RIZ LA VIE

The soul-baring Riz La Vie, a singer and songwriter originally from New Jersey and based in New York, has a vocal approach that ranges from a consoling croon to a fervent howl. He made a name for himself with the 2018 single “Napkins,” and has continued to refine his artful, grainy, and occasionally bluesy hybrid of R&B, hip-hop, and pop through numerous additional singles and EPs, as well as Haven, an album issued in 2023. La Vie’s music was first showcased throughout 2017. During that year, he independently issued Found. and Keep., both of which are five-track digital EPs. These releases led to an affiliation with J. Erving’s digital distribution company Human Re Sources (Charlotte Lawrence, Ernest K., Six60), the outlet for the comparatively lighthearted 2018 single “Napkins.” The track quickly eclipsed a million plays on streaming services, and eventually reached figures in the tens of millions. Breathe. and Feed., his third and fourth five-track EPs, followed respectively in 2019 and 2020. The self-examining single “Saturn,” a trap-styled production taken from the former, became another hit of sorts for La Vie. A handful of intermittent singles increased anticipation for his first album, which landed in February 2023 under the title Haven. ~ Andy Kellman