On The Fringe

soul singer-songwriter jorja smith may be a newcomer to the scene, but she wears this season’s most free-spirited trend like a pro. by millie cotton. photographed by ben parks. styled by jeanie annan-lewin

“I’m such a wuss sometimes,” Jorja Smith concedes, seated in a makeup chair for her NYLON shoot at London’s Loft Studios. “I was listening to ‘Carry Me Home’ the other day and I got goose bumps. It’s so jokes that I get goose bumps,” she says with a laugh. It is rather funny that she isn’t accustomed to hearing her own songs, given that the slow-burning track off her debut EP, Project 11, and the string of singles that helped propel her to BBC’s coveted Sound of 2017 list have racked up millions of streams online. Still, clad in bottle-green velvet leggings and dark sunglasses, with the hood of her jumper pulled up over her head, the rising soul singer looks every bit the superstar who has sold out shows internationally, even if she doesn’t yet feel like one.