Hailing from Rotorua, New Zealand, Alayna Powley (AKA alayna) is a 24-year-old singer-songwriter with an extreme sense of reflection and purpose. She was raised on a rich diet of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen, as well as other esteemed lyricists, who have helped her discover the power of soulful songwriting and heart-piercing lyrics. "I remember the first time I heard 'Nirvana' by Sam Smith," she says. "That was the song I played over and over until I fell asleep." She went on to upload a cover of it to YouTube, which organically accumulated nearly three hundred thousand plays. "I love lyrics that take the air out of my lungs," Alayna states. "I want to do that with someone. I want to write to someone I never knew and to touch them regardless."

On a trip to New York in the fall of 2016, Alayna became comfortable letting her music do the identifying for her. She linked up with world class producers (UK-based Maths Time Joy and Astronomyy, and Grammy-nominated Stint) to create an EP that blends R&B, soul, and pop together in a way that’s distinctly her own. The project’s first four singles have accumulated over 9-million streams from 2.7 million listeners on Spotify, while circulating the service’s staff-curated playlists (New Music Friday, Chill Vibes, Alternative-R&B, Bedroom Jams, and Spotify & Chill to name a few). She’s racked up hundreds of thousands of SoundCloud plays, gotten spun on BBC Radio 1, and earned features on reputable publications and YouTube channels; however, the influence of her music runs much deeper than stream-counts and press coverage. The several dancers and vocalists that have reinterpreted Alayna’s songs prove that she’s well on her way to achieving her goal of deeply impacting people with her songwriting.

Releasing her Debut EP in late 2018, Alayna’s already focusing her efforts toward building her next project.

Words from the Media:

Hillydilly: “as she continues unrolling new material, we think she'll advance further as not only an artist, but a confident creative in the world” Clash Magazine: “alayna is a wandering spirit...a songwriter whose abilities are rapidly blossoming...she makes gossamer pop music, melodies draped in ethereal beauty”

Okayplayer: “redefining what it means to make a mood in the 21st century” The Line of Best Fit: “Creating stunning R&B, alayna is not your average singer-songwriter”

Earmilk: “‘High Off You’ shines a spotlight on the poet in Alayna as well as her 'soul-singer in a past life' confidence and mature sound.” Indie Shuffle: “Every year I come across a handful of debut tracks that wow me, and this one by Alayna is one of them.”

Ones To Watch: “For fans of Alina Baraz or Sabrina Claudio, the smooth and sultry R&B songstress Alayna is sure to become a new favorite”

PressPLAY OK: “New Zealand’s sweetest soul star”, “It’s not easy standing out in a crowded market, but Alayna is certainly making all the right moves”, “one of the most memorable debuts of the year so far, a soulful, stirring number that feels like she’s been doing this forever”

Purple Sneakers: “your new favourite crooner”

Also featured on: Wonderland Magazine, All Things Go, Disco Naïveté, Artistic Manifesto, and more