We first came across seventeen year-old Lenkie a couple of months ago when we were sent her debut single ‘Waterfall‘, an aching folk-soul tune about unrequited love. This South African artist currently residing in New York City has talent in abundance, as latest single ‘Trouble’ further demonstrates. Pulling together a melange of different influences, including folksy percussion and country-flavoured guitar, ‘Trouble’ shines for its fantastic, deceptively sinister lyric.

‘“Trouble” is an anthem for the romantically self-destructive, like a song version of a support group. It captures the pulling, addictive feeling of going after someone who keeps you on your toes or makes you work for it, whether or not they actually want you. There’s a point when it stops being about the crush, and becomes about the chase. This song is for anyone who has fallen for someone who doesn’t feel the same, or been strung along and then ghosted. It’s for the people to make a new memory,‘ Lenkie says.

‘That girl is danger / Sweet poison on the tongue / I can’t stay away / And I don’t want to,’ she sings at the chorus, succumbing to the addiction of her attachment. ‘And heartbreak never tasted so sweet / She’s chaos wrapped in cigarettes and high-waisted jeans.’ There is an even air of resignation in her vocal delivery as she makes no attempt to resist her infatuation. Perhaps doubly impressive for someone so young, Lenkie can marry a deeply evocative lyric with a compelling melody and eclectic composition.