Maasho is a quirky star in the making. It is a sentiment that becomes immediately apparent upon listening to his latest pop-rock anthem, “SAD MACHINE.”

Maasho is enjoying his journey. He spent six months cultivating new music and exploring nuanced pop and rock production styles. He documents 2020 as being a year of discovery for his lyrical storytelling as well. “SAD MACHINE” follows the release of “BIG SHOT!,” as the second single from his forthcoming album, ABESWRLD. 

The song honors our innate duality. It’s for party animals who want to scream the lyrics at the top of their lungs, but it simultaneously possesses a quiet power, perfect for those shy, wallflowers enjoying the party play out before their eyes. 

The music video is a perfect visual accompaniment to the messaging of the song. Throughout it, the titular sad machine is its own entity with a seeming life of its own. So much so that by the end, Maasho engages in a physical altercation with said sad machine, as they fight and try to throw the other one in the pool. Ultimately, the viewers see a broken and dysfunctional sad machine floating in the water, demonstrating Maasho’s victory over his sadness. 

With ABESWRLD on the horizon, this is only the beginning for Maasho, and we can’t wait to see what’s in store.

Listen to “SAD MACHINE” below:

Looking for a new, cool and easy summertime song to add to your playlist? Let it be “BIGSHOT! (feat. Sonny Miles)” by the young and budding artist, Maasho.

18-year-old Ethiopian artist Abel Maasho, a.k.a. Maasho, began his career in 2018 on SoundCloud with his first release “Turn Me Up,” followed by his first EP “Senioritis.” Maasho will begin studying at North Carolina State University next semester, where he plans to continue to gain inspiration through collaborating with other like-minded artists on campus. His musical influences include Jack Harlow, SAINt JHN, Dominic Fike and Kevin Abstract.

Fast forward, Maasho’s most listened to song, “Fresh Air (feat. Weston Estate),” currently has over 3M streams on Spotify alone. His music has been featured on playlists such as “Anti Pop” and “No Borders.” Maasho’s single, “Chanel”, released this past March, is also impressive. With each new track Maasho releases, we further appreciate his ability to serve as a musical chameleon.

“BIGSHOT! (feat. Sonny Miles)” is perfectly chill and refreshing. Maasho instills his bright and youthful energy, while maturely referencing multiple genres even within this one song. There are indie rock elements in the guitar line and vocal tones of Maasho and featured artist, Sonny Miles, who comes in on the second verse. Simultaneously, the lyric verses are structured as soul rap music. The track also achieves a pop flare, as the chorus is catchy and definitely fit for radio play.

Maasho plans to continue to reach new heights in his artist career. In fact, before featuring Sonny Miles on this single, he had looked up to Sonny forever. Maasho knew he needed to produce the opportune track that was strong enough to present to him though. “BIGSHOT!” made the cut, which goes to show how Maasho achieves what he sets out to do.

Listen to “BIGSHOT!” below: