick to one genre of music or an artist.
What’s with the link with Germany and Poland and the NLM Tour? (and how do audiences over there compare to UK crowds?)
I played most of the previous concerts because someone noticed me at an earlier party and invited me. So I think it’s simply people. I am so excited about being in the UK! Of course, many well-known artists and musicians are from here.
Finally, and simply, what’s next?
I have no idea! Haha. Three years ago I did not even think that I would be in such a place, so it's hard for me to imagine where I'm going. I have dreams and visions. I create, write new songs, learn about myself and constantly change.
I would love to have my first tour in 2020. And until then I want to share my music wherever I can.
To stay up to date with ENY's latest shows and releases, follow her on Instagram here.