IT'S been seven years since she wrote a song in Bahasa Malaysia. But Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Yuna excited fans when she dropped her latest single, Menanti, on March 17.
The 36-year-old artiste, whose real name is Yunalis Mat Zara'ai, says the new Malay track is something that's close to her heart.
She describes it as a bittersweet serenade of loss and longing for someone dearly missed.
"Someone who is no longer around but still holds a special place in my heart.
"It could also be said to be a pledge of loyalty to a loved one," she says.
Yuna added that when she penned the lyrics, she was recalling many memorable moments she shared with her cousin, who has since passed on.
"Amy was also a very good friend of mine. My life felt like it was broken when I found out that she was no longer with us.
"So I poured my soul into this new piece of work. When I later previewed the completed tune to several fellow artistes, they told me that they could feel the sadness even though the lyrics were somewhat in the style of a love song," she says.
Menanti was created by Yuna together with rapper, composer and music producer Kenny J. Macartney, who is based in Berlin, Germany.
Yuna says she is happy to have produced a new single in Malay for her Malaysian fans, who have waited patiently over the years.
"Believe it or not, it has been seven long years of not having any Malay single releases. I did not realise that time had moved on so quickly.
"For me, it's a matter of also waiting for the inspiration to come. Sometimes it takes a while and cannot be forced. It has to come naturally.
"The seven years saw me focussing my efforts on producing my previous studio albums, such as Chapters, then Rouge and, more recently, Y5.
"And with each album release I also had to prepare myself for the following tours across the United States (US).
"Then, of course, the Covid-19 pandemic made things hard for everyone, myself included. Many, many things happened," she says.
Although the award-winning songstress is still living in the US, she is not in a hurry to come up with another full-length album.
Rather, Yuna will focus on putting out more singles and an extended play (EP) in the near future.
"Aside from the upcoming singles and EP, I want to focus on being with my family. And I just can't wait to come home to 'beraya' with them.
"After the pandemic subsided, my husband and I returned to Los Angeles in August 2021 after 18 months in Malaysia.
"We went to a famous location called Joshua Tree to write a few songs and one of them became Menanti.
"At the time, Menanti was not completed and consisted only of its melody.
"I was going through my old song files in January when I came across the melody again. At the time I was inspired and began writing the lyrics for it.
"At first, I wanted to write the lyrics in English but as it progressed it became a Bahasa Malaysia song," she says.
Her EP, which is made up of folk and R&B songs, is expected to drop sometime in April.