Spring is here, and with it a new residency for the BIRDsessions! This time it's Julia Zahra's turn, who during her residency will explore themes that make her happy and inspire her.

Julia Zahra is a 27-year-old singer-songwriter. In 2013, she won The Voice Of Holland, she also participated in Beste Zangers in 2015 and has released quite a few songs (including albums and singles), with her latest release being the single ‘Who You Wanna Be‘. During her residency, Julia hosts the BIRDsessions and gives a performance every week featuring a theme close to her heart.

How do you feel about being asked for the residency?

I think it's really cool to be asked for the residency, and I find the concept beautiful because, in my opinion, it really brings people together through music. That's always my goal with music; to collaborate a lot with others and be inspired through it. When you look at the concept of the BIRDsessions, that's really the only thing that can happen. There are people from all different backgrounds coming together, and the audience can join in with the sessions if they want to jam along.

Do you have a concept you can share with us for the residency?

My vision really centres around the inspirational part of music: why I create and what that feeling is when you lose track of time while making music. Where does it come from and how do I find that in different forms of music? I’ve really dived into that for this residency and have been looking at what truly makes me happy.

In terms of singing, I'm inspired by a lot of artists, so I will dedicate one session to that. Recently, I’ve been exploring my roots a lot, so I will dedicate a session to that too; lots of African music and vibes. I’ve also made a sort of spiritual turnaround in my life, with many styles and artists that resonate with me attached to it. And then I have a session dedicated to Little Simz: I’m hugely inspired by her way of writing and the placement of words.

In your opinion, what is one of the best underrated album releases of the past year?

I find that a really difficult question! From what I listen to, and what I think ‘this deserves a larger audience’, I would say Sault and Cleo Sol. Maybe they themselves choose to stay a bit under the radar, but I believe that their message could truly inspire and reach a lot of people. I wouldn’t necessarily call it underrated, but I do wish for them to have a bigger stage and audience.

How has your personal music style evolved? What are things you no longer do and things you've incorporated into your current way of writing/singing?

Nice question! So much has changed anyway. I started in the commercial corner with TV programmes, I just knew then that I really enjoyed making music. I wasn't really focused on writing and the question: 'who do I want to be as an artist?'. I think I've grown a lot in that lately and become much more curious about it. What comes out of me when I stay close to myself and just create for the sake of creating and not to reach people? I think my focus has shifted much more towards that and that's been the biggest change. I think you can hear that in my music as well, I try out a lot and experiment more too. I just want to find out what makes me happy, instead of focusing on what works best and will appeal most to the audience.

...Visiting?

Then block the following (free) Wednesday evenings. And don't forget your instruments!

• Wed. 05 April: The roots of Afrobeats
• Wed. 12 April: The spirituality of SAULT ft. Cleo Sol
• Wed. 19 April: The pen of Little Simz
• Wed. 03 May: The voice of Alicia Keys