By Stevie Connor.
The Fool, the much-anticipated new album from internationally acclaimed artist Jain, is out now on Columbia/Sony France.
“The Fool as an album is a love story” Jain describes. “When I fell in love, I just started to write and sing nonstop”. She continues, “It feels like a fresh start for me as a woman. A lot of things have happened in my life, I feel more at ease with myself than before and I think you can hear that in the album.”
Leading up to the release, Jain has released title track “The Fool” as well as “Take a Chance” She recently performed both songs on France’s top access prime-time show Quotidien.
Co-produced by long-time collaborator Maxim Nucci/Yodelice, with the participation of Metronomy founder Joseph Mount and renowned French DJ and producer Gesaffelstein, the international pop and folk album chronicles all the stages one goes through when making a fresh start: fear, excitement, innocence, doubts, letting go and epiphany. She relies heavily on Tarot de Marseilles, an art her mother passed on to her which gives her the strength to jump into the unknown through an instinctive perception of the world’s dangers and possibilities. Each track is dedicated to a different card, empowering Jain as we delve deep into her world.
Of the album’s namesake, “The Fool is the holiest card in the deck,” Jain explains. “You can’t go on any kind of journey unless you’re willing to be foolish. Taking your first step, driving a car, falling in love. There’s always a risk you’ll lose your balance. At any moment. But in the end, the fool’s journey is the only journey.”
Perhaps the cornerstone of the record is the track “Maria” in which Jain flawlessly blends the project’s themes of cosmic wonder, spiritual awakening and the driving force of it all: love. The odyssey so far has given her back her power, love becoming the engine for her new creative process, inspiring and influencing the writing of The Fool. It was therefore clear that this song needed its own intimate, acoustic live session, shot in the Parisian studio where she recorded the album (Spookland).
While the new album draws on artistic influences such as Kate Bush and Stevie Nicks, much of Jain’s music originally blended a myriad of genres such as Arabic percussion, African rhythms, electro, reggae, soul and hip hop.
In 2018, her sophomore album Souldier (2018) reached #1 in France and went double platinum, while the single “Alright” is certified diamond. In the same year, Jain was named by Rolling Stone as an “Artist You Need To Know.” She has performed on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”, “Later… with Jools Holland,” opened the Ryder Cup in 2018, the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2019 and performed over 300 shows in 15 countries across Europe, North America, South America and Asia as well as festivals including Coachella and Lollapalooza.
Jain is scheduled to headline a European tour, playing some of the most prestigious festivals over the summer as well as a few arena shows in France this fall.
Born in France and raised primarily in the United Arab Emirates and Congo, Jain released her debut album Zanaka in 2015. The album sold over 1 million copies worldwide and the singles “Come” and “Makeba” from the LP quickly climbed the charts, the latter of which earned the artist her first Grammy nomination for “Best Music Video” in 2018.
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