Born in Belgium to an English mother and a South African father, Moli grew up in a small town in Belgium speaking French at school and English at home, surrounded by the humour, the culture of tea, cookies, and the Anglo-Saxon musical heritage of her parents.
At the time, Moli was afraid to sing in French: “It’s a delicate language, not only for singing but also for writing.” Today, she is confident in both languages and makes it her main asset. "French is a big part of my life. It's my second soul and I want to bring it into my music to make it as authentic as possible."
As well as writing her own music, Moli has also written and co-written many critically-acclaimed pop and dance hits, such as Topic and A7S's ‘Breaking Me’, ‘Let go’ by the ItaloBrothers and Kiesza, ‘Love to Go’ by Lost Frequencies, Kelvin Jones, Zonderling, to name a few.
In her own songs, however, Moli combines pop, soul, sensitive rhymes, and personal and committed lyrics; she is both elegant and irreverent and her music is a clever mix of indie and mainstream pop, extremely accessible with relatable stories. Sensitive and emotional, she embraces her weaknesses, doubts and anxieties and uses them as a creative force, integrating them into her artistic process.
"I’m growing to be ok with my own vulnerability, okay with feeling, okay with my obsession over sometimes stupid little things. But I’m learning to defend myself and to fight for what I believe in. Being independent but being emotional, and not being ashamed of my emotions,” she says.
About ’Shapeshifting'
I wrote ‘Shapeshifting’ about a year ago. At the time, I was frustrated and hurt. I kept chasing people, desperately wanting them to like me back and changing facets of myself to cater to them. As the lyric says I was “shapeshifting myself”.
I felt like I wasn’t enough and that I needed to adapt parts of who I was in order to be wanted. I blamed myself when people didn’t like me back thinking “I must have scared them away by being too much”. This song was a reflection on my behavior at the time and the pattern that I was in.
2020 has been a very strange year in many ways but having been forced to spend a lot of time in my own company, I’ve had the opportunity to reflect a lot on my behavior and to work on it. I’m not saying that I have magically found the cure to my toxic patterns only a year later but I have been able to gain perspective and I’m actively working on learning to love myself and my own company.
Reading and listening to the works of women/ activists like Jameela Jamil, Chidera Eggerue, and Roxane gay has really helped me open my eyes on the fact that I don’t need external approval from others to be valid in the first place and that the society that I grew up in was playing a role in making me feel otherwise.
Listening to shapeshifting now compared to when I wrote it is a different experience to me. I can clearly now see that shapeshifting who I am in order to please is pointless and by doing so I am not attracting the right people into my life.
More about MOLI
Following the release of her first solo single ‘Didn't Mean To’ in 2018, which was described as "shattering the ambiguities of modern romance" by The Line of Best Fit, it was clear straight away that Moli was set for a career as both an artist and a songwriter. Her first EP ‘Résumé’, released via Majestic Casual later that year, pushed the 19-year-old even further into the limelight. With Clash Magazine calling it "bright, lively pop music, where each song makes a deep and lasting impression, a clever lyrical touch that seems to nail it down for each listener.”
Following on from Résumé, Moli released two standalone singles ‘Nowhere’ and ‘Lonely Nights’ in early 2019. On a trip to London that year, Moli met her current producer Chris Zane, known for his work with Passion Pit, Friendly Fires, Bat For Lashes and Chloe Howl. The two formed a natural musical bond, and combined with Moli’s admiration for the glamorous aesthetic of the ‘80s and the icons of French cinema of the ‘70s, the collaboration resulted not only in the new tracks ‘On the Weekend’ and ‘Something I Said’, but also laid the foundation for her upcoming sophomore project, ‘Préface’, a seven-track mini album which is set for release in early 2021.
Just recently signed to Embassy of Music in Berlin, Moli is currently preparing the release of her mini album ‘Préface’.
Pre-order single 'Shapeshifting' HERE.