MUNYA

Known for her airy voice and lush and dreamy, danceable synthesizer pop, MUNYA is the stage name of Québécois musician Josie Boivin. She initially garnered attention in 2017 performing at the Pop Montreal music festival, then released a trilogy of EPs that were later collected on 2019's Munya. She also produced her debut full-length, Voyage to Mars, which arrived in 2021. The follow-up, 2023's Jardin, was a warm, giddy tribute to her hometown and the people who nurtured her. Raised in Saguenay in Quebec, Boivin took classical piano lessons growing up. It was while joking around in high school, imitating an opera singer, that her music teacher discovered she could sing. Opera instruction followed, as did several years studying jazz at the University of Montreal. However, looking to experience life, Boivin dropped out of college and spent several years working odd jobs, as well as playing keyboards and singing with other artists around Montreal. In September 2017, a friend invited her to play her own set at the Pop Montreal music fest. Having only written one song, she jumped at the opportunity -- quitting her day job and moving in with her sister to write and record more music. Along with her Pop Montreal performance, the process resulted in her debut EP, North Hatley, in May 2018. It was named after one of Boivin's favorite towns in Quebec. A second EP, Delmano, named for the Hotel Delmano in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, arrived that October. The final EP in the trilogy, Blue Pine, was named after the mountain range in David Lynch's Twin Peaks. It followed on Luminelle Recordings in March 2019 alongside Munya, which collected all three EPs. In November 2021, Luminelle released MUNYA's home-recorded debut album, Voyage to Mars. While Boivin wrote, recorded, produced, illustrated the cover art, and performed the bulk of the instrument tracks, the album included a handful of long-distance contributions from guests on electric bass, guitar, and drums. She recorded her next LP with input from multi-instrumentalist Kainalu, who ended up producing it. Named for the gardens in the neighborhood where she grew up and the associated symbolism of rebirth and renewal, the affectionate Jardin arrived on Luminelle in October 2023. ~ Matt Collar