Space is a continuous area or expanse that is free, available or unoccupied. I’ve often thought about the spaces we inhabit, the spaces we long for or find ourselves gravitating towards. These spaces are an extension of us and our lived experience. They can be as vast as a rural landscape or as intimate as a belly growing life. It can be a gentle breeze or a deep exchange between two people. Space is therefore subjective to the individual who occupies or experiences it, and steeped in personal exploration. Thus, Holding Space was born – Nataal’s new series exploring the spaces artists inhabit and where they feel their personal life, practice and creativity are most held.

We begin with French-Senegalese artist anaiis whose music is an uplifting fusion of soulful melodies, heartfelt lyrics and infectious rhythms. Her songs often explore themes of love, identity and belonging, creating music that transcends cultural barriers. From her headline show at the Barbican this September to her recent remix of Kokoroko’s ‘Home’, and with fashion collaborations ranging from Paul Smith to Valentino, anaiis continues to put out inspiring projects. None more so than the deluxe edition of her 2021 debut album, ‘This is no longer a dream’, which comes out next week. A reimagining of the original, it boasts a line-up of remixes with like-minded artists including Jamilah Barry on ‘Vanishing’, Karen Myame KG on ‘Transcending’, Chronixx on ‘Cry in your sleep’ and dropping this week, Years & Years and Eun on 'Juno’ – plus the new track ‘Openhearted’.

On a grey and rainy afternoon in South London, anaiis greets me warmly in her home. I’m welcomed into a room where her walls are adorned with totems of her artistic relationships, from a Ronan Mckenzie print hanging over the fireplace to a Touching Bass poster displayed in a snug corner. anaiis tells me that she's put a lot of effort into making this particular space feel cosy since becoming a mother and committing to a winter in London. We settle in to speak about the ways anaiis holds space.

IC: What’s the biggest change you’ve gone through in this last year?

A: Being a mother is the most transformative thing that’s ever happened to me. It really challenges you and softens you. I’ve learned to have a lot more grace for myself and others and a lot more patience. It will take you through every colour of the spectrum, but it’s a very beautiful way to access growth. I don’t know how you could expand without that because it really just pushes you to your limits. It’s amazing, but it's also hard.

IC: A lot of the time the hard part is not mentioned because there’s guilt associated with showing that side.

A: Exactly. Maybe now there's a turning point where, in general society, we talk about things more and express the not-so-great things. This is why it's so important that people have made that space possible. Everybody is different; there’s no one way that it goes down. So, we need to hear all of those testimonies, and have communities with whom we can be honest about what we're going through. If you're alone in it and if you feel like you can't share, then you're going to sink. But the moment someone says, ‘I see you and I've been through it, let me just sit with you whilst you're going through this’, that can be life-changing.

IC: How do you feel like your space has changed and evolved?

A: Before I had my son, I had always thought at some point I would have some time to live on my own, as it was important to know what it was like to be by myself first. That never happened because I got pregnant. So, we immediately moved into this space together. We went from just dating to learning how to be a family. I dance with both my son and my partner to work out how we all co-exist within this space so that it serves all of us but also serves us individually. Having a room where you get to create or that is just yours is so important. My son has his own room, which I really value because I know not everyone has that. This separation allows me to come back to myself as an individual, and I've slowly been trying to create more spaces like that in my life.

IC: How has your most recent milestones influenced that change in space?

A: I had to start to think about what would help me expand. Nothing defines me; everything is an exploration, so the transition into feeling like there's less space for me almost forced me to carve a new space for myself. It allowed me to see myself in a new way, and it also allowed me to create a bit more separation from the things that were completely consuming me, which created a sense of freedom and possibility as well.

IC: What spaces do you look to for inspiration and reassurance?

A: I often look to nature; it helps me see the possibility within myself. If I'm starting to feel like the world is pushing me to be more productive than I need to be, I can look to nature and think, well, actually, there are times where seeds have just been planted, and then there's time for blossom, and there's time for the blossom to fall away, and then there's a rebirth. That helps to give me a sense of, not certainty but reassurance that I'm okay with growing at my own pace and going through my own flow of seasons, shifts and evolutions.

IC: What's one of your favourite natural spaces where you go to reset?

A: I'm a mountain person; I love to be back in the valleys or surrounded by mountains. I like the ocean, but I could easily be in a beach town and not really go to the beach. When I'm in an expansive landscape with rolling hills, I feel very serene and calm.

IC: What’s a space you’d like to occupy in the future?

A: I love churches, I’d love to perform in the Union Chapel one day. I prefer intimate spaces and feeling close to my audience.

IC: What title would you give this chapter of your life?

A: I would call it ‘Rebirth’. There’s a new feeling of possibility within myself. I'm rediscovering who I am, and that's partly because when you're younger, you start to form an idea of who you are, and then you live out that idea, right? Then something came and completely disrupted my world and my life as I knew it. So now I don't only get to discover things like my son and my new life but I’m allowing myself to be surprised by what I'm capable of, what could exist for me, or even something as simple as trying new things.

IC: What’s something that moved you recently?

A: The photographer Delphine Diallo, who's a family friend in New York, did these AI generated images of Palestinian children with birds and wings. I felt really moved by that because when you're seeing all the horribleness, through that imagery, she allowed me to see the children through a different gaze.

IC: Where do you enjoy spending most of your time in your space?

A: Recently it's become the front room. I've quite liked reading in here and seeing the trees in the morning. When I’m meditating and the sun comes through the window, I can feel it on my face as the warmth of the light moves across the room.

IC: What's a significant song from your childhood?

A: There's a song by the Angolan artist Bonga called ‘Mona Ki Ngi Xica’ that just does something to my soul. I don't know when that song came into my life but it's just never left. It has this really beautiful impact on me. His voice is so incredibly moving. The whistling and hums envelop you and make you feel held. I have no idea what he's saying, but I feel so safe listening to that song. It just speaks about the power of music, voice and vibration, and without even understanding what the words are, the message is still being communicated.

IC: What’s a lyric you've written that has a special place in your heart?

A: ‘Never been home’ (from the album ‘Darkness at play’ 2019) was written with my friend Jonathan Geyevu, who is one of the most incredible pianists. I was so deeply in love with his composition that it became an outpouring of emotion. Imagine meeting someone and they just asked you that right question and all of a sudden, things that you've never been able to speak about are able to come out. One of the lyrics that comes to mind is, ‘Maybe we hold onto each other because we’re so afraid of ourselves, and all of the chaos we are made of’’. When I wrote it, I was thinking about that fear of solitude and loneliness and holding on to things, people, ideas, friends, because maybe I was afraid of my own power or of seeing what is within me. Whatever that was going to reveal, I could find hidden in these other people. And so that lyric stands out because it's just so honest to me.

IC: Can you write a handwritten note?