RISSA Just Delivered Your Next Late-Night R&B Obsession

Eora/Sydney R&B riser RISSA has today dropped her stunning new EP, WHERE LOVE ONCE WAS – a five-track glide through romance, heartbreak, and the slow, empowering climb back to yourself.

Written in just three days alongside New Zealand collaborators Edy Liu (producer) and Sam V (songwriter), the EP plays like a modern love story in chapters. From butterflies and honeymoon haze to cracks, collapse, and closure, RISSA’s velvety vocals and diaristic honesty guide listeners through every phase.

RISSA – WHERE LOVE ONCE WAS

“The project is chronologically crafted to step through the chapters of a love story… from newfound interest, to honeymoon feels, heartbreak moments and empowered acceptance,” RISSA explains. “Focus track ‘ALL I NEED’ pours out all the goodness of a classic R&B love song. Think honeymoon-stage, kicking-your-feet-in-the-air type feels.”

Fans of Cleo Sol, Mahalia or Snoh Aalegra will instantly feel at home here, as RISSA and Liu move effortlessly between buttery synth pads, arpeggiated piano lines, cinematic guitar, and jazz-tinged ambience on closer, ‘STRANGERS AGAIN’.

The EP also features previous singles ‘FALL OUT’ and ‘FOREVER’, which picked up support from triple j, triple j Unearthed and more — helping push RISSA’s catalogue past 20 million Spotify streams.

Drawing on her Polynesian/Australian background and steeped in R&B and gospel influences, RISSA has spent the last two years quietly (and now not-so-quietly) becoming one of the country’s most compelling emerging soul voices.

WHERE LOVE ONCE WAS is your new soundtrack for falling in, falling apart, and finding peace. Stream it above and wallow/walk/float accordingly.

Further Reading

RISSA Shares Emotional New Single ‘FALL OUT’, Announces Western Sydney Headline Show

Campbelltown Artist RISSA Returns With Soulful New R&B Single, ‘FOREVER’

Watch Mahalia Cover An Arctic Monkeys Classic On ‘Like A Version’