Localized: Gavanni

The Salt Lake music scene showcases a wide diversity of artists, spanning various genres, identities and countries of origin. Doumie and Gavanni, who immigrated to Utah at a young age from Madagascar and Nigeria respectively, are perfect examples of two musicians who bring fresh perspectives to the local scene. You can see the R&B/pop artists at SLUG’s August Localized showcase at Kilby Court on Thursday, August 17 (doors at 7, music at 8). Thank you to Riso-Geist for sponsoring the event!

Gavanni’s music, both instrumentally and lyrically, connects the place he lived for the first 17 years of his life—Lagos, Nigeria—to the place he’s lived for the past nine years—Utah. His sound is best described as a blend of traditional R&B, afrobeats and Western pop. “I had these very unique, original experiences from one culture [in Nigeria] and then … my experiences from 17 to now in a different culture,” Gavanni says. “It’s like trying to retain my culture in a place where it’s kind of nonexistent and building on top of another one that’s fresh to me.”

Gavanni first immigrated to St. George, Utah in 2014 to attend Utah Tech University for their computer science program. “You kind of expect it to be a cultural shock, changing countries, but I don’t think anything could have prepared me,” he says. “To be honest, I was kind of all over the place in St. George.” It wasn’t until a regular morning five years ago when he was singing along to “Plastic 100°C” by Sampha that it dawned on Gavanni that he wanted to be a musician. “I was like, ‘You know what? I think I can be a singer,’” he says. “I don’t care what other people think, what I even think of myself—this is my goal, I’m going to work toward it.”

“I don’t care what other people think, what I even think of myself—this is my goal, I’m going to work toward it.”

Years later, Gavanni moved closer to SLC, which feels “a lot more grounding and inclusive,” he says. One day, he was hanging out with local artist G’aza during a recording session, and although Gavanni had yet to drop any music at the time, his friends encouraged him to hop on the mic. “[They told me] ‘Think about whatever comes to your mind,’” Gavanni says. Extremely nervous, he opened his mouth and went for it. “At the time, it was the best thing I’d ever heard,” he says. Listening back to it now, he thinks it’s “completely trash, but it was a great starting point.”

Over time, as he grew to be more comfortable creating his own songs, experimenting and performing live, Gavanni started to see the positive impact making music could have on his life and his listeners. By 2021, he had built up a solid local fanbase on Instagram @gavanni.exe after releasing his debut EP, The Sound, and several standalone singles that showcase his soothing voice and versatility in genre. “One of the biggest feelings that I was hoping to evoke for listeners was nostalgia,” he says. “I want you to be relaxed, I want you to be in a place where you just feel warm and don’t have to worry about anything and just groove.”Overall, Gavanni hopes to make music that has universal appeal—songs that people wouldn’t necessarily think are made by an artist based in Utah. “I take my time writing my lyrics—the cadence, the performance, the whole thing has to come together so that a Utahn can enjoy the sound of Afrobeats and be like, ‘Oh, wow, this is new to me.’”

“One of the biggest feelings that I was hoping to evoke for listeners was nostalgia.”

As he continues to experiment more as an artist and work with new producers and musicians, his vision is to “reconstruct the sounds of Afro-pop.” In his music, he wants to contribute to “bridging the gap between cultures, from Nigeria to the rest of the world,” to make a modern version of Afro-pop that culminates in a sound everybody can connect with. Up next in Gavanni’s career is a long-awaited debut album that he hopes will convey this vision. More than anything though, Gavanni is happy to be a part of what he sees as a special time in the local music scene. “I think in a few more years, there’s going to be a big spotlight shining on Salt Lake City and the talents here,” he says. “And I’m going to be so excited to say, ‘I told you all so.’”

Read more Localized interviews here:
Localized: Persona 749
Localized: Doumie