Drama’s house-infused production style by Na’el Shehade, features vocalist Via Rosa’s soulful delivery, which is inspired by the improvisational nature of jazz and playful patterns of hip-hop and bossa nova. Drama, recently announced the release of their debut album, Dance Without Me, on February 14, via Ghostly International. ahead of the release, they have shared a second single, entitled “Nine One One”. “This album is dedicated to the people watching their friend’s love-lives grow and happen around them, and not having anyone,” notes Rosa. There is lush lovelorn affliction blended into the tracks on ‘Dance Without Me’.

Rosa grew up in a musical household; her parents played in a reggae band and toured as a family, homeschooling Rosa into her early teens and limiting her listening primarily to Sade, oldies, Brazilian and Afrobeat music. She kept poetry journals and by high school started writing songs and making beats. After moving to Chicago in 2010, Rosa connected with THEMPeople, a collective at the center of the city’s sprawling hip-hop scene. Meanwhile, Shehade inherited an entrepreneurial drive from his late father, who immigrated from Palestine to the United States in the 1970s to build a better life. Born in Chicago, Shehade fell in love with DJ culture as a kid and took up music production and engineering; his interest eventually led to professional opportunities, including early studio work with Chance the Rapper, Kanye West, and music projects for MTV and Bravo. Since a chance meeting in 2014 lead to the creation of DRAMA, the duo has bootstrapped a subtle rise on their own terms, self-releasing several EPs and mapping multiple tours with Midwestern grit.

Drama
Dance Without Me
track list

01. 7:04 AM
02. Years
03. Forever and a Day
04. Hold On (YouTube)
05. Gimme Gimme (stream)
06. Good For Nothing
07. People Like You
08. Days and Days
09. Lifetime
10. Nine One One (stream)
11. Dance Without Me

Drama
Tour Dates

Jan 29 Manchester, UK @ Night and Day Cafe
Jan 30 London, UK @ Heaven
Feb 01 Paris, FR @ Le 1999
Feb 02 Brussels, BE @ Le Botanique (Witloof Bar)
Feb 04 Hamburg, DE @ Nochtwache
Feb 05 Cologne, DE @ Studio 672
Feb 06 Berlin, DE @ Kantine Am Berghain
Feb 07 Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
Feb 26 – Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar
Feb 27 – San Diego, CA @ Music Box
Feb 28 – Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room
Feb 29 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
Mar 04 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Mar 06 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
Mar 07 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Mar 18 – Detroit, MI @ Marble Bar
Mar 19 – Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground
Mar 20 – Montréal,QC @ Le Ministère
Mar 21 – Boston, MA @ Great Scott
Mar 26 – Brooklyn,NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Mar 27 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
Mar 28 – Washington, DC @ Union Stage
Apr 03 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
Apr 28 – Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5
Apr 30 – Dallas, TX @ Three Links
May 01 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
May 02 – Austin, TX @ Barracuda