Joalin knows how to commit to the bit. The 23-year-old Finnish-Mexican singer promoted her single, GUM, by having the title tattooed on the inside of her lip. “It’s good promo,” she tells me, nonchalantly. As a Gen Z social media pro, she decided to take her three million Instagram followers along for the ride by filming it. “People are always curious when I’m getting tattoos.”
She had a five-hour session booked with her tattoo artist, but the lip took only 10 minutes. So she decided to get CAMALEÓN — the title of her new mixtape — inked in large cursive looping around her entire forearm. “I’m a very impulsive person when it comes to tattoos,” she smiles.
When it comes to her music, however, Joalin is the opposite. “My issue is I am a bit of a perfectionist,” she says. “We’ll work on the songs for three years and try all different things. But I’ve realised, most of the time when making art, the first version is always the best.”
She’s been agonising over which five tracks to include in CAMALEÓN, but it’s finally ready. “It’s been a long process,” says Joalin. “I’m very excited to get it out because all the songs in the mixtape are songs that I’ve been holding on to for so long.”
Joalin (pronounced Yo-a-leen) may look like a Nordic starlet, with her elfin features and long blonde hair, but her upbringing has steeped her in Mexican musical culture. Born in Finland, she moved to Spain when she was three, then to Mexico when she was 10. Her mother married a Mexican, and she has two Mexican siblings.
The outcome is Scandi-pop layered over reggaetón beats, creating sultry and highly danceable tunes. Hence the name of her new mixtape — Spanish for chameleon, the adaptable lizard.
Moving back to Finland four years ago was a bit of a culture shock. “My heart is more Mexican, I’m more socially Mexican,” she explains. “I’m louder and more out there and I feel Finnish people are a bit quieter, more socially awkward and shy.” As a former immigrant herself, she’s found the news coming out of LA of people targeted in immigration raids “heart-breaking”.
She still writes and sings primarily in Spanish, with a smattering of English. “All my studies have been in Spanish, my first crushes, everything has been in Spanish,” she says. “So it’s definitely much easier to write more personal and meaningful stuff.”
Still, this summer Joalin is looking forward to connecting with her Finnish fans on a six-show tour. “It’s a small exclusive tour,” she says. “I’m doing some festivals so I get to perform, then just chill. It’s nice because I haven’t travelled in Finland before.” She adds: “You get to see the people behind the numbers. You’re like, oh, they’re actually real and they actually like my music.”
CAMALEÓN is out now on Because London Records.
