NOTION The Artists Vol. 1: Maeta

Maeta is nothing like I imagined. You’d expect someone whose music drips with sultry R&B and heartbreak to wear that emotional weight on her sleeve, right? But here she is, beaming at me from her home, practically glowing. Though she is fresh out of a breakup, you’d never know it. It’s like she wears a halo of positivity: she is vibrant and perky, thriving even.

It’s 9am in LA, where she now calls home, and while the city is just waking up, Maeta seems already in tune with something beyond. “Girl, I just had an astrology reading, and she broke me down to a T,” she laughs. And what did the stars have to say about her? “Basically, I’m adaptable, calm and collected: a classic Pisces,” she shrugs. But astrology is only the tip of the iceberg in Maeta’s spiritual life: “Manifestation is real”, she promises, and it’s her real superpower. “It’s a human superpower we all have. It’s so real, it has to be”, she insists.

Don’t get it twisted, Maeta is no wannabe astrology babe on the cusp of a spiritual awakening because of a TikTok or trend: this is deeply rooted. “My mum’s a hippie, she’s so spiritual. She taught me about manifestation when I was younger, so I’ve always practised it,” she pauses, brow furrowed: “What was that book she always read? You know what I mean, right? The Secret! I knew I had it,” she laughs.

Maeta unabashedly laughs throughout our entire conversation. And why wouldn’t she? Fresh off the release of her fourth EP, Endless Night, this summer, she’s riding a wave of euphoria. Featuring seven breezy tracks, the EP was produced by her best bud and Canadian DJ, KAYTRANADA, who infuses his stretched basslines, punchy kicks, and icy synths that scream summer vibes into her sound. “I’ve been itching to break out of the R&B bubble for a while. I listen to so many different genres, I don’t want to be boxed into just one,” says Maeta. While KAYTRANADA’S beats crank up the fun, it’s Maeta’s sharp, crisp vocals that truly elevate the tracks. “It was effortless,” she says, referencing the chemistry between them, “Just too easy.”

Only put together in a matter of months, Endless Night shows Maeta fully in experimental mode, slicing through the narrative that dominated her earlier work. What narrative? “The sad R&B girl in a relationship,” she chuckles. “I’m such a lover-girl. All of my songs used to talk about the same man, the same relationship, the same toxic stuff, it’s time to cut it off.” But don’t get it mistaken, abandoning that narrative doesn’t mean she’s straying from her roots. Maeta’s music somehow will always feel lived in, like she’s poured every heartbreak, every late-night thought, every good and bad relationship into it.

Take her breakthrough track, ‘Through The Night’, from the 2023 EP, When I Hear Your Name, it paradigmatically encapsulates Matea’s sound. It’s the kind of track you play on repeat when you’re deep in your feelings, questioning if going back to your ex for the tenth time is really such a bad idea. Spoiler alert: it is. Resonating widely, the track hit number one on the Billboard Adult R&B chart, a huge triumph for the 24-year-old, who’s still rising through the ranks. But what makes Maeta stand out from the rest is her disarming humility. “Nothing in my life is really celebrated as it doesn’t feel real.

I haven’t got my plaque yet. I’ve been complaining about it for months. I think once I get the plaque, it’ll feel real,” she says. Surely, she knocked back a few celebratory drinks at least? “I mean, I have a drink for everything and anything,” she chuckles mischievously.

Maeta’s not one to stop and pat herself on the back – if she did, she’d be doing it for a while. Her introspective, modern sound didn’t happen overnight, but it’s been in the works since she was a kid. Aged seven, she found her voice, and by 13, she was already signed by management. A whirlwind? Sure. But for Maeta, it felt all too natural. “I thought I was it when I was thirteen. I was so confident back then. I now look back and realise that I had so much to learn and go through. I didn’t know anything, but it always felt so comfortable. That’s how you own what you want. You have to feel like you belong in the industry, even if you don’t,” she says. But for Maeta, there was no plan B. She always knew she wanted to be a singer and knew that she would get there, no matter what.

In many ways, such rock-solid self-belief stems from her Midwest upbringing in the heart of Indianapolis, where her childhood was steeped in good energy and freedom. “Everyone is chill in the Midwest,”she says. Her mum was and still is a holistic healer, and her dad a creative landscaper, both created a house buzzing with freedom. “We never locked the doors. Anybody could come over. We would just run around, leave the house, and come back with an even bigger group of friends. I miss those days,” she says wistfully. Here, some of Maeta’s earliest musical memories were hatched. No, it wasn’t her parents’ record collection that flipped her musical switch. Instead, it was Leona Lewis and, more specifically, her music video for ‘Bleeding Love’. “I played it on loop all day long. She had this lover-girl vibe that I was in awe of. Her soulful energy, her ballads, I wanted to be her. It made me set on becoming a singer.”

But not everything was so mapped out. She might’ve had a manager at 13, but by 18, the question hit: was being a singer a viable future? Naturally she drifted, tagging along with friends as they started college hunting. One week after campus tours and dorm visits, Roc Nation—Jay- Z’s powerhouse music label—came knocking. Spotting soulful Instagram covers of Daniel Caesar and H.E.R’s ‘Best Part’ and Sabrina Claudio’s iconic ‘Unravel Me’, a meeting ensued and, just like that, everything changed. Alone in her room, she signed a life-altering contract at 1 am on her bed and a few days later jetted off to LA and got to work. “Sometimes I wonder what they saw in me,” Maeta questions . “I was this weird kid with a pixie cut. Thank god they saw the potential.”

From the jump, it was clear that Los Angeles fit her like a glove. Since her debut with ‘Debbie Downer’—a melancholic,easy-going number— back in 2019, she’s been chopping it up with big names like Lucky Daye, Kehlani and SZA, admitting to taking inspiration from the unique way that SZA pronounces words. “Collaborating is my favourite part about being an artist. I love hearing different perspectives from people around the world. You can take a little bit from everybody,” Maeta says.

Still learning as she goes, Maeta understands more than ever the importance of believing in herself and taking control of her career. “When I started out, I had 400 people critiquing my music, what I wore, how I looked and how I did interviews. When you constantly hear criticism, you lose yourself. I went through that recently. But at the end of the day, you’ve got to trust yourself. I’m the artist. We are here because of me,” she says with sincerity. This bold declaration showcases Maeta’s laser-focused ambition that has taken her to the apex of the R&B scene. Now, she’s taking back her power firmly and assuredly setting her sights on one goal: to dominate the global stage. “I want to be a damn pop star. However, I get there, I get there. I don’t plan my way, I just know I’ll get there no matter what. I want to stamp my name on this world and make sure my art and music outlive me.”

And what better way to announce herself and her trajectory than dropping her debut album? Still tweaking the final touches, the record marks a new chapter for Maeta, a chance to tear up the rulebook and declare who she truly is. “Instead of singing about relationships, I’m singing about me. I’m ready to own myself, own what I’ve been through, and own who I am.” Now that she’s done with mapping out old scars, asserting her agency has made Maeta step into “grittier” soundscapes, experimenting with darker and heavier realms that dig deep into the soul. But don’t expect a total mood shift, Maeta is still embracing that lover-girl energy she’s known for. “I want people to listen to the album and really feel how love hits me. I’m a lover-girl. Love drives me. I’m bringing back feel- good love songs. Right now, everything feels so toxic and petty. I want the album to feel like a warm hug.”

Right now, Maeta is chasing more than just musical heights, she’s seeking a deeper kind of fulfilment. After years of living in overdrive, she is finally realising that hitting pause is sometimes part of the journey. “I was like 10 years old worrying about my damn singing career,” she laughs reflecting on how “career-obsessed” she’s been from day one. She interjects, “This whole interview’s going to be all about astrology, but readers keep telling me how my career is my life. I couldn’t change it if I wanted to. But I’m working on living a little more.” How is she living life to the fullest? “My career and love are two things that drive me, so I’m trying to date more. I love love. I want something serious for once, something healthy.” And that’s not all, she’s also got big travel plans that do not involve work. “Every time I travel, I freak out as I feel like I’m wasting my life not working. I want to experience things without feeling guilty for it.”

Call it fate, call it manifestation, or just straight-up cosmic energy, it was clear from the get-go that Maeta’s path would always lead to this. She’s building her own world, where heartbreak, growth and love coexist, raw and unapologetic. And in this next chapter, she’s taking full control, making her mark, all while love rides shotgun. Because after all, what’s life without a little bit of love?