Sasha Keable has fucking made it

Sasha Keable joins our call from her hotel room in Chicago. Before our interview even begins, she’s already mid-story, laughing about her morning. “I needed to get a fucking hotdog,” she exhales, recalling her brief escape from “going insane in these hotels”. “I just needed to take a walk, get a hot dog and some food before soundcheck.” It’s this small, perfectly human moment that gives me a glimpse of Keable away from the mic. The singer might have amassed millions of streams on her songs, been named a 2025 Artist to Watch by Spotify and Amazon Music UK and earned a spot on the requisite Tiny Desk Concert , but fundamentally, the thirty-one-year-old is the same down to earth South Londoner who got her break on Disclosure’s 2013 single ‘Voices’. And grabbing some classic American comfort food to get through yet another tour stop, thousands of miles from home, is testament to that.

That same rawness has consistently formed the cornerstone of Keable’s career. Whether pouring her heart into R&B tracks like ‘FEEL SOMETHING’, or speaking openly about her struggles with anxiety in interviews, the British-Colombian singer-songwriter has built a reputation on being genuine. Take her latest EP, act right . On it, Keable channels the aftermath of a painful break-up into a soul-baring journey of self-discovery that leaves nothing unsaid. It includes tracks like ‘heartbreak’, where she dissects her most fragile emotions, or ‘WHY’, in which she manifests a healthier love for her future.

Earning a five-star critical acclaim from NME and a co-sign from Beyoncé (who named Keable as one of today’s most inspirational artists), the project has cemented her place as one of the UK’s most captivating contemporary R&B voices. So it’s no surprise when Keable tells me that her sound — blending soulful, honeyed melodies and stripped-back, confessional lyrics — draws from the greats: Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, Mary J Blige and D’Angelo. “Those people are my bread and butter for real,” Keable tells me, listing off the “core people” who’ve inspired her from the very beginning.

Yasmine Medjdoub: Your EP, act right , came out this August. Where did the writing process begin?

Sasha Keable: I made the decision that this was going to be [my next] EP when I wrote the song ‘act right’. It felt like it was the back bone — I knew what I needed to get off my chest. It was a weird process. It wasn’t the nicest because of the subject and what I was going through at the time. I wasn’t really loving having to revisit all the emotions that came along with that. But, at the same time, I’m really grateful that I did now, because I’m happy [with] the art that came from that shitty emotion. And I’m happy that I kind of therapised myself throughout that process, because I needed to write those songs for myself. Even just how far I’ve come — how I’ve grown since feeling like that. Now I listen to a lot of those songs and I’m like, Oh God, I can’t believe I was feeling like that.

YM: You feature BEAM on the song ‘work’ from the EP. How did that come together?

SK: BEAM came about through a friend of mine, Mariel. I was ranting and raving about how much I love BEAM and she was like, Let me put you two in touch. I flew out to Florida just to go out and work with him. He’s so funny — he only works at night. The session started at, like, 12am, and I’m such an afternoon session girl. I don’t think we actually got started until like 3am. I mean, we had a really good time. It was fun as fuck.

YM: Between act right and your album, Intermission (2021), what do you think has changed most about you as an artist and as a person?

SK: I feel like I’m honestly a completely different person, but I guess that’s just life. I wrote Intermission before Covid. It doesn’t really resonate with me anymore, but funnily enough my EP, MAN, [that came] before that still [does]. I think it’s more the intention that was put into [MAN], and it might have to do with [the fact] I did a lot on my own. I wrote all of that music with no team, no management, no nothing. [With] Intermission, I had a really shitty team that just didn’t do much. [That’s] the way I feel about the music that came before MAN, as well. I just hate it because I feel like it was made around people that didn’t have my best interest at heart — and that rubs off on me a lot. I don’t want to listen to that music, talk about it or ever revisit it. I never play it in shows for that reason — it just doesn’t feel like me. But a lot changed. I mean, I fired everyone and just started from scratch.

YM: Looking to the present, then, what can you tell us about your new single, ‘Tai Chi’?

SK: I wrote it with P90Pope and Mocha, who wrote a lot of Tyla’s stuff (she’s amazing). Also with p2j who’s an incredible producer. We were doing a little [writing] camp in January and it came really naturally — we loved the beat and we just started writing. Everyone was like, Why don’t you put this on act right. And I was like, It doesn’t match the story. It’s a bit more of a ‘poppin’ your shit’ kind of song and that definitely wasn’t the intention behind the EP. That’s why it’s coming out now.

YM: As well as being in the studio, you’ve done some bucket-list performances this year. How was it performing at Glastonbury for the first time?

SK: I went to Glastonbury once and I made a promise to myself that I wasn’t allowed to come back until I was playing. That was my rule. Then I ended up playing three times [this year]. I played my set, Ezra Collective’s set and then at NYC Downlow. It was just a fucking dream come true.

YM: Besides Glastonbury, what’s been your most memorable performance this year?

SK: [Later… with] Jools Holland was amazing because, I mean, it’s Jools Holland. I’ve wanted to do Jools Holland for as long as I can remember. It’s been on my whole fucking life. And also, just being on British TV, it’s like, Wow, you fucking made it. Meltdown festival was amazing, as well. But I definitely think that my highlight of the year has to be Tiny Desk, for sure.

YM: You’re currently supporting Giveon on tour. How has that been?

SK: It’s been really good so far. It’s my first time touring around America, so I’ve just been getting used to the back to back. I can’t actually remember the last time I did a back- to-back tour like this. It was [probably] when I supported Ezra Collective, but that was, like, years ago.

YM: Do you have a standout moment from the tour so far?

SK: It was in San Francisco. On my last song, ‘WHY’, everyone put up their phone lights and were waving them. I didn’t ask anyone to do that. One person started and then I just started seeing everyone’s lights, kind of, go up. That was a really cute moment.

YM: What does connecting with fans live mean to you?

SK: It’s probably my favourite part of touring, to be honest — like being able to actually interact with the people that are the only reason I’m doing what I’m doing. Especially when you’re so far from home. It still blows my mind that the internet exists and I’m like, Oh yeah, anyone can listen to my music at any time they want. It’s mad to me. I still find it weird, even though it’s like, duh, the fucking internet.

YM: So, where do you see yourself heading next?

SK: More music, more shows, more writing, more everything. That’s really my only plan. I’m just literally not stopping.