If Lava La Rue wasn’t on your music radar already, let us put you onto her.

The 22-year-old Londoner dropped her latest EP, Butter-Fly, exploring budding love and its painfully liberating side effects. The curated compilation of queer love songs has a sound difficult to box into just one label. Psych-rock vibes with undertones of futuristic lo-fi R&B will hypnotize you throughout the 5-track journey of falling, or rather, flying into love.

With honey-tinged vocals and a smooth rap flow reminiscent of Tyler the Creator, Lava crafts a coming of age tale and the fluttering heartbeats of young love.

“The whole project was made in a transitional time where I felt like I had finally found my wings and settled into a place where I was able to practice a lot of the things I believed in,” Lava says. “I musically had pushed myself further than I had done before to capture a dreamy emotion of falling in love, entering my 20s, shrugging off the insecurities you carry through your teens and recognizing the kind of person I want to be in this world.”

The EP kicks off with “Magpie”, a dreamscape of angelic harmonies and lustful lyrics. Lava croons, “Why can’t you just sit right next to me? Break it down, then take my misery”, in a tone all too reminiscent of pining for your crush to like you back despite inevitable heartbreak. Her vocals serve Solange vibes circa her moody 2019 album, When I Get Home.

The “Magpie” music video explores London’s subcultural timeline throughout history. The singer-songwriter walks through the London Underground and, as Lava explains, shows “how British Caribbean sound system culture, UK black punk, Notting Hill carnival, 2000’s Grime and more would become the blueprint of the contemporary music scene we know today.”

The musical tone shifts to a more upbeat pop trance in “Angel” whose lyrics read more like a heartfelt love letter than just another soulless dance track. Listeners will devour this ass-shaking beat while holding back from drunk-calling their ex six times in the club. Lava follows it up with a showcase of her versatility in “G.O.Y.D.” featuring indie princess, Clairo, a lower-key tune with a mesmerizing melodic intro that leads into Lava’s queer response to her musical collaborator’s track, “B.O.M.D.” (boy of my dreams).

Butter-Fly is a sonic snapshot of the growing pains of being in your early 20s and the crushes and feeling of, well, butterflies that come along with it. The British-Jamaican multi-hyphenate talent might be new to your playlist but you better familiarize yourself with her quickly because one thing is for certain: Lava is one to watch for 2021.

Check out Lava La Rue’s EP, Butter-Fly below.