We got to sit down with no na at the 88rising office ahead of their upcoming debut album, island girl.
There was a bit of chaos, a lot of laughter and plenty to talk about as Esther, Baila, Shazfa and Christy got ready to share this new chapter with the world. As they drew on Polaroids, we talked about everything from the unexpected success of “rollerblade” to the sounds, memories and pieces of home that found their way into the album.
For no na, island girl is more than just the title of their debut. The group has been shaping their own idea of “Island Pop,” pulling from their Indonesian roots while creating something that feels distinctly theirs. The album captures the carefree, playful and free-spirited side of island life, while still leaving room for each member’s personality to come through. From train announcements and neighborhood ice cream sellers to the sound of Christy’s mom sweeping with a straw broom, even the smallest memories from growing up in Indonesia have become part of the way they think about music.
With island girl now out, no na is already looking toward what comes next, including their hopes to eventually take the album around the world. We spoke with the group about the making of island girl, what “Island Pop” means to them, finding confidence in their own ways and how their everyday experiences in Indonesia continue to shape their music. Read our full interview with no na below.
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
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Sweety High: You’ve had such an exciting year, from the success of “rollerblade” to now announcing your debut album. How are you feeling in this moment, and what does it mean to finally be able to share island girl with the world?
Esther: We’re so proud of this album. We’re so excited, and we poured our blood, sweat and tears into making this album. So, we hope that people enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it.
Shazfa: The album is very versatile, so I hope that everyone can listen to it because no matter what genre you like, I hope everything is in there. So, go listen to it, please.
SH: “rollerblade” became such a huge moment for you. Now that you’ve had time to live with that song, do you hear it differently than you did before everyone else found it?
Baila: For sure. At first, when “rollerblade”came out and when we recorded the song, we didn’t even realize it. We didn’t expect that her part of the song [pointing at Christy] would go viral and it would be a vocal stim. Because when we recorded it and when we listened to it, we didn’t think about it at all. So, it’s amazing to see, like, how people interpret our songs.
Shazfa: So now, like, our global fans, like, learn Indonesian from that vocal stim. So, it’s something to be proud of.
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SH: You’re creating this idea of “Island Pop.” If you had to explain it without talking about genres at all, what does it sound like, look like, or feel like?
Esther: It sounds like, looks like, feels like, no na.
Shazfa: It sounds like listening to our songs on the beach. Sipping coconut water under the coconut tree with your sisters, with your friends.
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
SH: There’s a lot of confidence throughout island girl, but confidence can look really different from person to person. What does feeling confident actually look like for each of you?
Esther: Ooh, that’s a good question!
Baila: When I put on my best outfit.
Shazfa: Confidence to me is when you know who you truly are and what you’re not. So, when people talk about you in a way that you know yourself best, that is when you’re most confident. So, knowing who you truly are, being peaceful with your true self, and feeling secure. That’s what confidence is to me.
Esther: I feel the most confident when I’m the happiest. That’s me!
Baila: When she’s in the studio.
Esther: That is true! But if I’m not happy in the studio, I probably won’t be as confident. As long as I’m happy and filled with joy!
Christy: I think because I’m very introverted, I feel like I’m very confident when I’m on stage, and people say that as well.
Esther: Whenever she’s not speaking to anybody, she’s the most confident [laughs].
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
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SH: You’re four people, but island girl has one really strong personality. How do you make sure all four of you still feel like yourselves inside no na?
Baila: You know what? Even in the making, in the process of making the concept, island girl and no na, it already feels like us, and we didn’t want to make a concept that is not true to who we are. So, no na is actually already little pieces of each of us.
Shazfa: I feel like in everything that we put out, for example, even in our songs, we still try to keep our own tone, our own flavor to it. So, for example, in “Work,” it would sound harmonious, and, like, we would sound together, but each member’s part would sound different. And then also for choreography, we would shine with our own flavor in the choreography as well. So, still, like, with our own taste to it.
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
SH: You’re calling this album island girl. What does being an “island girl” actually mean to each of you?
Baila: To be slow living.
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
Esther: Yes. Work-life balance.
Baila: Work-life balance. That’s no na.
Esther: An island girl is someone who’s very carefree, playful, candid. Super candid. Free. Actually, that’s the one word that will encapsulate all of island girl: free to be yourself, free to do whatever you want to do, free to love, free to live, free to laugh.
SH: What part of island girl feels the most like something you could only have made right now, at this point in your lives?
Esther: I feel like there are some songs on the album that we can only do now because of how much we have improved vocally. There’s a song on the album called “nick of time.” It’s a hard song. And “durian.” Those two songs. Oh, and “smooth.” These are songs that I could only achieve after years and years of being pushed beyond my vocal limits.
And I feel like that’s the same for the three of you, too. I feel like those are some of our best, best vocal performances so far. I don’t think we could have done that two or three years ago.
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SH: I love that an angkot horn can literally become part of a pop song on “honk!” What are some sounds, memories, or little things from everyday life in Indonesia that you’d love to turn into music?
Baila: I used to ride the train a lot with my family because my grandma was scared of riding on planes. She was scared of being up there. The sound of the train announcement—our trains in Indonesia are different, and it’s very soothing. I love it.
Esther: Growing up, there would be ice cream. It wasn’t ice cream trucks; it was someone on a bicycle selling ice cream. People would pass by the neighborhood complex, and they had, like, this sound that I feel like everyone knows. Once you hear it from inside your bedroom, you’ll know that the ice cream person was here. The kids are running towards it. I want to incorporate that somewhere.
Shazfa: Similar to Esther, I do remember, like, a ringtone of a milk-selling person. It’s called Susu Nasional.
Christy: So, I think because I grew up on the island, like, in a backyard space with my family. And then we lived in the same complex. In the morning, every day, I could hear the sweeping sound of my mom with the straw broom.
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
Esther: If you hear sweeping sounds in our song, that’s Christy’s mom [laughs].
SH: With island girl finally coming out, what can we expect from no na next— especially when it comes to bringing this album to life beyond the music?
Baila: So definitely touring. If you ask us, we want to do a world tour.
Esther: We hope to go on tour.
(Photo credit: Joshua Timog)
You can listen to island girl in full below:
For more insights into the new music we love, click HERE to read our interview with MONSTA X on new EP, THE PHASE.
