By: Samantha Eddy
Twenty-four-year-old Indigo De Souza from Asheville, North Carolina has made quite the mark in her rising career as an indie-rock artist, creating music that fills the alternative, indie, R&B, and soul worlds. To date, De Souza has released two EPs (Boys [2016], and don’t cry just do [2017]), four singles (‘Nomoah’ [2018], ‘Kill Me’ [2021], ‘Hold U’ [2021], and ‘Real Pain’ [2021]), and two phenomenal albums (I Love My Mom [2018] and Any Shape You Take [2021]). After moving from her hometown to a nearby church in the woods in 2020, De Souza is now making her mark in the music scene.
Named the most versatile artist last year, Indigo De Souza has good reason for being such a phenomenal musician. The artist has described her background as being “a frustrated creative soul trapped in a small conservative.” De Souza grew up in Spruce Pine, North Carolina in an environment those may often describe as “dysfunctional.” She was faced with a lot of family drama — from her parents’ divorce to being raised by her mom, with both of her sister’s having already moved out. Her mother served as a role model to her, as she displayed her boldness bravely.
“When I was in school, she had this red truck that had naked Barbie dolls and action figures, like glued to it on the hood on the top. Like, they were all just hanging out. And she had painted flames on the side and painted bombs on the side with names of countries that had been bombed. She used to pick me up from school in that, and it really shaped my schooling days because I was already made fun of a lot for being just very different… The truck really just let everyone know that, you know, this girl comes from something that’s very different from everybody else,” De Souza explains. It’s an embarrassing thing to have experienced, she admits. And it sure didn’t help with her being bullied and feeling different, but since then De Souza has learned to love and appreciate the determination and creative drive that her mother displayed during those years. Her mom is now a highly influential person in her life, and she shows that through her music to this day.
At a young age, De Souza’s mother enrolled her in music lessons, and from there is where she began writing songs — mainly about her mom, globa warming, and how her confidence had left her. In De Souza’s years immediately after high school, this is when her songwriting style changed for the better. She had spent the next few years after high school involved in a relationship with an older person, a friend group that romanticized depression, tattoos, and psychedelics. During this time, she became clearer in her writing. “I went through a series of existential crises, which led me to start using death, my mother, and mortality as symbolism in my writing. I started to write in a way that was more abstract and more true to me,” De Souza explains.
“De Souza embraces a full spectrum of emotions across Any Shape You Take, from joy to anger to sorrow,” Pitchfork beautifully explains. Any Shape You Take was recently released this year and is a story of the emotions of life and how they can impact an individual and their overall life, simply put. From ‘Real Pain’ relaying a message towards self-compassion during times of grief to ‘17’ turning a devastating relationship into an uplifting pop beat to ‘Kill Me’ detailing the downs of an “all-consuming” relationship, Any Shape You Take is a powerful story that almost any fan of De Souza’s can relate to in some way. Check out the album track list below!
Coming this September, De Souza is set to take on a tour where she will be headlining her biggest shows yet. Kicking off September 7 in Isle of Palms, South Carolina and finishing up in her own town of Asheville, North Carolina on November 16. Check out the tour dates below and click here to purchase tickets. Hurry before they sell out!
Any Shape You Take Track List:
- 01 17
- 02 Darker Than Death
- 03 Die/Cry
- 04 Pretty Pictures
- 05 Real Pain
- 06 Bad Dream
- 07 Late Night Crawler
- 08 Hold U
- 09 Way Out
- 10 Kill Me
Indigo De Souza U.S. Tour 2021:
- Sept. 7 – Isle of Palms, SC – The Windjammer
- Sept. 19 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade (with Truth Club)
- Sept. 20 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle (with Truth Club)
- Sept. 21 – Washington, DC – Songbyrd
- Sept. 22 – Philadelphia, PA – PhilaMOCA (with Horse Jumper of Love)
- Sept. 24 – Brooklyn, NY – Elsewhere Zone 1 (with Horse Jumper of Love)
- Sept. 25 – Brooklyn, NY – Baby’s All Right (with Horse Jumper of Love)
- Sept. 26 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall (with Horse Jumper of Love)
- Sept. 28 – Columbus, OH – Big Room Bar (with The Ophelias)
- Sept. 29 – Chicago, IL – Beat Kitchen (with Dan Wriggins (of Friendship))
- Sept. 30 – Chicago, IL – Beat Kitchen (with Dan Wriggins (of Friendship))
- Oct. 1 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry (with Dan Wriggins (of Friendship))
- Oct. 2 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown JR (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 4 – Denver, CO – Globe Hall (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 8 – Portland, OR – Polaris Hall (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 9 – Seattle, WA – The Vera Project (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 11 – San Francisco, CA – (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 13 – San Diego, CA – Voodoo Room at House of Blues (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 14 – Santa Ana, CA – Constellation Room (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 15 – Los Angeles, CA – The Regent Theatre – (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 16 – Phoenix, AZ – The Rebel Lounge (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 20 – Dallas, TX – Ruins (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 23 – Austin, TX – Mohawk (with The Slaps)
- Oct. 24 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall (with The Slaps)
- Nov. 15 – Asheville, NC – The Grey Eagle (with Ex Gold and afterparty with DJ Ohh No Honey)
- Nov. 16 – Asheville, NC – The Grey Eagle (with Ex Gold and afterparty with DJ Ohh No Honey)