PHOTO BY JACOB WALSH
R&B-soul musician Zahyia Rolle.
Within weeks of Rochester musician Zahyia releasing the music video for her new single “Foul SoulChild” this spring, it had hit almost 50,000 views. The slow-burning, catchy R&B song features stripped-down production — a haunting keyboard riff, an addictive drum beat, and Zahyia’s voice echoing overtop, as if traveling from another world.
Wearing shimmering, bandage lace-up, knee-high boots and a matching corset, Zahyia moves alone in a stark room, dimly lit by dark blue and red light. Then, suddenly, she stands before a mirror, electric hair clippers in hand, and shaves her head in real time.