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DEELA Thrills With Double Single ‘Dey Play! / Gbona’
Nigerian-British artist DEELA has released a double single, 'Dey Play! / Gbona', marking a new phase after a busy run that has seen her support Amaarae's London and Paris shows and feature on Little Simz's EP 'SUGAR GIRL'. The release follows her 2025 EP 'WICKED' and a collaboration with South African DJ and producer Vanco, and it underlines her growing profile within the alt-leaning diaspora music scene.
The two tracks showcase contrasting sides of DEELA's sound: 'Dey Play!' is a precise, trance-influenced response to critics, while 'Gbona' — Yoruba for "hot" or "heat" — is a more introspective, pidgin-and-English track that signals her ambition to build a lasting career rather than a short-lived moment of attention.
In short
- DEELA releases double single 'Dey Play! / Gbona'.
- Follows collaborations with Amaarae, Little Simz and Vanco.
- Tracks blend trance influences with introspective pidgin-English lyrics.
Explained simply
DEELA is a Nigerian-British artist working in a music scene shaped by links between African and diaspora sounds. Her recent work includes the 2025 EP WICKED and a collaboration with South African DJ and producer Vanco.
The scene includes artists who blend styles such as Afrobeats, electronic music and alternative pop, and often reach audiences across countries. DEELA has also supported Amaarae in London and Paris and appeared on Little Simz’s EP SUGAR GIRL.
The two songs have different moods: “Dey Play!” draws on trance, while “Gbona” means “hot” or “heat” in Yoruba and mixes Pidgin with English. Together, they offer a sense of the range she is developing as she builds her career.
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