Say She She

Combining disco, funk, and soul with the raw energy of dancefloor post-punk, Say She She distinguish themselves as a classically trained vocal trio whose lyrics shift beyond typical themes of pleasure, allure, and love toward explicit feminist themes. The Brooklyn ensemble launched their recording career in early 2022 on Karma Chief with the airy single “Forget Me Not,” showcasing their buoyant vocal blend right away. Two full-length projects have followed: the debut album Prism, issued later that year and largely co-produced by the Shacks’ Max Shrager, and the double album Silver, which arrived in 2023 with a stronger disco emphasis and rhythmic support from Orgone’s central lineup—the same musicians who appeared on the group’s inaugural single. Individually and collectively, the members have contributed extensively to sessions as background and featured singers; in addition, two of the three have performed with 79.5.

Piya Malik, raised in London, and Upstate New York native Sabrina Cunningham first connected as neighbors in a Lower East Side tenement. They formed Say She She in 2017, taking the name as a nod to the pioneering disco ensemble Chic. Their initial concert took place the next February, yet four more years passed—following the arrival of D.C.-born Nya Brown, who bonded immediately with Malik at a social gathering—before any material reached the public. Produced by Sergio Rios and featuring additional Orgone members, the February 2022 release “Forget Me Not” paid tribute to the activist art collective the Guerrilla Girls. “Blow My Mind” and “Norma” appeared next, and by October the eight-song collection Prism was out. Alongside Max Shrager and Victor Axelrod, a founding member of both Antibalas and the Dap-Kings, the album incorporated contributions from Chicano Batman’s Bardo Martinez, with whom Malik and Brown had already shared stages.

Say She She soon joined a tribute to SWV by reworking the trio’s 1992 hit “Weak” in the style of a record from 1967; before the year closed they also interpreted Jim Spencer’s AOR rarity “Wrap Myself in Your Love.” Early 2023 brought the single “Trouble,” tracked with Ikebe Shakedown’s Mike Buckley and Vince Chiarito, after which the group reunited with Sergio Rios and his associates to compose and capture Silver live at his studio, issuing the set that September. By year’s end they had played Glastonbury and Later…with Jools Holland while finishing a U.S. tour.