Daphna Ban, born and raised in Ramat Hasharon, has a distinctive sound and emotionally charged lyrics. Her music, a fusion of alternative pop and indie house, blends warm electronic beats with sharp English lyricism to create a style that is unmistakably her own.
Her latest release, Heat Wave, arrived earlier this month and speaks to the growing pains that come with stepping into a new chapter as a young adolescent in her 20s.
“The main thing about it, the main subject, is how beautiful and how hurtful it is to grow up,” she told The Jerusalem Post.
She continued to describe how her music, sung in English, is largely defined by the struggle to define who she was as she began to understand herself in the formative years of early adulthood.
“The recurring motif throughout the album, which was written across five summers, is a sort of ‘summertime sadness,’ where you reflect over the past year, your experiences, who you met; a time that brings out a lot of hard emotions,” she said.
The album is really about growing up
“I had a lot of feelings like I was being left out of the music world. I realized that I don’t know who I am or what I am in this life if I’m not doing music,” Ban explained. “I guess the album is really about growing up and shaping yourself as a young adult trying to make sense of everything that happens to you.”
Heat Wave consists of soft house-like beats, emblematic of late-night introspection and quiet realizations. The record prioritizes atmosphere, creating a sound that builds and captures the turbulence inherent to growth. Each track feels slightly unresolved, something many will attest is highly representative of the journey of becoming.
It is an album rooted in finding oneself and growing up, Ban noted, as she emphasized how much her own childhood largely shaped her journey as a musician.
Although neither of her parents were musicians, her house was always ringing with the sound of Pink Floyd, jazz, classic rock, and grunge. She and her two younger brothers picked up piano at a young age, and although they all stuck with it, Ban was the only one who decided to pursue music long-term.
However, she doesn’t consider her journey with music to be a pursuit of a musical career; instead, she says, “I’ve really tried to just be a pure musician over the years, and not trying to manipulate it in that sense.”
As she decribed her goals, the sentiment of making music for its own sake shone through. Rather than chasing fame or success, she hopes to simply release as much music as possible and make a meaningful impact. She said she was just looking forward to “growing and figuring it out” and “reaching as many people as I can.”
In an effort to expand her audience internationally, Ban will be trying her luck in New York in February. Asked whether she was nervous about her Israeli identity impacting her goals, she said simply, “People ultimately like good music.”
Regarding the challenges that come with being an Israeli abroad, Ban said she would rather be authentically herself than try to escape her identity.
“Eventually, as an artist, you want to share your story. And the people who love you, love your music, need to love all of you. And I cannot disconnect from where I grew up, what I experienced, and the people I met from my music. So I’m definitely not escaping from it or hiding it.”
Although her album is written in English, Israel is deeply ingrained in the story it tells.
“The things I write about are about the essence of being here in Israel. And I’m very, very connected to this, to the state, to Israel, to my identity as an Israeli person.”
She added that she feels “it’s extremely vulnerable to write in Hebrew.”
“I think artists are amazing and super brave for writing in Hebrew. Something about the English is, like, really kind of a mask… and everything you write in Hebrew, it gives more of a meaningful purpose to the song. Maybe I’m not that brave yet to write in Hebrew. Hopefully someday I will be.”
Ban isn’t focused on a scripted path or predetermined plan; instead, she’s drawn to the uncertainty of it all. “I really love the not knowing,” she said. “The city does something to you, especially New York. I’m not expecting it to be perfect, but I’m ready for it.”
It’s a fitting mindset for someone whose work has always revolved around the messiness of being human. With this openness and excitement shaping Ban’s music, she is an artist with infinite possibilities ahead.