Toada will release Poema Colectivo, his new EP, on August 14.

Toada, real name Valdir da Silva, wrote Poema Colectivo as a cathartic artistic expression during the pandemic, reflecting on social inequalities. The calming, hopeful, and sometimes agitated tracks “emphasise the need for an honest collective response towards a better world,” he tells XLR8R. It explores downtempo and ambient, and follows his release on XLR8R+20 alongside Rob Garza from Thievery Corporation and Mike Shannon as Blue Fields.

Da Silva grew up around Sintra, a charming Portuguese town. In 2015, he conceived Toada, an amalgamation of several other musical projects that matured in Berlin, Germany.

Toada’s releases began in 2018, all of them through Plūma, his own label set up for his own work. Peso Pluma came first, capturing Toada’s downtempo electronic pop sound, and there’s since been another EP, a single, and his debut album, Cambiante, which served as a reflection of human diversity— “a statement against oversimplified categories and stereotypes,” Toada says. “It’s an ode to the variety of colours, shapes, and characteristics imprinted in each individual.”

Tracklisting

01. Ampla
02. Mexe Contigo
03. A Movida
04. Água E Menta
05. Nissi

Poema Colectivo EP is out digitally on August 14 via Plūma. Clips will be added as soon as they become available, but you can listen to Toada’s work over here.