August 11, 2025 |
Odeal has a back-to-back rest of summer ahead. After creating the soundtrack to a raw, free and joyous peak season, the award-winning singer is set to play alongside some of the biggest names in music. With Lowlands Festival August 15, joining fellow musician Kwn’s on her With All Due Respect tour and then onto Rock en Sein Festival August 23, Odeal is revelling in what he describes as his “summer of new experiences”.
His latest EP, The Summer That Saved Me is a “passport back to [himself]” – encapsulating freedom, healing and self-discovery. Hailing from Germany with roots in Nigeria, Spain and the UK (he was granted British citizenship earlier this year), he credits his recent freedom to travel without restrictions as a springboard for his creativity and for interpreting previously unexplored emotions through music.
Continuing in his traditional release style – two EPs a year with one released in summer and the other in winter – the artist unites Afrobeats, soul, R&B and Afro-Latin genres to construct his latest seven-track record. The first to be released was London Summers, a song that mirrors the city’s metamorphosis over the high season. With the ebbs and flows of the Afrobeats and Odeal’s harmonious vocals echoing the euphoria of sun in the city, he effortlessly paints a portrait of a London summer, one that brims with “smiles, music in the air, packed parks and [a] kind of joy that feels rare and real”. Here, we caught up with Odeal to chat about all things London sunspots, his dream line-up and what you can expect from his stacked live schedule.
1. You’ve just dropped The Summer That Saved Me – what inspired this EP?
A summer of new experiences. I feel like I wanted to create the soundtrack to the best summer since 2016! I want the project to have euphoric feelings and [be] attached to memories of love, enjoyment, sun and travel.
2. If you had to save one track from the EP from a burning building, what would it be and why?
My Heart, it was created live with a load of session players. It was the first time I experienced creating music from the conductor’s chair and bringing ideas in my head to life without there being any limiting factors; it’s something that can’t be replicated.
3. Describe your sound in three words?
Outta. This. World.
4. One of the tracks is called London Summers – what’s your favourite thing to do in London in summer?
Spend time with my friends, make music, lime bike and relax.
5. One London sun spot everyone should check out?
The rooftops of The Standard/Greenwich [Royal] Conservatory.
6. You’re playing Lowlands Festival this coming weekend – what can people expect from your set?
Good vibes and energy!
7. Who are some other artists you’re excited to catch at Lowlands festival?
8. If you could curate your own lineup for a festival, who would be the top three headliners?
Odeal, Burna Boy, Tems
9. What’s one city in the world you haven’t played yet but would love to play?
Johannesburg, South Africa.
10. What’s coming up for you that you’re excited about?
More performances and more music.
Photography by Michelle Helena Janssen.
