Nadia Ali

Nadia Ali has built a lasting presence in dance music through her distinctive vocal style and emotionally resonant songwriting, while also exploring acoustic-oriented work on her own. She first rose to prominence fronting the New York dance act iiO, whose 2001 single “Rapture” achieved global success. Departing the duo in 2005 to focus on solo endeavors, she lent her voice to productions by Armin van Buuren, Schiller, and Tocadisco before issuing her 2009 album Embers, which fused electronic textures with rock and Middle Eastern elements. Subsequent collaborations with BT and Morgan Page led her to establish the downtempo pop outfit HYLLS, whose album Once appeared in 2019. Rediscovering her affinity for house, she issued further singles in the 2020s alongside Frankey & Sandrino and CamelPhat.

Of Libyan birth to Pakistani parents, Ali was raised in Queens, New York, and cites Madonna, Stevie Nicks, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Sade, and Bono among her chief inspirations. At age 17 she took a position at Versace’s New York headquarters, where a coworker connected her with producer Markus Moser; together they launched iiO in 2001. That year brought the release of “Rapture,” which became a major club and radio success, followed by additional singles that carried the project to its 2005 debut album Poetica. Ali exited the group right after the record’s arrival, though unreleased recordings allowed Moser to continue issuing iiO material featuring her vocals, among them the 2006 club track “Is This Love?”

Her independent path began in earnest with a 2005 contribution to Armin van Buuren’s album Shivers. The following year she teamed with John Creamer & Stephane K for the duet “Something to Lose,” sharing vocals with Rosko. Solo singles arrived with 2008’s “Crash and Burn” and 2009’s “Love Story,” the same year Embers surfaced; its companion remix set Queen of Clubs followed in three installments during 2010. Further features included Starkillers’ 2012 hit “Keep It Coming” and the 2013 single “Must Be the Love” alongside Arty and BT. Returning as a lead artist, she issued an acoustic rendition of the Police’s “Roxanne” in 2014 and, with PANG!, the 2015 track “All in My Head.”

Emerging from a two-year break, Ali scored a dance success in 2017 with “Almost Home,” recorded with Sultan + Shepard and IRO and later nominated for a Juno Award. She introduced her alternative pop project HYLLS by unveiling one song each month throughout 2018, among them a cover of the Cranberries’ “Linger,” culminating in the full-length Once in 2019. Attendance at underground house events rekindled her interest in dance music, prompting the 2022 release “3, 2, 1” with Michael Calfan, followed by “I See You” with Frankey & Sandrino in 2023 and “Endlessly” with CamelPhat in 2024.