Nora Toutain – Not An Interlude
Nora Toutain found her start in the Canadian music scene through University of Montreal’s jazz program and the jazz improv performance group Kalmunity. Originally born in Morocco but now based in Montreal, the young French-Moroccan vocalist has combined her jazz schooling with the rock, blues, and R&B upbringing of her youth as a solo artist.
Her debut single “Bad At Love” was released back in November 2019, and Toutain is eager to share more from her upcoming collection Grounding Place Vol. 1. Building off the momentum, she has shared her latest single “Not An Interlude”. Filled with confidence and sensual swagger, the new single is aimed at denouncing the injustices and toxicity of sexism and machoism, written based on her own experiences as a woman.
“I was tired of experiencing the type of men that feel entitled to approach a woman’s space or showing a lack of respect of this sacred space, not respecting boundaries because of this so-called power dynamic. There’s an invasive approach, out of no where just because ‘you’re a guy, and I’m a girl’, that can go too far and it’s a constant pressure. Especially as a Moroccan woman, I would be approached or whistled at every time in the street“, Toutain explains.
She kicks open the doors of the song with “Move out my way boy / Don’t you test my patience “, as her soft neo-soul musicality contrasts the power-hungry lyrics underneath. From there on, she continues to call out the dangerous behaviours of the industry, past relationships, and in society. Although the song is based on her experiences, the story behind it is based on a fictional relationship as a metaphor to illustrate the broader societal dynamic.
Elements of future-pop, hip-hop, and funk build up to create “Not An Interlude”. It is refreshingly well-rounded, sharing the spotlight between Toutain’s luscious R&B vocals and the song’s crisp production and instrumentation. Each verse on “Not An Interlude” seems to build upon the last, before unleashing a chaotic and stunning chorus as the singer-songwriter struts her stuff through cloudy distortion.
Her upcoming full-length Grounding Place Vol. 1 will be released later this year, but for now visit her website for more music.
