Behind the scenes at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, this interview with Jayaa offers a rare glimpse into the creative evolution of her track Thumbelina and the collaborative process behind it.
I first met Jayaa through a mutual contact in Bangkok who had previously worked with the Grammy organisation, and who introduced me to a number of outstanding young artists in the region, including talents such as Chat and Graydon. From the outset, Jayaa stood out. At just 19 years old, she is a calm, thoughtful and beautifully grounded artist, currently studying in Sydney while developing a truly international music career.
Originally, Thumbelina began life as a funky, groove-driven demo. Jayaa recorded her initial vocal over this energetic arrangement, bringing a natural warmth and clarity to the track. However, as we continued to develop the song together, it became clear that her voice carried a different emotional weight—one that leaned more toward subtlety and space.
We made the decision to completely reimagine the production, transforming it into a chilled pop and smooth jazz-influenced arrangement. This shift not only better supported her vocal tone, but also revealed the depth and elegance of her global pop sound, which sits comfortably within both contemporary pop and smooth jazz styles.
Working with emerging artists like Jayaa is one of the most rewarding aspects of The Steve Bell Projects. She represents a new generation of international talent—refined, versatile, and deeply musical. This session captures the moment where a song truly finds its identity through collaboration.
Listen to the music of The Steve Bell Projects on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music via this link: https://linktr.ee/thestevebellprojects ‘My thrill is to take relatively unknown, very unique and talented singers and compose and arrange retro songs that they record.’ Born in Melbourne, Australia, Steve Bell was brought up on seventies and eighties pop, soul and funk. He was obsessed with Earth Wind and Fire, Bee Gees, Al Jarreau, Gino Vannelli, TOTO, George Benson and, the great, David Foster. He liked class music with rich melodies - a big feature of his own writing today. While at college he played drums in numerous bands, but in his own words ‘wasn’t much chop at that’. But he did have a knack for playing piano by ear and writing ‘kind of cool’ ballads and soul songs. In his twenties he had a part-time role (on top of his day job) as a pop music critic for a local arts magazine, where he interviewed acclaimed artists from across the world. His interviews were always deep and focused on learning more and more about great songwriting and performing. Then he took a break - for over 25 years, running his company and being a family ‘guy’. However, he yearned for creative endeavours and once locked down during the COVID crisis, he started writing songs again. His first song ‘Lonely View’ was written looking out across the local bay from his composing studio and recorded using the amazing vocals of Jennifer Davids. Thus he started the journey of identifying a talented singer every few months and penning them a song with rich 70s and 80s melodies and jazz pop inspired chord structures.
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