Since her debut, Mýa has always remained true to her roots, and things weren’t any different when she hit the stage during the 2026 Jazz in the Gardens (JITG) Festival.
“I’m sometimes not aware that I have songs that are actual soundtracks to people’s lives, if that pertains to anyone,” she recalled to Blavity backstage after her performance. “So I don’t really think like that, but I do think that it’s always a blessing to just be able to do music. I love how I feel when I turn on some good music, right? And if I can bring that to the stage or in another person’s life, it’s icing on the cake. No complaints.”
An ode to ’90s R&B
From handing out roses and CDs with her latest music, Mýa went above and beyond during her performance at JITG.
While she soared through hits like “Case of the Ex,” “My Love Is Like…Wo,” “Best of Me, Part 2,” and more, the songstress also took time to cover medleys that reflect the era of ’90s R&B still relished by many.
She also performed her latest single, “ASAP,” which features rapper and R&B enthusiast 21 Savage on the official remix.
“I first wanted to see if he liked the record because it’s a little old-school, and R&B has subgenres and subcategories, so I sent it to his manager, and his manager was like he loves the record,” Mýa recalled of the process of getting the Atlanta rapper on the track, which she said was intentional.
“I flew out to Atlanta and set up a session, and we were in the studio together,” she continued. “That very rarely happens with two people that have very busy schedules. It was a wonderful experience just getting to see him in this process, and him listening to all of my lyrics, but then doing 21 Savage fully on my record. I love the two different generations, as well as that fusion of today’s hip-hop and some old-school homage R&B too, because the record was influenced by a couple of skate memories that I have at the skating rink — four wheels, by the way (laughs) — and band vibes. That whole era of the late ’80s.”
Home is where her heart remains
To close out her JITG Fest set, Mýa transformed her classic record alongside Blackstreet, Mase and Blinky Blink, “Take Me There,” which is featured on The Rugrats Movie soundtrack, into a go-go mix.
If you’re not familiar with go-go, it is a percussion-heavy subgenre of funk music that originated in the singer’s hometown of Washington, D.C., thanks to the late Chuck Brown.
“Home is home,” said Mýa. “And home is gonna tell you about yourself. I’m very close with my family, my friends that I went to elementary school with, just really keeping a tight-knit community. But I’m in it for the right reasons as well, and this thing called fame has just never gotten to me or ever done anything for me.”
She added, “I live, I breathe, I love music, and I will always find a way to just be able to be around it, first of all, for my own personal joy, and then to be able to write for my own personal therapy, and releasing it into the universe for maybe someone out there that feels the same way, and just kind of sharing energy or thoughts and hopefully uplifting someone else in the process. I love the opportunity. We’re not stopping anytime soon. I love being independent.”
The post Mýa Explains Tapping 21 Savage For Her ‘ASAP’ Remix And Their Rare Studio Session appeared first on Blavity.
