Wafia Al-Rikabi (born 4 August 1993), known professionally as Wafia, is an Australian singer-songwriter of Iraqi-Syrian origin. Originally studying biomedicine at university, she began to write songs to escape its monotony. Her breakthrough hit was a cover of

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's " Let Me Love You", which garnered almost 5 million plays on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

Career

Al-Rikabi has since signed to indie record label

Future Classic Future Classic is an Australian independent record label, artist management team, touring agency, and music publisher that was founded in 2004. The label's current roster includes Flume, Flight Facilities, Ta-ku, Jagwar Ma, Seekae, Panama, ...

, releasing her debut EP ''XXIX'' in November 2015. The EP's lead single "Heartburn", produced by Ta-ku, received praise from producer

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

being played during his Beats 1 radio show. In March 2016, she released the single "Window Seat" in collaboration with the

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

artist Thomston. Later in August 2016, she collaborated again with the Australian producer Ta-ku, releasing the EP '. The EP features a story about compromise in relationships, which both Wafia and Ta-ku experienced independently in of each other in their lives. Wafia released a new single, "Bodies", in late 2017. It was written on the day her family members were denied refugee status for entrance into Australia, which influenced the track's lyrics. However, due to her dislike of pseudo-intellectual feeling music, the track was instead upbeat in contrast to the lyrics in an attempt to make the song accessible. Wafia's single "I'm Good" was voted number 14 on

Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian Radio in Australia, radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greate ...

's Hottest 100 of 2018.

Discography

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1993 births 21st-century Australian singers 21st-century Australian women singers Australian women pop singers Australian musicians Australian people of Iraqi descent Australian people of Syrian descent Future Classic artists Living people