We are in a world slowly awakening to the female experience (at least us men are). Layla Kaylif is the latest artist capturing it and distilling it to music, adding her voice to the chorus that is changing and rebalancing perceptions.
By Graeme Smith
Feature photo by Rebecca Miller
Her new album, Call of The Yoni explores a “7-in-1” concept of womanhood where each of its seven tracks explores a different facet of the gender. The topics range from the personal to the political with innovation, eros, sovereignty, spirituality, roots, sight, and transformation all coming under scrutiny.
It starts playfully sensual and seductive with its title track. An earthiness is embedded in every beat combining the visceral with the cherished against a backdrop of music steeped in the Arabic and pop traditions.
From there an unexpected and enlightening journey unfolds. Love and sexuality are recurring themes, creating a throughline from Call of The Yoni through to My Lover is a Saint and the heart rendering The Bride Is Beautiful (but she’s married to another man).
It’s there that the album takes on deeper meaning. The spirituality becomes poignant and runs right through to the closer, an Arabic version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.
Listen again and that poignancy comes sooner, teed up initially by single God’s Keeper which canters along groovily while telling its tortured tale. Its lyrics are packed with poetry that requires multiple listens to dissect. The nuanced mix perfectly demonstrates the point that Kaylif is making: women are deep, complex, and can be many things all at once.
That statement can be applied more broadly when you consider the instrumentation, a blend of the traditional and modern pop. It seems to state that traditions, too, are nuanced and complex, and can expand beyond their perceived confines.
It all adds up to a bold collection that refuses conventions or to censor itself. Kaylif has a strong voice which expresses thoughtful messages while keeping things approachable. I found Call of The Yoni to be a breath of fresh air in a creative world that’s feeling increasingly stale.
If you want to keep up to date with all that Layla Kaylif is doing, you can do so by following her on Instagram.
Call of The Yoni is a must-listen and demands that it be experienced from start to finish without distraction. It’s a complete, seamless, 30-minute journey that one can embark on time and again. The album is out tomorrow, 27 March 2026. You can pre-save it here.
