New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Following the announcement of her debut ambient electronic album Intentions, out on May 19th via Mercury KX/ Universal Music, electronic producer & DJ ANNA has teamed up with Grammy, Mercury and Ivor Novello nominated composer and producer Jon Hopkins to deliver a spacious and serene piano version of her first single "Receiving (feat. Laraaji)". Their shared interest in production, composition and functional music, leads to this third collaboration together and the continuation of a creative partnership rooted in both artists' exploration into meditation and self-realisation practices.
The single "Receiving (feat. Laraaji)" is designed by ANNA for surrendering to what is and welcoming what appears. Jon Hopkins has brought a stillness and calm to this piano version of the single that is reminiscent of his critically acclaimed immersive ambient album
Music for Psychedelic Therapy. This work was inspired by an expedition into Ecuador's ancient caves and specifically engineered to enhance guided psychedelic trips. It is not the first time ANNA has worked with Jon Hopkins - she notably remixed his track Singularity and created a 'night version' of his track Deep In The Glowing
Heart Listen.
Infused with his signature sound, Jon Hopkins creates a new sonic landscape for the original lulling and featherlight offering. Placing the piano at the centre of the sound, with legendary ambient pioneer Laraaji on zither, he brings a fresh perspective to ANNA's original track and takes the listener on an emotional and captivating journey.
Speaking about his collaboration with ANNA, Jon Hopkins says "Receiving" is the third collaboration I have done with my friend Anna. It was a joy to create something new from this sublime piece that she made with Laraaji, and to be part of her blissful new project, "
Intentions". As a starting point, I made a drone part out of the zither performance, then dropped the tempo and pitch of Anna's beat elements to form a very deep and slow heartbeat-like pulse. I then wrote the piano part on top of this combination. What came out feels a little like a companion to Sit Around The Fire. I hope you enjoy it."
ANNA comments "I am deeply honoured to have Jon Hopkins as a part of 'Intentions'. As an artist and producer, he is one of my greatest inspirations, and he has been following my journey from the very beginning. He is one of the few people that I showed my first creations in Ambient Music, which makes his involvement in this project even more special. Jon's version of 'Receiving' is nothing short of extraordinary - it emanates love and creates an atmosphere that allows for release and surrender. I have shed tears multiple times while listening to it. Witnessing its release into the world is truly heart-warming, and I believe it will serve as a form of healing for many."
Jon Hopkins is an electronic artist, producer and classically trained composer, whose solo and collaborative works, including deeply cerebral ambient techno recordings and immersive film scores, have received widespread acclaim as well as Grammy, Ivor Novello and Mercury Prize nominations. Initially gaining exposure through his work with Brian Eno,
Coldplay and King Creosote, Jon Hopkins gradually found his voice as a solo artist, blending intricately crafted beats with serene, meditative textures. Immunity (2013) and Singularity (2018), two intense ambitious albums of spiritually minded techno and ambient tracks, were among the decade's most lauded electronic albums. He then embraced meditative music with 2021's
Music for Psychedelic Therapy.
ANNA's forthcoming album Intentions is a melodic and expansive soundscape merging with sound healing techniques, dance-leaning beats and ANNA herself on flute and synth, channelling her emotions. Inspired by a life-changing spiritual experience, the album is the result of ANNA's self-realisation journey - opening her mind and forever altering her creative process and worldly outlook in the process, which sees her trading in her tougher, club-driven production for sound meditation and ambient sensibilities. As an immersive meditation experience, the album comes with a special listening guide written by ANNA, inviting the audience to set an intention for each track.
Additionally to Jon Hopkins and Laraaji, spiritual practitioner-musician and contemporary classical giant East Forest also features on the album, as well as remixes by London-based electronica and techno producer Max Cooper.
With a deep love for music from an early age, starting DJing at the age of fourteen while stretching back to the nightclub her father owned in the countryside outside São Paulo, today's success has been two decades in the making. ANNA was, and remains, every bit the sought-after techno superstar. Acclaimed by leading dance music publications including DJ Mag, Beatportal and Mixmag, it is no wonder she has traversed her way into some of the world's most esteemed clubs and festivals and the hearts of fans across the world. Also loved by her peers, she notably received an invitation to remix
Martin Gore's "Howler" and collaborated with East Forest.
ANNA counts more than 48 million streams across all her catalogue on Spotify only. She has previously performed at Movement Detroit, Tomorrowland, DC10 and Coachella, but also stepped up for BBC
Radio 1 Essential Mix and played a live-streamed set for Cercle viewed more than 3.6 million times. With her first ambient electronic album, ANNA is proving again that her music creativity has no limits. The release of the first remix of 'Intentions' is setting up the tone for the collaborations and remixes fans can start to expect in the near future.
