Safia (band)
SAFIA | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Canberra, ACT, Australia |
| Genres | Electronic, indie pop |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels |
|
| Associated acts | Peking Duk, Alison Wonderland |
| Members | Ben Woolner Michael Bell Harry Sayers |
SAFIA is an Australian electronica, indie pop band formed in Canberra. They met at Radford College. They won the Groovin' the Moo competition in 2012 and were featured on Peking Duk's ARIA top 10 single, "Take Me Over".[1]
The band says the name comes from a song they wrote called "Sapphire", but it does not mean anything. The band have since found out that safia means serenity in Arabic.[2]
When it comes to the band's influences, they claim to have a very broad range of styles and genres but list artists like Purity Ring, Major Lazer, Feed Me, Chet Faker, Disclosure and James Blake.[2]
In 2014, lead singer Ben Woolner appeared as feature artist on the Indian Summer single 'Aged Care' under the pseudonym 'Benjamin Joseph'.[3] The band opened for Twenty One Pilots during their 2017 Emotional Roadshow Tour Pacific Leg which started in Wellington, New Zealand.
On 30 June 2016, the band announced the title of its debut album, Internal, which was released on 9 September 2016 and peaked at number 2 on the ARIA Charts.
On 13 October 2017, Safia released "Cellophane Rainbow".
In 2018, they released "Freakin' Out", which was the first track they wrote after their album Internal.[4]
The band released their second album, Story's Start or End in 2019.
Band members[]
- Ben Woolner (also uses the pseudonym "Benjamin Joseph")[5] – vocals/producer[6]
- Michael Bell – drums/producer[6]
- Harry Sayers – guitars/synths/producer[6]
Discography[]
Studio albums[]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| AUS [7] | ||
| Internal |
|
2 |
| Story's Start or End |
|
13 [8] |
Singles[]
As lead artist[]
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [7] |
AUS Indie [9] | ||||||
| "Listen to Soul, Listen to Blues" | 2013 | 99 | 8 | non-album singles | |||
| "Paranoia, Ghosts & Other Sounds" | 2014 | — | — | ||||
| "You Are the One" | — | 9 | |||||
| "Counting Sheep" | 2015 | 55 | 5 | ||||
| "Embracing Me" | 69 | N/A |
|
Internal | |||
| "Make Them Wheels Roll" | 2016 | 45 |
| ||||
| "Over You" | 63 | ||||||
| "My Love Is Gone" | — | ||||||
| "Cellophane Rainbow"[12] | 2017 | — | Story's Start or End | ||||
| "Freakin' Out"[13] | 2018 | — | non-album single | ||||
| "Starlight"[14] | — | Story's Start or End | |||||
| "Resolution"[15] | 2019 | — | |||||
| "Think We're Not Alone"[16] | — | ||||||
| "Runaway"[17] | — | ||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||
- In 2015, Safia signed with Parlophone. From "Embracing Me", their songs are ineligible for the Australian Indie chart.
As featured artist[]
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [7] |
NZ [18] | ||||
| "Take Me Over" (Peking Duk featuring SAFIA) |
2014 | 6 | 32 |
|
Songs to Sweat To |
Other appearances[]
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Take it to Reality" (Alison Wonderland featuring SAFIA) |
2015 | Run |
| "Left Hand Free" | Like a Version: Volume Eleven |
Music videos[]
| Title | Year | Director |
|---|---|---|
| "Listen to Soul, Listen to Blues"[20] | 2013 | Jimmy Ennett |
| "Paranoia, Ghosts & Other Sounds"[21] | 2014 | Jimmy Ennett and Jaeger Vallejera |
| "You Are the One"[22] | Jimmy Ennett | |
| "Take Me Over" (Peking Duk featuring SAFIA)[23] |
Jeff Johnson and Max Miller | |
| "Counting Sheep"[24] | 2015 | Jimmy Ennett |
| "Embracing Me"[25] | ||
| "Take it to Reality" (Alison Wonderland featuring SAFIA)[26] |
||
| "Make Them Wheels Roll"[27] | 2016 | Jimmy Ennett |
| "Zion"[28] | SAFIA | |
| "Over You"[29] | Markus Hofko | |
| "My Love Is Gone"[30] | Anthony Bristol | |
| "Cellophane Rainbow"[31] | 2017 | Jaeger Vallejera |
| "Freakin' Out"[32] | 2018 | Jimmy Annett |
| "Starlight" (Multiverse Video) [33] | ||
| "Resolution"[34] | 2019 | George Thomson & Lukas Schrank |
Awards and nominations[]
AIR Awards[]
The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIR Awards of 2014 | "Paranoia, Ghosts & Other Sounds" | Best Independent Dance, Electronica or Club Single | Nominated |
ARIA Music Awards[]
Since 1987 the ARIA Music Awards have run annual awards.
| Year | Category | Nominated artist/work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Best Dance Release | "Take Me Over" (Peking Duk featuring Safia) | Nominated |
APRA Awards[]
Since 1982 the APRA Awards are run by Australian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually.
| Year | Category | Nominated artist/work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Most played Australian Work | "Take Me Over" (Peking Duk featuring Safia) | Won |
| Dance work of the Year |
J Award[]
The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J. They commenced in 2005.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| J Awards of 2013[35] | themselves | Unearthed Artist of the Year | Nominated |
| J Awards of 2016[36] | Internal | Australian Album of the Year | Nominated |
National Live Music Awards[]
The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Live Music Awards of 2016[37] | Themselves | Live Electronic Act (or DJ) of the Year | Nominated |
References[]
- ^ "Sea N Beats line up - Safia". Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Artist Profile - Safia". www.bmamag.com. 9 April 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- ^ "[GDD PREMIERE] Indian Summer - Aged Care ft. Benjamin Joseph". Gotta Dance Dirty. 4 July 2014. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
...a jackin bassline and house groove that wont quit
- ^ "Exclusive Interview with 3 Piece Indie Pop Band Safia". viralbpm.com. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
- ^ Newstead, Al (27 May 2020). "Alice Ivy enlists a dancing Alex Dyson, Ben from SAFIA for 'Better Man'". ABC. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Mathieson, Craig (13 August 2015). "Safia beginning to realise their musical dreams". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Peak chart positions in Australia:
- All except noted: "Discography SAFIA". australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- "Listen to Soul, Listen to Blues": Ryan, Gavin (7 December 2013). "ARIA Singles: John Legend debuts at number one". Noise11. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- "Counting Sheep": Ryan, Gavin (4 April 2015). "ARIA Singles: Major Lazer Has No 1 Song". Noise11. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- "Embracing Me": Ryan, Gavin (18 July 2015). "ARIA singles: Meghan Trainor and John Legend spend 4th week on top". Noise11. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- "Over You": "CHART WATCH #377". auspOp. 16 July 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
- ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". ARIA. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
- ^ Peak chart positions for independent singles in Australia:
- "Listen to Soul, Listen to Blues": "Independent Label Singles Charts w/c 9 December 2013". www.air.org.au. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- "You Are the One": "100% INDEPENDENT SINGLES The week beginning 29 September 2014". AIR. 29 September 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
- "Counting Sheep": "Independent Label Singles Charts 6 April 2015". AIR. 6 April 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- ^ "Safia on Twitter Embracing Me is GOLD