Sienná: “What Matters” – revealing much of her soul

After months of enduring indistinguishable trash, this is the song that any music connoisseur should and needs to appreciate. Where does someone begin to describe an artist who makes the music they desire to make and at the same time sound so beautiful doing it. Sienná, first and foremost, is a voice unlike any other. Her vocals evince the particular mix of intelligence, intuition and emotion – a natural force where the instrumentation, no matter how grand or simplistic, accompany it to fully explore and satisfy our senses. An eclectic musical being from whom no high-concept creation should come as a surprise, Sienná returns with her 7^th original release, entitled “What Matters”.

Sienná, a Japanese native from Kyoto, now living in Oslo Norway, pursues her vast musical talents for songwriting, musical production, and DJing. She has collaborated with many renowned artists and has been performing live with a Norwegian band since 2018.

During 2017 she also decided to launch her DJing career. Her original works blend avant-garde, jazz, traditional Japanese, and experimental sounds. On her latest track, “What Matters”, Sienná embraces a downtempo pop soundscape which features the Japanese Koto.

“It is my absolute passion to share my unique Japanese-meets-European sound with as many listeners as possible worldwide,” said Sienná. “I enjoy pushing the boundaries of what we come to accept as common place in music today, and I look forward to listener’s feedback when they finally hear the upcoming power-chill single What Matters.”

I am trying to find a word that best describes all the elements of this song: hypnotizing comes to mind. Haunting is yet another. There is also no doubt that this track is entirely beautiful and moving.

In the realm of pop music we are often wait for the chorus to come and impress us enough, to tap a foot, or nod a head. It is often easy to forget that the role of a true artist is to push us into realms we’d overlooked or never imagined, and to offer us a glimpse into a dimension that we, as unique individuals, would fail to possess ourselves.

In this respect, Sienná has achieved this feat brilliantly. The smooth warmth of “What Matters” is deceptive, luring you in while challenging your notion of human contact.

The music would imply a feeling of loss and longing, but Sienná also sings of the process of choice and healing, a trait unique to human nature, and a process which she is reclaiming in this song. “What Matters” gives us a deeper look at who Sienná truly is as a human being and an artist.

Indeed, she has opened up another facet of her conscience, revealing much of her very soul to the listener here. The chords in this song, along with the sound of the Koto, are absolutely splendid. And together with the backup of typical drumbeats and other twinkling instruments, Sienná’s immense talent is immediately obvious, while she sings with a soft and fragile tone that is entirely gorgeous.

The lyrics are sparse but very deep, thought provoking and intense. Sounding both melancholic and strangely inspiring, the lyrics gets to the root of the music, and brings forth the impact and emotion that will stay with the listener for a long times. The bottom line is that “What Matters” is an absolute milestone in Sienná’s career.