Up-and-coming star Griff has kicked off her twentieth birthday week with the release of a brand new track, Black Hole. Her latest offering, which was selected by BBC Radio One’s Annie Mac as her ‘Hottest Record In The World’ last night, had originally been drip-fed to fans via clips on TikTok. Sonically, Black Hole is a soaring, anthemic slice of electro-pop which showcases the Hertfordshire product’s impressive vocal range and continued knack for unearthing a killer melody.
It’s out!! What do we think?! Lyric video is up now!! https://t.co/Boqkk7dNKB pic.twitter.com/GxLBSnH4zB
— Griff (@wiffygriffy) January 18, 2021
Griff (real name Sarah Griffiths) first burst onto the scene in 2019 with her debut EP Mirror Talk and the lead single of the same name, which was hailed by Vice as “vulnerable, emotional, sincere and empowering”. The singer-songwriter went on to enjoy a productive 2020 even within the constraints of lockdown disruption, releasing six well-received singles. The last of these, Love Is A Compass, skirted just outside the fringes of the UK Top 40. The track was also used on a Disney Christmas advert, with all proceeds going to the Make-A-Wish foundation.
The Kings Langley-raised vocalist also flexed her collaborative muscles last year; linking up with London synthpop merchants Honne on 1,000,000 X Better and joining forces with German DJ Zedd on Inside Out, which Griff would perform on stage in a special show at Tate Modern in the capital November. Inside Out would also go on to reach number #12 on the Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic chart in the US.
Griff’s recent work has certainly made critics stand up and take notice: last July she was nominated for the highly sought-after Ivor Novello Rising Star Award, and more recently secured a respectable fifth-place ranking on the BBC’s Sound of 2021 shortlist. She was also included on MTV’s Push UK & Ireland list of artists to watch in 2021 alongside the likes of indie-soul troubadour Arlo Parks and Hackney rapper Bree Runway. In introducing their shortlist, the network highlighted Griff’s penchant for “raw and ruminative pop songs“.
Griffiths could be forgiven for sitting back and letting the widespread critical acclaim she has enjoyed so early on in her fledgling career soak in. However, as the singer made clear in a recent Guardian interview, she will not let a flurry of warm words from the music press distract her from heartfelt song-writing, or her ultimate desire to reach new audiences on a much bigger scale. She said “I just love creating things. I enjoy the challenge of envisioning something in your head and then making it come to life. I don’t have trouble being brutally honest with my lyrics. Of course I want to reach the masses, that’s what pop music is for.”
There should be plenty more new music for Griff fans to look forward to in 2021. In an interview with the BBC earlier this month she said: “I’ve actually been writing loads over lockdown – maybe a hundred songs – but I never know if they’re good or not! Hopefully, I’ll release a single in January, and an EP in March or May.”
