Zzzahara

Zzzahara crafts intricate, tuneful indie rock that moves fluidly across shoegaze, post-punk, and dream pop. Originally from Los Angeles, the artist first drew notice by teaming with Eyedress as one member of the indie duo the Simps. The year 2022 stood out as decisive when Zzzahara issued the solo debut Liminal Spaces only eight months after the Simps unveiled their opening full-length, both projects appearing on the U.K. indie label Lex Records. A year afterward Zzzahara delivered the richly textured and intensely reflective sophomore LP Tender.

Raised in Los Angeles’ Highland Park neighborhood, Zahara Jaime absorbed an eclectic range of sounds through local backyard performances, parental holdings of R&B and Motown, and music videos from the late ’90s and early 2000s. Adolescent reference points included the Cure, Johnny Marr, My Chemical Romance, and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. After playing in regional bands during high school and college, Zahara Jaime left a master’s program unfinished in 2018 to launch the dream pop duo the Simps with Filipino musician Eyedress. While touring and recording with the Simps, solo work began under the name Zzzahara, yielding melodic guitar-pop singles such as “Sugar” and “They Don’t Know.” Zzzahara’s output often carried a nostalgic, confessional tone, tracing personal reflections over layered guitar lines and D.I.Y. bedroom production. Early 2022 brought the Simps’ first album, Siblings, with Zzzahara’s own debut Liminal Spaces arriving on Lex Records that October. Crafted in the wake of a difficult breakup, the follow-up album, the emotionally resonant Tender, appeared in September 2023.