Abigail Elizabeth Smith (a.k.a. Yebba) is blessed with an instantly arresting voice that’s swiftly pulled some of the biggest names in pop music into her orbit. Born in 1995, the Arkansas native grew up singing in her father’s church, and got her big break in 2016 when a performance of her tearjerker “My Mind” went viral; collaborations with PJ Morton, Sam Smith and producer Mark Ronson soon followed. More sessions with the latter in 2018 led to songs that would appear on Dawn, the debut album where Yebba shared the journey of healing from the loss of her mother, who passed away just as the singer’s career was taking off. Highly inspired by D’Angelo’s Voodoo, Dawn is a cocktail of indie folk, pop, R&B and jazz that was partly shaped by the neo-soul classic’s key players, including drummer Questlove, keyboardist James Poyser and bassist Pino Palladino. Dawn marks the arrival of an artist with rare sincerity and boundless talent.