For years, British-Mauritian singer-songwriter Lavaud has been quietly assembling one of contemporary music’s most compelling catalogues.
Moving seamlessly between Afrobeats, R&B and pop, she has continuously pushed boundaries, collaborated across continents, and refined a genre-blurring sound defined by fluidity and intent. Alongside this, she has quietly cultivated a global audience drawn to her sleek visual identity, confident presence, and instinctive ability to stand out without overstating it. Her latest single, “Pushin’”, sharpens that trajectory into something more defined: a moment of artistic clarity rather than just continued evolution.
Released today (June 19th), “Pushin’” finds Lavaud leaning into a bright, Afro-pop-inflected sound shaped by internationally revered Nigerian record producer, Kel-P. The production is airy but precise, pairing rhythmic warmth with polished pop structure in a way that feels assured rather than experimental. What emerges is a record that signals direction as much as style – an artist sounding increasingly certain of how her voice fits within the space she’s carving out.
At its core, the track is about transformation, but not in the abstract sense of change for its own sake. Instead, Lavaud frames growth as something active and ongoing, folding resilience and self-definition into a song designed to move as easily through intimate late-night rendezvous as it does across dance-floors. The writing doesn’t separate introspection from energy; it lets both coexist, giving the track its quiet tension.
That balance defines the record’s appeal. “Pushin’” never feels overworked or overly self-conscious, instead landing with a sense of ease that comes from knowing exactly what it wants to be. In doing so, it captures a creative turning point – less about reinvention than refinement, and more about choosing conviction over hesitation.
“Over the years I’ve learned that pressure can either break you or shape you. For me, it became something that refined me. This song is my way of turning that experience into something joyful and liberating.” — Lavaud
To accompany the release of the track, Lavaud has also unveiled a high-quality visualiser shot in Thailand, filmed entirely on an iPhone.
Set against a backdrop of palm-lined roads and sweeping Thai landscapes, the video captures her in motion and at ease – riding pillion on a motorbike through sun-drenched scenery before stepping into more intimate performance moments.
The result is a stripped-back, yet cinematic piece, that leans into spontaneity, pairing the song’s free-flowing energy with visuals that feel immediate, unforced, and travel-worn in the best sense.
Lavaud – Pushin’ (Visualizer)
In an era where British artists are increasingly shaping the global conversation around pop and Afrobeats, Lavaud feels well placed to be an integral part of that next wave. She brings together aesthetic instinct, strong songwriting, cultural fluency and, crucially, a sense of authenticity that anchors it all. Rather than chasing prevailing trends, she seems to be refining a space that already feels distinctly her own.
If “Pushin’” is any indication of what’s to come from her forthcoming project, it reads less as a standalone single and more as a clear statement of intent – one that signals where she sits within a rapidly expanding global dialogue. And perhaps that’s the point: while the industry often looks outward for the next genre-fluid pop figure, one may have been developing in plain sight all along.
“Pushin'” is available now via all major streaming platforms.
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