Sampha returns to share a new music video for ‘Can’t Go Back,’ a song featured on his globally-acclaimed album LAHAI, out now on Young.
‘Can’t Go Back’ is the latest single from LAHAI to receive a music video, joining the previously released ‘Only’ and Sampha’s co-directed short film Time Travel Memories. Directed by Saad Moosajee and starring Sampha, “Can’t Go Back” see’s Sampha grappling with the pain and joy of loss and existence all at once; through this modern, abstract folktale, Sampha travels through time, moving forwards and backwards, seeking therapy in nature.
It’s been an exciting few months for the British singer, songwriter and producer, who returned to the spotlight in June, for the first time in six years, following the global success of his acclaimed, Mercury-prize-winning debut album Process. After the release of LAHAI in October, Sampha returned to Tiny Desk to perform with his full band, which resulted in a transfixing performance. He also stopped by the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge where he recorded a cover of Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habits.” He announced his new Apple Music 1 radio series ‘Wave Therapy,’ which is an exclusive window into the making of his new album. Sampha graced the covers of Epoch Review, Kaleidoscope, Office Magazine and Music Week, was profiled in the New York Times and performed “Only” on the German late-night show ZDF Magazin Royale. He also stopped by Sway’s Universe and Where’s Wallo for in-depth chat’s about the new album.
Taken from his paternal grandfather’s name, which is also Sampha’s middle name, LAHAI revels in the awe and magic of our existence, synthesizing the exquisite chaos that one experiences confronting the cycle of life and the beyondness. LAHAI, in contrast to Process, is a communal affair seeing Sampha explore the many ways in which we as humans connect to each other, and to something bigger than ourselves. If Process was an artist figuring out his own place in the world, engulfed in the shadows of grief and loss, LAHAI is an exercise in the radical acceptance and joy in the human condition, and the beauty in the journey itself. The depth and vulnerability in Sampha’s latest project is why New York Magazine’s Vulture named it their #1 album of the year, and places like Rolling Stone, Sunday Times, Uproxx and NPR include LAHAI in their “Best Albums of 2023” lists. Listen to LAHAI here.
Sampha Merch available at https://sampha.ochre.store/
Watch Sampha’s Tiny Desk Performance Here
LAHAI out now
Follow Sampha:
